Cost of Alzheimer's Devastate a Family's Finances: Excellent article from AJC News

[Mimosa]

This is among the best articles I've read showing how the medical costs can bankrupt an American family.

http://www.ajc.com/news/cost-of-alzheimers-can-1238203.html

Excerpt:

At age 56 and 62, respectively, Robin and Ken are learning that the financial security measures they took are hardly adequate for what lays head. When symptoms of the disease began to impede his job performance, Ken was forced to leave his $62,000 customer service job at SITA, an airline information company.

Now he receives about $3,400 a month in Social Security and disability payments, a sum that decreases in three years when his disability insurance ends. Compounding the situation is the impending loss of the couple's health insurance, which was provided through Ken's former employer. Because he's not yet 65, Ken doesn't qualify for Medicare, and the couple's income and assets disqualify them for Medicaid.

“The only way to qualify for Medicaid is to spend virtually all the assets they have," said Kevin M. Lynch, a certified financial planner and assistant professor of insurance at The American University. “It really presents a challenge for most middle income Americans.”

On the advice of their attorneys, he said middle class couples like the Hulses will artificially impoverish themselves in order to qualify. "It’s a legal and ethical situation that needs to be addressed.”

On average, Lynch said, it costs about $21 an hour nationally for home health care. If Ken is able to manage without direct supervision, adult day care is about $70 per day. If his condition becomes so severe that he needs to be in a nursing home, the cost for a private room will be closer to about $87,235 a year, higher in some states, lower in others.

The problem is, in most cases it isn’t skilled nursing care that patients need, said Lynch. It’s custodial care, which isn’t paid for by Medicare.