Planning for Your Own Incapacity: Navigating These Tough Waters
Hilton Head Island incapacity planning services provided by Montgomery Estate Planning, LLC can help you prepare for the future. This is especially true when you are no longer able to take care of yourself. A well-put-together estate plan ensures your wishes are followed in case you become incapacitated – or worse.
A comprehensive, well-constructed estate plan anticipates eventualities that you may experience toward the end of your life. When thinking about the future, consider the twilight years that will inevitably follow the active retirement years.
It can be hard to envision yourself becoming unable to handle your own affairs, but longevity statistics are quite instructive. The lifespan for someone turning 67 today is 85 years for a man and 87 years for a woman. Census data indicates that the oldest segment of the population is growing faster than any other.
When you are in your 80s, incapacity can definitely strike. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, about one-third of people 85 years of age and older have contracted the disease. This is a widespread threat to our nation’s elderly, and it is not the only cause of incapacity.
Advance Directives for Health Care
When you acknowledge that you should include an incapacity planning component within your broader estate plan, the next step is to execute the correct documents. A living will is an advance health care directive that states your preferences regarding the utilization of life-sustaining measures.
This is a very personal decision, and it is a choice that you should make for yourself in advance. Having a living will in place ensures your wishes get carried out, even if you are incapacitated. If you are ever in this situation, you will understand how difficult this decision can be. In addition, you will want to ensure your family members don’t have to choose for you.
Another advance directive that should be part of the plan is a durable power of attorney for health care. There could be some decisions that must be made that are not directly related to the utilization of life support. The agent you name in this document would be empowered to act on your behalf in this capacity if it ever becomes necessary.
Under the terms of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), health care professionals cannot share information with anyone other than the patient. To give your health care agent the ability to communicate freely with your doctors, you can include a HIPAA authorization in your incapacity plan.
Financial Representatives
In addition to the medical side of the equation, you should also address financial decision-making. If you use a living trust while you’re still alive, you have multiple roles. These roles are trustee and the beneficiary of the estate.
You can account for possible incapacity by naming a disability trustee if you are unable to handle your own affairs.
Another document used to name a potential financial representative is a durable power of attorney for property. The agent you choose would be able to make monetary decisions on your behalf.
This would be necessary if you do not have a living trust, and even if you do, you may have property in your possession that was never conveyed into the trust. The inclusion of this device would account for the management of this property.
Read More: An Overview of 2023 Medicare Out-of-Pocket Costs.
Hilton Head Island Incapacity Planning: Get Help Today
Now is the time to spring into action if you are going through life without an estate plan that includes an incapacity component. Our Hilton Head Island incapacity planning attorney, Hunter Montgomery, will take the time to listen to your specific situation and craft a plan that ensures your wishes are known if something happens to you.
We would be glad to gain an understanding of your situation and your legacy goals and make the appropriate recommendations. If you decide to move forward, we will help you create a tailor-made estate plan that is ideal for you and your family.
You can schedule a consultation right now if you give us a call at (843) 815-8580. There is also a contact form on this website that you can use if you would like to send us a message.
Our Estate Planning Lawyer is located in Bluffton, SC near Hilton Head Island, proudly serving clients from Pritchardville, Okatie, Brighton Beach, Windmill Harbor, and all of Beaufort County.
