Long Distance Parental Care

With the mobility of people today and as the population gets older we need to ask who will be charged with the responsibility of caring for our aging parents or relatives and who will be close in distance to them to be effective in their duties. 

The children can be all over the globe. Who will be close enough to see that the needs of the elderly are met? A family lived in the Chicago area and had two children. One child moved to San Diego and the other to Seattle. Who is going to supervise care and needs for mom and dad? What about a special needs child? Is there a special needs trust that complies with the law to enable the disabled person to avail themselves of all public benefits? 

What legal steps need to be taken to ensure that our parents and our other elderly relatives have what they need in the autumn of their life? Who can be trusted to take care of their needs? Trust and dependability are crucial in the selection process. This demands a very frank discussion with your parents. This is the hard part because it is simply not a nice thing for them to think of. I told my mother when she was 86 that we needed to plan whatever was needed for her. Tough decision but necessary. 

Take the worry away and substitute proper planning and records for the unknown. Do not leave anything to chance. Proper paperwork is a necessity. There are your and possibly five documents that every person needs regardless of their income or asset level; Power of Attorney for Health Care, Power of Attorney for financial matters, Living Will and a Will. Possibly a Trust depending on the individual situation. 

This is always a tough discussion with your parents because it concerns their mortality. No one likes to think about their own death but it comes to all of us. 

Call Burt Brown at (312) 236-5582 to discuss Estate Planning in either the Loop or St. Charles office. There is no charge for this consultation.