[C]hildren are often the ones who check up on their parents, who hire caregivers or help with transitioning to new housing. With childless people however the lines of responsibility aren’t always so clear.
These concerns are arising more frequently as the number of people in the United States who remain childless continues to grow. In 2010, according to census data, nearly 19 percent of women age 40 to 44 had not given birth, compared with around 10 percent in 1980.
The question that concerns many of America’s 15 million childless baby boomers is both emotional and poignant: Without offspring to help them, who will take care of them when they grow old?
Currently, about 10% of American women over the age of 65 have no children. That percentage will rise to 20% in the next decades when the nation’s childless 40-year-olds reach retirement age.
It’s important for people without children to set up a health care proxy that will enable someone to handle medical decisions (the same person should also be authorized to view medical records) and a power of attorney for someone to handle finances. This process is relatively inexpensive to set up and will help ensure that people you trust will carry out your wishes if you become incapacitated.
Do you want to stay at home for as long as possible and receive in-home care? Do you prefer a particular type of assisted living facility? Documents can detail these preferences, and financial planning can help ensure that they are followed.
Not having these documents puts more stress on the people who are trying to help you. It also slows the release of your assets, because the courts take time to appoint a guardian. Without such plans in place it is possible that a guardian you don’t know will make decisions you would never have approved.
Childless people may also want to consider long-term care insurance. If childless people don’t want their assets to go to relatives whom they dislike or barely know, they can set up a will or a trust. With a trust funded during your lifetime, most relatives are not required to be notified or given a forum to protest.
Unmarried gay couples, many of whom are childless, should understand that without legal documents, the partner of an ailing person may not be given a say in health care decisions. And the partner of a deceased person may not be allowed to stay in the couple’s house or to gain access to retirement funds or many of the benefits that a traditional married couple would have.
More than one person can be in charge of your health care and finances, if you wish. Couples often choose their partners, and single people may designate Siblings, but selecting people close to you in age carries a risk that they will die before you. If your first choice is around your age, you should appoint a backup who is younger.
If no one can be found to serve as a trustee, a company with a trustee department, like a bank, can make the arrangements for a fee. It is a sad commentary that some older people, especially those without children, do not know anyone who can fill these roles. If this is the case friends and neighbors should be alerted to the needs of elderly childless people so they can make sure they are healthy and safe. In American society, we tend to be very hands-off unless we are asked specifically to provide help.
Issues of aging aren’t easy to deal with but we urge you to take a pro-active approach to this and all other matters involved in the process. This kind of approach can go a long way toward providing ‘peace of mind’, and that my friends is timeless.