April 28, 2017

The Mars Problem

Humans have long dreamed of visiting the planet Mars. However, to do so would cause aging problems for astronauts. However, we might be on the cusp of overcoming that by reversing the aging process itself.

One of the basic facts of human existence is that throughout our lives, our cells continuously divide.

Some cells die, but the division process ensures that new cells take the place of the dead ones. The division process is not perfect, however.

Each instance of cell division causes a small bit of deterioration in the cell and in the DNA of the cell. Over time, these bits of deterioration add up and the result is what we know as the aging process that we can see with our own eyes.

While not exactly constant, this deterioration from cell division occurs at a fixed enough rate that the maximum lifespan is the same for all humans. Scientists have been unable to change this rate of deterioration until now.

A way to reverse it might have been found, reported by the Daily Mail in "Would YOU choose to live forever? Age-reversing pill that NASA wants to give to astronauts on Mars will begin trials within six months."

If the report is true and trials bear out, then scientists have found a drug that can reverse the deterioration from cell division that causes aging.

This would have potential benefits for astronauts because space travel is extremely dangerous.

Astronauts are exposed to radiation that causes the cell deterioration to increase.

NASA is interested in this drug as a possible way to protect astronauts on a trip to Mars.

If this drug actually works, it has profound implications for more than just space travelers. It would cause great changes for all elderly people and for all estate planners.

Reference: Daily Mail (March 23, 2017) "Would YOU choose to live forever? Age-reversing pill that NASA wants to give to astronauts on Mars will begin trials within six months."

April 27, 2017

Finding the Right Nursing Home

Going into a nursing home can be a frightening experience. It can be made less scary by asking questions and choosing the right nursing home for your family.

No one wants to go into a nursing home.

When we think about what happens in them, we usually imagine nursing homes to be sterile places where people are sent off to be isolated and alone. That stereotype comes to us from the distant past. It is a bad caricature of what nursing homes are like today.

However, nursing homes do come in all sorts of different varieties with many different levels of care and interactions between staff and residents. It is important that the nursing home you choose is the right one for you.

That can be accomplished by asking appropriate questions before deciding on a nursing home, as Next Avenue points out in "18 Questions to Ask Any Nursing Home."

While the questions to ask are too numerous to list here, it is important to understand that the most fundamental questions are not about cost, although that is important. Instead, the most important questions to ask are about how patients live, what activities are available to patients and how staff helps patients with those activities.

The answers to those questions are what truly determine what quality of life will be like in a nursing home and how happy you might be there as a resident.

Before deciding on a nursing home, take a look at the questions to ask and actually ask them of the nursing homes you are considering. That way you can make sure that you are choosing the right place for you.

Reference: Next Avenue (March 15, 2017) "18 Questions to Ask Any Nursing Home."

Elder Law, Nursing Homes

April 21, 2017

Data Collection and Elder Abuse

Tracking what people do online is intended to increase the value of advertising, but it has the potential to be used to worsen the elder abuse problem.

Regardless of whether you are aware of it, some computer somewhere knows you are currently reading this article. This is most likely true, even if you did not give explicit permission for the computer to know.

Everything you do online is potentially tracked and collected by computers that compile a profile of you. It is what is known as big data.

No, this is not the result of the government spying on people. The people behind this data collection are people who want to sell you things. The better profile they can compile of who you are and what you like, the better they can create advertisements that cater to your interests and that are more likely to make you want to buy something.

This data knowledge increases the value of the ad space on the Internet and makes more money for companies selling that space, such as Facebook and Google. In other words, most people find this data collection and tracking to be mostly benign and necessary for popular Internet sites to continue to be free to use.

However, there are potential downsides to the data collection that worry elder law experts, as Financial Advisor explains in "AI, Big Data May Become Tools for Elder Financial Abuse."

In the wrong hands, this same data could be used to more effectively target elderly people for financial scams. That has elder law advocates worried, since elder financial abuse is already a big problem.

There are currently few rules about to whom marketers can sell their data. That might need to change to protect the elderly and others from abuse.

Reference: Financial Advisor (March 22, 2017) "AI, Big Data May Become Tools for Elder Financial Abuse."

April 18, 2017December 26, 2025

The Elderly Could Benefit From Autonomous Cars

Experts predict that in a few years, the technology will be good enough that vehicles will not need human assistance to operate. One of the groups that could benefit the most from this is the elderly.

One of the most dreaded conversations for children with elderly parents, is telling their parents that it is time to give up driving. For the elderly, the loss of the ability to drive is symbolic of a loss of self-reliance, since it makes it much more difficult to get around.

Elderly people who have always been able to get in their vehicles and drive themselves anywhere they want, naturally resent not being able to do so. They also often fear that if they call someone to help them, then they are being a burden.

Nevertheless, at some point people do lose the ability to drive safely. Therefore, children must have the conversation with their elderly parents no matter how much everyone involved dreads the prospect.

Soon, however, it may no longer be necessary according to The New York Times in “Self-Driving Cars Could Be Boon for Aged, After Initial Hurdles.”

Automakers and technology companies are in a race to develop cars that can drive themselves. These autonomous vehicles would be able to take passengers where they want to go more safely than human drivers, according to advocates.

If the elderly were to use self-driving cars, then they would no longer need to lose their mobility when they are no longer able to drive. Some believe that these vehicles could be available in as little as five years.

There are still legal issues that need to be considered for elder law advocates. Lawmakers currently appear reluctant to allow autonomous vehicles that are not overseen by a human capable of taking control safely.

Reference: The New York Times (March 23, 2017) “Self-Driving Cars Could Be Boon for Aged, After Initial Hurdles.”

April 14, 2017

Handling a Younger Boss

Americans are putting off retirement and continuing to work at an increasing rate. Many seniors who do retire later, chose to go back to work. One of the consequences is that it often leads to having a younger boss.

People often do not like taking directions and orders from others who are much younger. It seems to go against the natural order of things for younger people to be in charge of older people. However, that is exactly what is frequently happening in the American workplace today.

As The New York Times reports in "When the Boss Is Half Your Age," 38% of Americans have a younger boss. One of the reasons for this trend is that many employers want to hire managers who grew up with the technology used in today's workplaces, such as cell phones and email.

There is a belief that being a native to the technology, makes younger people better at understanding it and using it to their advantage.

Another reason for this phenomenon is that Americans are working longer than before and many people who have chosen retirement go back to work for one reason or another. As a result, many senior citizens have immediate superiors at work who are much younger than they are which can lead to problems.

Elders do not always like being told what to do by younger people, and younger bosses are often on guard against older employees who think that the old way of doing things is best.

Seniors who do have a much younger boss need to be aware that the law does protect them against discrimination due to age. However, they should also be open to new things and be willing to do their work, as directed by their younger boss.

Reference: New York Times (March 17, 2017) "When the Boss Is Half Your Age."

March 30, 2017July 10, 2025

Assisted Living Facilities

Senior citizens who no longer feel safe or comfortable at home alone, have options other than going to a nursing home. Moving to an assisted living facility is one of them.

If you ask any elderly person who is not currently living in a nursing home what they think about moving to one, you are likely to get a negative response. People do not want to move into nursing homes. Most only do so, when they have no other options.

Nevertheless, there are many elderly people living at home who are not able to handle their own day to day needs. They need help which can be hard to come by due to a lack of good caretaker options or because it is not practical to move in with younger family members.

These senior citizens do have an option available, short of prematurely going into a nursing home, as Yorktown News points out in “What Is an Assisted Living Facility and Is It the Right Place for You?”

An assisted living facility is just what it says it is.

It is a facility that assists an elderly person with daily functions, but not to the extent that a nursing home does. In an assisted living facility, residents will get help with laundry, cleaning, transportation, medication management etc.. Facilities also usually offer community meals for residents.

While an assisted living facility is not right for all seniors, it is a great option for some. Most will find such an arrangement more enjoyable than a nursing home.

Reference: Yorktown News (March 2, 2017) “What Is an Assisted Living Facility and Is It the Right Place for You?“

February 15, 2017

Things that Caregivers Need to Do

If you are going to be a caregiver for an elderly family member, there are some important things that you need to do before you get started.

Being a caregiver for an elderly person is not easy. It takes a lot of time and can come with emotional and financial costs. That is even more likely for people who become caregivers for their elderly family members.

There are a few things that people can do before becoming a caregiver to make things easier.

Recently, Forbes discussed some helpful pointers for caregivers in "4 Critical Things To Do Before Becoming A Caregiver," including:

Make sure you have all of the elderly person's legal, financial and medical documents. You need to know where the person has their bank accounts. You need to have powers of attorney. You need to know who the elderly person's doctors are.
Make sure your own finances are in good order. You might want to take some time off of work at the beginning of your caregiving, so make sure that you understand the FMLA.
Make a personal care agreement with the elderly person. This is a written statement about what the expectations are. While not a legal document, this will help give everyone peace of mind and make the transition easier.
Have your own support team in place. Caregiving is not easy. Make sure that you have people who can support you when you need it. You should enlist the aid of friends, family and organizations for the elderly.

Reference: Forbes (Jan. 22, 2017) "4 Critical Things To Do Before Becoming A Caregiver

February 3, 2017

Robotic Pets for Alzheimer’s Patients

Therapy animals have been used effectively for all kinds of patients, including those with Alzheimer's disease. However, it is not always practical or safe to use real animals with people suffering from dementia. Some care centers are substituting robotic pets.

Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia can give patients a deep sense of loneliness. Patients often cannot remember where they are and who the people are around them. This can lead to feelings of being alone.

One way to combat this is with companionship. However, elder caregivers and elder law advocates all know how difficult it can be to get the necessary companionship on a consistent basis.

Therapy animals have sometimes been used. However, even with specially trained dogs and cats, there is still a safety risk for many patients and the animals themselves.

Of course, real animals have to be cared for and fed as well, which takes up caregiving time.

The New York Times in "Therapy Cats for Dementia Patients, Batteries Included" discusses a new trend to use robotic cats.

Robotics have gotten good enough and cheap enough that some commercially available robotic pets could have benefits for patients with dementia.

The article discusses their use in one nursing home where the residents really enjoy the robots. They give a sense of joy and empowerment, even when the patients realize that the robots are not real animals.

There has been no conclusive research proving any long term benefits of robotic pets for people with Alzheimer's. However, the short term benefits are easy to see for those who work with the patients.

Reference: New York Times (Dec. 15, 2016) "Therapy Cats for Dementia Patients, Batteries Included."

December 12, 2016

Family Squabbles Can Hurt Elderly Parents

When an elderly parent is approaching the end of life, the ability of the family to come together and agree on treatment and care is vital to ease the parent's suffering.

The last thing that most end of life patients want to deal with, is a family feud over the patient’s medical treatment and care. However, these family feuds are a common occurrence, especially when family members have other, pre-existing disagreements.

This was the subject of a recent article in the Washington Post titled "A united family can make all the difference when someone is dying."

Doctors have a name for one of the common problems that can arise. They call it the "Daughter from California syndrome." This can happen when family members compete with each other over who cares for the elderly patient the most. Often, someone who lives far away goes too far and is the source of disruptions.

Another source of problems for families is when the person who the patient put in charge of things goes too far and refuses to cooperate with others. For example, someone given authority in a health care power of attorney may refuse to listen to the opinions of other family members. This can create unnecessary tension, especially when decisions have to be made that are outside the scope of any advanced directives.

The best thing that a family can do to help an elderly patient at the end of life is to work together, communicate freely and come to consensus decisions concerning treatment and care. The patient can help this greatly, if he or she has previously executed detailed advanced directives that designate appropriate people to be in charge.

Reference: Washington Post (Nov. 20, 2016) "A united family can make all the difference when someone is dying."

December 9, 2016May 5, 2022

Remarriage Planning

Before you get remarried late in your life you should do some estate planning. Profit Law Firm has information on how you can do estate planning to protect everyone in your new blended family.

People who are at or near retirement age are getting remarried more often than ever before. Most elder advocates think it is a wonderful thing that people are finding love and comfort late in their lives.

However, there is a potential problem.

Not enough older people getting remarried are properly planning for what doing so will mean for their families and estates. Without proper planning things can quickly go awry as New Hampshire Magazine reports in “Navigating Late-Life Remarriage.”

The biggest problem is that people do not take the time to consider what a second marriage might mean for their children’s ability to receive an inheritance. Children from an earlier marriage can be left out of an estate entirely without planning.

By default, a person’s entire estate goes to a living spouse. It cannot be assumed that the spouse will make plans to leave anything inherited for stepchildren in his or her estate. There is no legal obligation for the spouse to do so and the law will not give the money to those children if the spouse passes away without an estate plan.

This, of course, does not mean that someone should not get remarried late in life. It just means that some planning needs to take place before doing so, in order to protect children. P

Before getting remarried visit an estate planning attorney who can assist with the proper legal plans to make sure your children are protected.

Reference: New Hampshire Magazine (Dec. 2016) “Navigating Late-Life Remarriage.”

Building Legacies that Last Estate Planning and Elder Law

Category: Elder Law