Legal and Financial Planning

Advance care planning is not just about old age. At any age, a medical crisis could leave someone too ill to make his or her own healthcare decisions. Even if you are not sick now, making healthcare plans for the future is an important step toward making sure you get the medical care you would want, even when doctors and family members are making the decisions for you.

This booklet is based on research funded by the National Institute on Aging (NIA), part of the Federal Government’s National Institutes of Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIA conducts and supports research on aging and educates the public about health and aging to improve the lives of older people and their families.

When someone is diagnosed with AD, you need to start getting his or her health, legal, and financial affairs in order. You want to plan for the future, if possible, with help from the person while he or she can still make decisions. You need to review all of his or her health, legal, and financial information to make sure it reflects the person's wishes.

Update health care, legal, and financial information

Check to see that you have the following documents and that they are up to date:

Over time, people with Alzheimer’s disease lose their capacity to perform the financial tasks of daily living and to manage their financial affairs. In fact, this may be the first noticeable sign of the disease and an early indication that a person is losing the ability to live independently.

Many people are unprepared to deal with the legal and financial consequences of a serious illness such as Alzheimer's disease. Legal and medical experts encourage people recently diagnosed with a serious illness—particularly one that is expected to cause declining mental and physical health—to examine and update their financial and health care arrangements as soon as possible.