www.kodiakseniorcenter.org
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The Financial Toll of Alzheimer’s Disease by Susan B. Garland
Mom and dad have always been able to balance their checkbook to the penny,
and took few chances with their nest egg. Now they are forgetting to pay bills
or have lost thousands of dollars to fraudsters who’ve called with get-richquick schemes.
If that sounds like your parent(s) or spouse, don’t ignore it. A decline in the
ability to handle financial matters if one of the early signs of Alzheimer’s disease. Even if your loved one is showing only mild symptoms, seek a diagnosis.
If your worries are confirmed, your family member should move quickly to get
is or her finances and estate plans in order. “By the time you receive a diagnosis, almost all financial skills have been impaired,” says Daniel Marson, a professor of neurology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, who has conducted extensive research on the relationship between dementia and the decline
in financial capabilities. Even with mild symptoms, difficulty exists with such
tasks as understanding a back statement and verifying the correct change in a
one-item purchase.
Patients with mild symptoms were also unable to explain the risks of mail and
telephone solicitations. Even seniors in the early stages are prey for financial
predators, says Marson. “There’s an epidemic of financial exploitation aimed
at people with mild cognitive impairment,”.
Once there is a diagnosis, a family should consider assembling a team of experts. A financial adviser who specializes in planning for incapacity can devise
a long-term strategy to pay the costs for care. An elder-law attorney can set up
trusts to protect a family’s assets if the disabled relative seeks government benefits. Meanwhile, a geriatric-care manager will help with day-to-day tasks,
such as hiring home-care aides and finding an adult daycare center.
Ideally, seniors should put some plans in place while they’re still healthy.
Someone with early-stage Alzheimer’s can sign documents and make decisions.
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The Financial Toll of Alzheimer’s Disease continued……..
“The best way to ensure that things will be done the way you want is to talk
with family members or a close friend while you’re in control ,” says Steven
Starnes, a certified financial planner with the Monitor Group in McLean, VA.
An adviser can help draw up a financial power of attorney and a health-care
directive. Together these documents will allow a spouse, adult child or close
fiend to make decisions about finances and medical care if a loved one is unable to make his or her wishes known. If directives are other legal papers and
not in place before the disease progresses, a court will need to appoint a guardian or a conservator.
The person with Alzheimer’s should be involved in planning until he or she is
incapacitated, experts say. “For a long time, they have lucid moments and can
function,” says Laura Addington, a certified financial planner in Winnsboro,
TX. “They don’t want to be treated like a child.”
A family member or the designated financial agent should start keeping tabs on
the household finances. This can be a delicate task if the senior has been in
charge of the money. “Some people hang on really tight because they are
frightened and need to be in control of something,” says Helen Cohn Needham,
an elder-law attorney in Falls Church, VA.
If a loved one can’t be persuaded to stop draining assets on risky schemes, Addington says you may have to ask a judge to initiate the power of attorney. “I
have had widowed spouses who are being pressured by “helpful” relatives for
investments or outright gifts, and there is little you can do to stop things short
of going to court,” she says.
Besides addressing the immediate financial issues, Hames Sullivan, a certified
public accountant for Core Capital Solutions in Naperville, IL. Assists families
in understanding the long-term costs involved with the “progression of care.”
This includes the initial care at home, adult daycare and eventual nursing-home
services. “You don’t want to get into the eighth year and realize you’re out of
money,” he says. He helps families devise a care budget that could last for
years.
Sullivan reviews cash-raising options such as moving to a smaller house or taking out a reverse mortgage. He will also assess the available sources of caregiving: “Are there adult kids who can help? Is the spouse even in a position to
provide care — can she pick you up?”
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Moments in December………...
--Turquoise and Zircon are the birthstones for December and the Holly, Narcissus,
and Poinsetta are the flowers of the month.
Columbus discovered Hispaniola, December 6,1942.
The Council of Trent opened, December 13, 1545.
George Washington dies at Mt. Vernon, December 14, 1799.
Alabama admitted to the Union, December 14, 1819.
English Parliament passed Bill of Rights, December 16, 1689.
Amendment 13, ending slavery, proclaimed December 18, 1865.
Revolutionary War, December 19, 1777.
U.S. Federal Reserve System established, December 23, 1913.
Francisco Franco, Spanish military leader, (December 4, 1892 )
Flip Wilson, comedian, (December 8, 1933)
Emily Dickinson, poet, (December 10, 1830)
Frank Sinatra, singer, actor, (December 12, 1915)
Margaret Mead, anthropologist, (December 16, 1901)
Arthur Fielder, Conductor of the Boston Pops, (December 17, 1894)
Harvey Firestone, supplied tired for Ford automobiles, (December 20, 1868)
Madame C.J. Walker, 1st female African-American millionaire, (December 23,
1867)
Rudyard Kipling, poet/author, (December 30, 1865)
Peanut Butter Fondue
2/3 C packed brown sugar
1/4 C half and half
1 Tbs honey
3/4 C creamy peanut butter
Pieces of assorted cakes, candies and fruit, if desired (see Holiday
Hints, below)
1. Heat brown sugar, half-and-half and honey to boiling in 2-quart
saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
The word: oneiric
(oh-NYE-rik)
2. Stir in peanut butter until smooth. Pour into fondue pot or individual
serving bowls. Dip assorted cakes, candies and fruit into fondue.
To make fondue even more fun: • Use chocolate-covered candy dessert
sticks for dipping. • Use sugar-cone sundae cups for individual-size
fondue. • Place chocolate sprinkles in a separate bowl into which to dip
fondue-coated foods. Try these tempting dippers: • Purchased pound
cake cut into cubes or seasonal shapes • Animal crackers or graham
cracker squares • Marshmallows • Strawberries, grapes, pineapple
chunks, banana slices, apple slices and pear slices • Small pretzel twists
- plain or fudge-covered.
Means: Pertaining to or
suggesting dreams.
Senior Citizens of Kodiak, Inc.
Family Caregiver Support Program
302 Erskine Avenue
Kodiak, AK 99615
Non-Profit Organization
US Postage Paid
Kodiak, AK 99615
Permit #11
Return Service Requested
**No meetings in December
Enjoy your holiday season!