Women of the Sandwich Generation: Protect Yourself!

January 26, 2012 | Subscribe to our RSS Feed

On Tuesday, January 24th, we learned from GJ’s Senior Financial Advisor Christine Schmitz that 1/3 of American women could be defined as being a member of the “Sandwich Generation,” caring for both an elderly parent and a child in some capacity.  That explains why the third Women: Protect Yourself workshop, “The Sandwich Generation: Caring for Aging Parents” was a packed house!!

Along with Christine talking about financial issues associated with this stage of life, we heard from:

Kimberly Battaglia, Esq. Hodes, Pessin, & Katz, P.A. on legal issues, and

Eric Trautman, Head of Security, Oakcrest Retirement Community on scams and  frauds that target the elderly and ways you can protect your parents (and yourselves!).

You can view all the presentations and documents here, but here are the top three takeaways:

1. The median cost of nursing home care this year is $75,190 per year!  Medicare/medicaid would only cover a very small portion of this and only for a short time.  How are you going to pay that bill if you parent needs assistance?  With government assistance all but disappearing and many insurance carriers discontinuing long-term care insurance policies, now is the time to talk about your options with Christine.
2. Advanced healthcare directives do NOT take any power away from you.  However, they are essential to your piece of mind and your families.  If you don’t have these set up for you and your parents, contact Kim Battaglia to do so.
3. Talk to your parents about paying their bills online or with a credit card, versus with a check.  It can offer them more protection in case of fraud or identity theft.

***Bonus tip***

In the age of camera phones, do not stand in line at the grocery store or anywhere else with your credit card out of your wallet!  All it takes is a quick (and quiet) snap for someone to steal your card information.

For more information on the Sandwich Generation workshop, contact us.  Make sure to sign up the fourth workshop in the Protect Yourself Series, Business 201: Taking Your Business to the Next Level.

1 Comment to Women of the Sandwich Generation: Protect Yourself!

1. Julie Lowell
   February 1, 2012 at 8:09 pm

   Most people overestimate the cost of a good long-term care policy. A healthy, married couple in their mid/late fifties, can share a policy that starts off with over a half million in benefits for about $100 per month per spouse.

   There’s a new type of government-approved long-term care policy that can protect your assets from Medicaid even after the policy runs out of benefits. Here’s an explanation of how these policies work:

   http://bit.ly/How-Partnership-Policies-Protect-Assets