Northern Virginia Law Blog

Statistics show that the U.S. spends more on health care per capita than any other country. However, not all of this is government spending. Many Virginia residents carry a heavy burden of medical bills. This has resulted in an ever increasing inability to pay for out-of-pocket costs associated with expensive medical necessities.

An insidious consequence underlies the cost of medical care -- those who don't have insurance or whose copayments and deductibles are too high may simply forego necessary treatment. Financial experts report that those who do seek the care they need are very likely to end up with debt as a result. Perhaps the only good news associated with this situation is that medical debt is no longer regarded the same as other types of debt, specifically credit card debt. This provides the consumer with some options.

Seeing as the new year has begun, most people living in Virginia have started to carry out their New Year's resolutions and take more responsibility for their lives. One of the best ways to step up and be more responsible is to plan for the inevitable and prepare one's estate before it's too late.

As dreary as it may be, everyone has to plan for their own death in order to spare their loved ones unnecessary grief. The first thing that should be done is writing a last will and testament, a document that details what should be done with someone's assets after their passing. The document also details what should happen to the deceased's children if they are still minors. Without a last will and testament, the state will end up dictating what happens to both the children and the assets, which may not turn out well for everyone.

There are a few common errors people make with their estate planning. One is leaving certain critical documents, such as a will, out of the plan. Others have to do with failing to update the plan. People in Virginia should review their estate plan roughly every three years, but there are also certain events or situations that should trigger a review.

People may need to update an estate plan after moving to another state since state laws can differ. It may also be necessary to take steps to update residency in another state. There could be changes in the family because of births, deaths and divorces that lead to an estate plan update. A change in a person's assets might also result in the need to update the plan.

The amount consumers in Virginia and around the country owe to banks and credit card companies is expected to surpass $4 trillion by the end of 2018. This figure, which reflects revolving and installment debt but does not include mortgage balances, has risen by $1 trillion in just the last five years. Experts voiced few concerns over growing consumer debt levels when interest rates were close to historic lows, but a recent wave of rate hikes with the promise of more increases to come have prompted them to start issuing grim warnings about credit bubbles and unsustainable borrowing.

The Federal Reserve says that interest rates must be increased to rein in a surging economy and prevent inflation from taking root, but consumer advocates worry that credit card rates are already too high. According to the consumer information website LendingTree.com, American consumers spend more than $10 billion each month on credit card interest and fees and pay annual percentage rates that average between 16 and 17 percent.