Delray Beach, FL November 18, 2019: Mindy Felinton, founder of Felinton Elder Law & Estate Planning Centers, has posted a new article on her law firm’s website entitled “Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Month Reminds Me Why I Do What I Do,” in which Ms. Felinton shares two incidents that shaped her future.

Felinton writes, “My desire to work helping the elderly in a legal capacity began a long time ago.” She continues adding, “In effect, the seeds for my career were planted years ago when the phone rang, and, upon answering I heard the panic-stricken voice of my friend on the line. She was terrified that she was going to lose her home because of the devastating cost of her husband’s nursing home care.” “Another dear friend,” says Felinton, “sought my advice when she discovered that her husband had early onset Alzheimer’s.”

According to Felinton, “I’ll never forget how my journey began, especially during this month that is dedicated to Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness. This is a time that I am reminded once again of how quickly and easily families can be devastated by this and other diseases if they have no plan in place and no one to turn to for guidance.” Felinton points out, “I continually have prospective clients come to my offices whose elderly, and sometimes not so elderly parents are in the grips of late stage Alzheimer’s.” She continues adding, “These are circumstances where there has been no communication between parents and their adult children about the future. The what if questions were never asked. What if something were to happen? What if I were to suddenly become ill and not be able to make decisions anymore? What if I were to get into an accident, be suddenly killed or permanently disabled, who would care for me?” She further elaborates, “Parents have been so busy taking care of their children that their own future needs are all too often not even considered. Most people tend to forget about their own long-term health care needs in favor of more immediate needs and desires.”

“The adult children,” writes Felinton, “who have children and busy lives of their own, are typically caught up and have not been able to turn their attention fully to their parents. So signs of dementia may go unnoticed during short visits or phone calls.” As she points out, “So this disease tends to sneak up on families. And when elderly parents can no longer make important legal decisions due to mental decline, the adult children are suddenly thrown into a position of having to figure things out. It can be very disconcerting and chaotic. But there are solutions.”

The entire article can be read at https://www.felintonlaw.com/alzheimers-disease-awareness-month-reminds-me-why-i-do-what-i-do/

About Mindy Felinton

From a young age, Mindy wanted to be the voice that would make an impact in people’s lives. She became an attorney and has practiced law for over 30 years, so that she could fulfill her desire to help others. As a special prosecutor, Mindy defended the underdog (literally) in cases of animal abuse. As a state attorney in Florida she fought for justice. During the last 25 years, Mindy met many wonderful people who did not know their rights, did not understand the law, and did not know what options were available.

Mindy assists families with Medicaid planning to help with the cost of nursing home care and with obtaining veteran’s benefits to make the cost of care more manageable.   She also prepares wills, trusts, powers of attorney, and medical directives.  Mindy is passionate about educating both other professionals and the public concerning VA Aid & Attendance benefits, Medicaid benefits,  and the use of trusts for the protection of assets.  She shares her experience and professional knowledge through free workshops, and as a frequent lecturer at State Bar Conferences.

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Elder care law, estate planning, and asset protection all go hand in hand…

My desire to work helping the elderly in a legal capacity began a long time ago.

In effect, the seeds for my career in elder care law were planted years ago when the phone rang, and, upon answering I heard the panic-stricken voice of my friend on the line. She was terrified that she was going to lose her home because of the devastating cost of her husband’s nursing home care. Another dear friend sought my advice when she discovered that her husband had early onset Alzheimer’s.

In The Beginning of My Elder Care Law Career…

I’ll never forget how my journey began, especially during this month that is dedicated to Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness. This is a time that I am reminded once again of how quickly and easily families can be devastated by this and other diseases if they have no plan in place and no one to turn to for guidance.

I continually have prospective clients come to my elder care law offices whose elderly, and sometimes not so elderly parents are in the grips of late stage Alzheimer’s. These are circumstances where there has been no communication between parents and their adult children about the future. The what if questions were never asked. What if something were to happen? What if I were to suddenly become ill and not be able to make decisions anymore? What if I were to get into an accident, be suddenly killed or permanently disabled, who would care for me? Parents have been so busy taking care of their children that their own future needs are all too often not even considered. Most people tend to forget about their own long-term health care needs in favor of more immediate needs and desires.

Typical Family Life

The adult children, who have children and busy lives of their own, are typically caught up and have not been able to turn their attention fully to their parents. So signs of dementia may go unnoticed during short visits or phone calls. So this disease tends to sneak up on families. And when elderly parents can no longer make important legal decisions due to mental decline, the adult children are suddenly thrown into a position of having to figure things out. It can be very disconcerting and chaotic. But there are solutions.

The Sad Truth

According to an Alzheimer’s resource, alz.org, “Alzheimer’s disease is thought to begin 20 years or more before symptoms arise, with small changes in the brain that are unnoticeable to the person affected. Only after years of brain changes do individuals experience noticeable symptoms, such as memory loss and language problems.”

No one I know is on the lookout for these kinds of symptoms. Most of us move through life busily attending to things until we are stopped in our tracks by accidents or illness. A family member or friend is diagnosed, then we all remember seeing the signs which were not recognized as the beginning of an illness but only thought to be absent mindedness.

Ask Questions About Future Care Before It’s Too Late

If there is a take-away from all of this, it would be that families start taking an active role in asking their parents about the future. Find out if they have an estate and asset protection plan in place that includes long-term care. These topics are becoming easier to bring up as we humans are living longer and more of us are seeing family members and friends not knowing what to do when they are caught off-guard. And, please, seek the services of a reputable Elder Care Attorney sooner rather than later.

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Truth be told, no one knows for certain whether they will need long-term care.

However, planning as if you will need it is far better than assuming that you won’t need it. I’ve been looking at some statistics that point to the importance of having a solid financial plan that includes provisions for long-term care. The great news is that if you don’t need long-term care, you’ll have more to give to your loved ones or you favorite charitable organization.

According to recent government statistics, “Someone turning age 65 today has almost a 70% chance of needing some type of long-term care services and support in their remaining years.”

The fact is that as many as one-third of today’s 65-year-olds may never need long-term care support, but 20 percent will need it for longer than 5 years. And, due to the fact that women typically outlive men, they will need care longer than men.

Who Provides Most Long-Term Care

Let’s start by looking at who is providing the majority of long-term care in this country. According to caregiveraction.org, a tremendous amount of caregiving is being done for free by family members and friends. According to their research, “The value of the services family caregivers provide for “free,” when caring for older adults, is estimated to be $375 billion a year. That is almost twice as much as is actually spent on homecare and nursing home services combined ($158 billion).”

Perhaps you are providing care for a loved one or are being cared for by one of your adult children. Everybody knows somebody who has performed this role. Maybe you know someone whose adult child gave up their own job to care for their elderly parent. Or perhaps who brought an elderly parent into their home.

As the statistic I cited above clearly shows, “Family caregivers are the foundation of long-term care nationwide, exceeding Medicaid long-term care spending in all states.” And, as for the typical scenario, it looks like this, “The typical family caregiver is a 49-year-old woman caring for her widowed 69-year-old mother who does not live with her. She is married and employed. Approximately 66% of family caregivers are women. More than 37% have children or grandchildren under 18 years old living with them.”

The Family Burden

When a prospective client comes to me to consider establishing an estate and asset protection plan, I always include long-term health care planning in the equation. Most people tell me they do not want to be a burden on their children as they age. Most people don’t. However, a majority of people fail to plan appropriately for their prospective long-term health care needs. No one knows if or when their mental faculties may desert them. No one wants to think about that possibility. When a person is hale and hearty, it is truly difficult to consider anything as undesirable as the inability to take care of one’s needs. Once that happens though, if there were no savings designated nor legal plan in place, the family naturally steps up. And so the cycle continues. Which is why the kind of statistics I’m presenting are so important to take to heart.

Here’s one more statistic that many people are not aware of. “Stress of family caregiving for persons with dementia has been shown to impact a person’s immune system for up to three years after their caregiving ends thus increasing their chances of developing a chronic illness themselves.”

Plan Financially For The Worst And Hope For The Best Case Scenario

Supposedly it was John Jay, one of our nation’s founding fathers who in 1813 wrote “To hope for the best and prepare for the worst, is a trite but a good maxim.” Having a positive outlook for the best-case scenario while being financially prepared for the worst is the best position to be in when it comes to a close family member who needs long term care during their lifetime. The sooner you begin, the better.

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