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Margaret A. O'Reilly

Margaret A. O'Reilly, PC

Margaret A. O'Reilly

Margaret A. O'Reilly, PC

Margaret A. O'Reilly

Margaret A. O'Reilly, PC

Margaret A. O’Reilly is an estate planning and elder law attorney with over thirty-five years of legal experience. Attorney O’Reilly graduated from Duke University with a degree in psychology, and received her law degree from Northeastern University School of Law in Boston, Massachusetts. For over 15 years, Attorney O’Reilly focused her practice on personal injury and medical malpractice litigation, representing injured persons in claims for compensation and benefits. Because of her work with the families of her clients, she developed an interest in end-of-life decision making and the ethical issues – both biomedical and legal – confronting families who are faced with these decisions. She studied health law and bioethics, and redirected her practice to the area of elder law. She continues to have a particular interest in health care decision-making and the difficult issues confronted by families in caring for an elderly relative.

Born and raised in Fairfax County, Attorney O’Reilly practiced law in the Boston area for 25 years before returning to northern Virginia in the fall of 2003. She is active in several community and non-profit groups, and serves on the board of directors for the Herndon Rotary Club and Arts Herndon. She is a frequent instructor for both legal and community groups, including Virginia Continuing Legal Education, the National Business Institute, and the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute of George Mason University.

Attorney O’Reilly is certified as a specialist in elder law by the National Elder Law Foundation, and has been selected as a member of the Council of Advanced Practitioners of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. She serves on the board of directors of the Virginia Chapter of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys. Margaret A. O’Reilly, PC is included by US News & World Report in their 2018 Best Law Firms list. Firms in the list are recognized for professional excellence with persistently impressive ratings from clients and peers. Achieving a tiered ranking signals a unique combination of quality law practice and breadth of legal expertise. Attorney O’Reilly has been selected to the 2017 Virginia Super Lawyers list, an honor reserved for those lawyers who exhibit excellence in practice. Only 5% of attorneys in Virginia receive this distinction. Ms. O’Reilly also has been selected by her peers for inclusion in the 23rd edition (2017) of “Best Lawyers in America”. She is recognized as a “Super Lawyer” in the field of elder law, and as one of the top elder law attorneys in the greater Washington DC area by Washingtonian Magazine. Margaret O’Reilly, PC is ranked as one of the “Best Law Firms” for the DC area in 2017 by BestLawyers.com.

She focuses her practice in the fields of estate planning, elder law, trust and estate administration, guardianships, and special needs planning.

Firm Description

Margaret A. O’Reilly, PC, is a community-based practice dedicated to providing estate planning services to clients of all ages and specialized elder law services to seniors and their families.

Hours

Day From To
Monday 9:00 AM 5:00 PM
Tuesday 9:00 AM 5:00 PM
Wednesday 9:00 AM 5:00 PM
Thursday 9:00 AM 5:00 PM
Friday 9:00 AM 5:00 PM

Cost

What Is an Elder Law Attorney?

Main Office

441 Carlisle Drive Ste A
Herndon, VA 20170

On the web

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Medicaid 101
What Medicaid Covers

In addition to nursing home care, Medicaid may cover home care and some care in an assisted living facility. Coverage in your state may depend on waivers of federal rules.

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How to Qualify for Medicaid

To be eligible for Medicaid long-term care, recipients must have limited incomes and no more than $2,000 (in most states). Special rules apply for the home and other assets.

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Medicaid’s Protections for Spouses

Spouses of Medicaid nursing home residents have special protections to keep them from becoming impoverished.

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What Medicaid Covers

In addition to nursing home care, Medicaid may cover home care and some care in an assisted living facility. Coverage in your state may depend on waivers of federal rules.

READ MORE
How to Qualify for Medicaid

To be eligible for Medicaid long-term care, recipients must have limited incomes and no more than $2,000 (in most states). Special rules apply for the home and other assets.

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Medicaid’s Protections for Spouses

Spouses of Medicaid nursing home residents have special protections to keep them from becoming impoverished.

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Medicaid Planning Strategies

Careful planning for potentially devastating long-term care costs can help protect your estate, whether for your spouse or for your children.

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Estate Recovery: Can Medicaid Take My House After I’m Gone?

If steps aren't taken to protect the Medicaid recipient's house from the state’s attempts to recover benefits paid, the house may need to be sold.

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Help Qualifying and Paying for Medicaid, Or Avoiding Nursing Home Care

There are ways to handle excess income or assets and still qualify for Medicaid long-term care, and programs that deliver care at home rather than in a nursing home.

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Are Adult Children Responsible for Their Parents’ Care?

Most states have laws on the books making adult children responsible if their parents can't afford to take care of themselves.

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Applying for Medicaid

Applying for Medicaid is a highly technical and complex process, and bad advice can actually make it more difficult to qualify for benefits.

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Alternatives to Medicaid

Medicare's coverage of nursing home care is quite limited. For those who can afford it and who can qualify for coverage, long-term care insurance is the best alternative to Medicaid.

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ElderLaw 101
Estate Planning

Distinguish the key concepts in estate planning, including the will, the trust, probate, the power of attorney, and how to avoid estate taxes.

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Grandchildren

Learn about grandparents’ visitation rights and how to avoid tax and public benefit issues when making gifts to grandchildren.

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Guardianship/Conservatorship

Understand when and how a court appoints a guardian or conservator for an adult who becomes incapacitated, and how to avoid guardianship.

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Health Care Decisions

We need to plan for the possibility that we will become unable to make our own medical decisions. This may take the form of a health care proxy, a medical directive, a living will, or a combination of these.

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Estate Planning

Distinguish the key concepts in estate planning, including the will, the trust, probate, the power of attorney, and how to avoid estate taxes.

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Grandchildren

Learn about grandparents’ visitation rights and how to avoid tax and public benefit issues when making gifts to grandchildren.

READ MORE
Guardianship/Conservatorship

Understand when and how a court appoints a guardian or conservator for an adult who becomes incapacitated, and how to avoid guardianship.

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Health Care Decisions

We need to plan for the possibility that we will become unable to make our own medical decisions. This may take the form of a health care proxy, a medical directive, a living will, or a combination of these.

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Long-Term Care Insurance

Understand the ins and outs of insurance to cover the high cost of nursing home care, including when to buy it, how much to buy, and which spouse should get the coverage.

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Medicare

Learn who qualifies for Medicare, what the program covers, all about Medicare Advantage, and how to supplement Medicare’s coverage.

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Retirement Planning

We explain the five phases of retirement planning, the difference between a 401(k) and an IRA, types of investments, asset diversification, the required minimum distribution rules, and more.

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Senior Living

Find out how to choose a nursing home or assisted living facility, when to fight a discharge, the rights of nursing home residents, all about reverse mortgages, and more.

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Social Security

Get a solid grounding in Social Security, including who is eligible, how to apply, spousal benefits, the taxation of benefits, how work affects payments, and SSDI and SSI.

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Special Needs Planning

Learn how a special needs trust can preserve assets for a person with disabilities without jeopardizing Medicaid and SSI, and how to plan for when caregivers are gone.

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Veterans Benefits

Explore benefits for older veterans, including the VA’s disability pension benefit, aid and attendance, and long-term care coverage for veterans and surviving spouses.

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