W HEN SHOULD A FUNERAL BE ARRANGED?
There is no correct time to arrange a funeral, except when it becomes an immediate necessity due to a death close to you. At that time it is necessary to make arrangements with a funeral director so that all the details involved in the funeral of a loved one may be taken care of in a timely manner. Individuals often find it very stressful to be rushed into decisions when arranging at need funerals and may choose to pre-arrange a funeral, whether it is for a member of their family or for themselves.

WHAT GENERAL INFOMATION IS NEEDED WHEN MAKING ARRANGEMENTS FOR A FUNERAL?
Whether "at-need" or "pre-need" arrangements, parameters will virtually be the same. One of the first decisions that an individual, or member of a family will need to make is whether the final disposition of the body will be by burial or cremation. Next, a basic outline of the type of services desired is decided and the funeral director will work with you to arrange the rest. Some of the service decisions you will need to make will include and be based on desires for: viewing, public calling hours, length of funeral period, amount of money you spend, where the service is to be held and the type of merchandise to be used.


WHAT IS INVOLVED IN PRE-ARRANGING?
Pre-arranging a funeral can be as simple as discussing with your spouse, the individual or family what type of services and disposition is desired. The next step would be to get details in writing with a funeral home, who then keeps a copy of desired services and information for the future. Under most circumstances, this may involve complete arrangements that may include choosing merchandise, signing authorizations, leaving obituary and legal information and even pre-payment.

C AN PRE-PAYMENT BE MADE?
All types of funeral services can be prepaid. This may be done purely for peace of mind, to relieve the burden of payment for survivors or to satisfy state requirements when an individual is applying for state aid. Money that is prepaid, is for the current price discussed at the funeral home for the services desired, trying to pay for most everything involved in a funeral. The monies are placed in a trust account that can only be used to pay for funeral expenses at the beneficiaries death.

W hat are the basic Guidelines?
If you are applying for Medicaid (Title 19), you may have an Irrevocable Funeral Contract that is worth up to $5400.00 and/or a Burial Plot Contract (for certain items), neither of which will count as an asset for Medicaid purposes.

By utilizing these two pre-payment contracts, most funerals desired by an individual or for a loved one can be fully pre-paid in the state of Connecticut.

Please contact us for guidance with setting up a pre-payment and further advice as you get ready to apply for Title 19.