Q. Since my wife, Linda, and I retired, we travel a lot. A few weeks ago, when we flew to San Diego, we saw someone with a dog in the cabin of the plane, sitting on the owner’s lap, and the flight attendant didn’t say anything about it. The dog was small enough to fit […]
Does it Matter Whether You Visit a Loved One with Alzheimer’s?
Kathleen’s grandmother, Ruth, has Alzheimer’s and is in a nursing home. When she first moved in, Kathleen’s mother and her uncle would visit often, bringing Ruth her favorite foods, musical recordings, and photos to hang up in her room. As time progressed and Ruth’s condition worsened, the visits began to taper off. Now, no […]
Virginia’s New Emergency Contact Program
Q. Last week, my husband got into a car accident. It was minor, luckily, and although he was a little shaken up and had whiplash, he was fine otherwise. When he called us from the hospital, the children and I were extremely worried, as you can imagine. What if the accident were more severe, and he was unable to […]
Is Gray Divorce Necessary to Qualify for Medicaid?
In the mid-1980s, young Jennifer was shocked when her grandparents divorced after 60 years of marriage, around the same time her grandfather became sick with ALS. She was convinced that her grandparents’ love was enduring, which is why Jennifer couldn’t believe that when her grandfather was suffering, that her grandmother would desert him like that. […]
Top 15 Articles of 2015
From the 50th birthday of Medicaid and Medicare and the 80th birthday of Social Security to the once-a-decade White House Conference on Aging, we covered a lot of ground in 2015. It was a year that included a new act being passed in Virginia to help special needs families, overtime pay for caregivers, and amazing new technological innovations to help seniors age-in-place. At the Farr Law Firm, […]
Happy Holidays from The Farr Law Firm
Facing the Elephant in the Room
When Alyssa left for her long drive back to college or for a vacation, she would always give her father a long, meaningful hug, and would reassure him that if something happened to him or her, that she loved him very much. Since she was always prepared for EVERYTHING, when she came home for holidays, […]
Why Take Advantage of End-of-life Care Talks?
Dear Baxter, I just read that Medicare will fund end-of-life planning discussions with doctors, as of Jan. 1, 2016. Why is this important? My doctor already does this for free. And why should seniors take advantage of these talks? I personally don’t want to talk about death and dying. Thanks in advance for your thoughts! […]
How Do You Tell Loved Ones That You Have Alzheimer’s?
Greg O’Brien and his family (source: onpluto.org) Fifty-nine year old Greg O’Brien lives a healthy and happy life. He exercises every day, makes a good living, and spends lots of quality time with his wife and three children. Five years ago, Greg started to notice changes in himself. He was forgetting things, and his judgment sometimes seemed impaired. Meanwhile, his own mother was dying of Alzheimer’s disease. Greg […]
Be Very Afraid: Our Top Ten Scariest Articles
With Halloween upon us, now is the time when we present you with this year’s scariest & creepiest stories. From posthumous messages from loved ones to Alzheimer’s being contagious, we uncovered some scary ground. To celebrate Halloween, we’ve ranked our scariest articles for you to revisit (if you dare). As always, thank you for reading […]
New iPhone App Could Transform How We Diagnose Autism
Dear Commander Bun Bun, I heard somewhere that a new app has been developed by Apple that can be used to diagnose Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) using facial expressions. Since you are attuned to what’s going on with technology, have you heard anything about this and how it works? Thanks, Di Agnosis —- Dear Di, […]
Debunking the Myths About Autism
Image from Pathfindersforautism.org Q. We recently found out that my son, Freddy, has been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. After accepting the fact that things will be more challenging for him socially and academically (he is also learning disabled), I told my friends and family about the diagnosis. The first thing my mother mentioned was, […]
Giving Money to Your Children (while you’re still alive)
Janet’s granddaughter, Grace, recently got accepted to veterinary school. Janet is thrilled at this huge accomplishment, and would like to give Grace a gift of $40,000 ($10,000 a year), to help her pay for school, so she wouldn’t have as many loans to repay when she graduates. For Janet, the experience of losing her own […]
Is Alzheimer’s Contagious?
There are currently 5.2 million Americans who suffer from Alzheimer’s, and the number is expected to triple by 2050. It has long been believed that Alzheimer’s is caused only by age and genetics, but new research says person-to-person transmission of the protein that causes Alzheimer’s may be a possibility. So, does that mean that […]
Self Care for a Special Needs Parent
Dear Angel, My daughter, Valerie, has autism spectrum disorder (formerly known as Asperger’s Syndrome, but now under the ASD umbrella). She is very bright, and for the most part is in an inclusive environment at school. However, when she gets home, she has panic attacks often, and needs constant attention. I spend all of my […]
Straying from Loved Ones
Q. This past summer, I went to Burke Lake Park with a friend, Mary, who has a child with autism. While purchasing a ticket for the carousel for another child, Mary’s son wandered off. After searching for a bit, and involving the park authorities and the police, he was found near the train tracks (and […]
When is it Time to Hang Up the Keys?
With years of experience behind the wheel, senior drivers are among the safest on the road. However, skills and abilities required for safe driving — such as vision, memory, physical strength, reaction time, and flexibility — may decline with advanced age, which could make continuing to drive risky. Understandably, driving is not a privilege that […]
A “Guardian Angel” When One is Needed Most
Marjorie never felt alone at her nursing home. Although her husband died last year, and her children couldn’t be there a lot of the time to visit her, she seemed content. Her ability to speak clearly and her memory were diminishing and most people couldn’t understand what she wanted or needed, but somehow she always […]
ACA is Here to Stay – Is That Good for Seniors?
Photo Source: Irish Times Q. I heard that the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is here to stay, as of yesterday when the Supreme Court ruled to save the health care law. Is the ruling good for seniors? Also, can you clarify whether seniors on Medicare are or are not affected by the ACA? A. Yesterday, […]
When Loved Ones Aren’t Permitted to Visit
Peter Falk and his daughter, Catherine. (from dalje.com) Jane and Maria are sisters who haven’t spoken in ten years due to a disagreement over their mother’s care. Jane was a caregiver for her mother, Millie, and served as her guardian and had Power of Attorney until she passed away. Maria lived in another state and […]
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