Reverse Magazine Preview & Media Kit

THE CRIPPLING COST OF LONG-TERM CARE

Let’s talk about the real possibility of a financial catastrophe

TALKING WITH AGING PARENTS ABOUT THE FUTURE

Difficult conversations about money, health, and final arrangements should be had before they become a forced issue

HOSPICE CARE ISN’T A DEATH SENTENCE

It’s a caregiver’s best friend, especially if the patient isn’t dying

TYPE II DIABETES AND SENIORS

What most patients don’t understand about the silent disease's long term effects on each body organ TWO KEY MEMBERS OF THE CAREGIVING TEAM: THE NEPHROLOGIST AND DENTIST

What these two doctors watch for in their senior patients may surprise you

magazine

MANAGING EDITOR

Anna Gelbman Edmonds

DESIGN AND PRODUCTION

Kristina Parella

ASSISTANT EDITOR Amy Stokes

editor's letter Moving Forward in Reverse

During an editorial meeting for my magazine The F-Suite, a colleague suggested the topic of adult children caring for their parents, specifically focusing on the stressful aspects. From there, related topics bubbled up. Suddenly, someone piped up saying we should publish a specialty magazine covering all those topics and more. So, we did—and here it is!

CONTRIBUTING

WRITER Megan Flowers INTERN Sarah Elvington

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER

Valery Taylor Smith

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(Volume 1, No. 1)

Reverse Magazine is a bi-monthly publication published by The F-Suite, LLC. Please email Anna@ reversemagazine.us for advertising rates and information regarding mail subscriptions and purchase of bulk copies.

Copyright ©2023 The F-Suite, LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. The publisher is not responsible for the opinions or comments of the authors or the subject matter of advertisers. We welcome your comments and questions by email at info@thefsuite.com or mail to The F-Suite, LLC, 317 Bradford Lane, Columbia, SC 29223. Tel. (803) 216-1902

Being the main caregiver for my mother during the last few years of her life was a rewarding experience, and it was very difficult. I made mistakes. I lost sleep, gained weight and cried many tears. Nevertheless, I’m confident that, with the help of my siblings, I provided my mom with the best care I could, and I know she trusted me. Our relationship changed drastically during those years. She and I were able to talk about the reversal of roles because I was making so many decisions in her daily life. I went to every medical appointment, purchased her clothes and hygiene products, monitored her diet, picked out her books and puzzles, advocated for her, made sure she got exercise and saw that her hair and nails were kept trimmed — all the same things she did for me when I was a child.

That was the easy part. This is why we included the article “You Don’t Know What You Don’t Know” in this issue. I can say unequivocally that if I had to do it all again, I’d do many things differently from the start. By the time I (and my siblings) learned the legal, physical, financial and institutional ins and outs of caregiving, we’d already made mistakes. And it was either too late or very expensive and time consuming to correct them. The person who suffers the most through all that is the aging parent. It hurt me to see my mother increasingly confused and frustrated any time we made changes to her routine and accommodations.

The senior care industry is a huge machine with endless moving parts, many of which are regulated by local and state government agencies. Navigating Medicare, a chaotic healthcare system, senior living facility options and jumping through endless legal hoops is not for the faint of heart. COVID has complicated matters exponentially. Helpful information on every aspect of caregiving is desperately needed.

Reverse strives to provide credible and insightful information to those either embarking on the journey or continuing on the road of caring for an elderly parent. We wish you Gospeed and grace!

Sincerely,

Anna Gelbman Edmonds Publisher & Managing Editor

The Crippling Cost of Long-term Care

ty over the next 30 years. What the average American doesn’t know is how costly it is to live in such communities, even at the lowest level of service and amenities offered.

The big problem is that only a small fraction of Americans who will need long-term care currently carry insurance coverage to help with the costs involved. Since 2008, there has been no increase in the 7.5 million Americans holding a long-term insurance policy, despite the ongoing and future growth of our aging population. Confusion or ignorance about long-term care and the lack of insurance means millions of Americans will experience financial disaster. What people fail to understand is that employer-provided health insurance does not cover long-term care, and that the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare), Medicare and Medicaid will not cover many of their needs.

By Anna Gelbman Edmonds

The largest living generation, the baby boomers, are now aged 55 to 75. Most are vibrantly independent and healthy, many are caring for their much elderly parents and some already need some level of care themselves.

The effects of COVID-19 on the current senior population clearly revealed just how critical quality long-term care is for this vulnerable and huge demographic. Long-term care is a blurry euphemism for anything from minor assistance with household chores to medical support.

Seniors (and their children) notice areas where help is needed as they crop up slowly, one by one: mom is no longer able to drive, a trip-and-fall incident or dad is becoming extremely forgetful. Small annoyances maybe, but all are the beginning of the deep dive into the need for long-term care, whether in-home, with family or in a senior living facility.

It’s estimated that 50% of seniors will at some point require some level of long-term care. We all see the senior retirement, assisted living, skilled nursing and dementia care facilities popping up like weeds in every community, with rooms just waiting to be filled to capaci-

Private long-term care insurers have bolted from the market in recent years, and no public option exists. In 2000, we had more than 100 long-term policy providers from which to choose. Today we have fewer than one dozen. Now, coupled with that problem, we’re in a pandemic that’s pulled back the curtain on the entire senior care crisis. All this is wrapped up in the nation’s failure to re-examine Medicare and the inefficient and costly healthcare and health insurance industries.

So, what can you do? First, don’t be lulled into thinking any of these trends affecting seniors will resolve themselves because they won’t. Next, pick up the phone and call both your insurance agent and your financial advisor to talk about long-term care. Ask questions, take notes and then make good decisions based on the information they give you. Then, call, write or email your state and federal senators and congress people, demanding they begin acting on these issues.

Let’s talk about the real possibility of a financial catastrophe

"Don’t be lulled into thinking any of these trends affecting seniors will resolve themselves because they won’t."

Talking with Aging Parents About the Future

Families often spend time during casual get-togethers reminiscing and reliving fun experiences. But these times can also be used to talk together honestly about the future. Aging involves a host of questions and issues that many of us are uncomfortable facing. Procrastination will not make them go away, and there is no better time to address these issues than when families are all together.

By Megan Flowers

One of the most complicated realities of aging is cognitive decline. As parents age or suffer illness, they frequently face periods of memory loss, confusion or changes in personality. These may be temporary, prolonged or permanent, depending on the circumstances. Check in with your loved ones, and pay attention to noticeable changes in appearance, lifestyle or behavior. Are they having trouble keeping up with things around the house? Are things out of place or unusually messy? Take note if one parent seems to cover for the

Tackling difficult issues now makes things easier down the road

other by finishing sentences or correcting lapses in memory. This can often be a sign of decline in cognitive ability.

Planning ahead for these issues can provide vital safety nets that will be needed when a crisis arises or when your loved one can no longer make decisions on their own. Legal authority to make decisions for another is vital. Generally, this is done in the form of a power of attorney. Power of attorney allows a trusted child, friend or family member to step into the shoes of an elderly person to help manage important affairs when he or she is unable to do so. Acting as power of attorney, an adult child can pay mom’s bills, deposit her checks, arrange for necessary care or do a host of other tasks that will arise. However, such plans must be made before your loved one is in a prolonged state of confusion or memory loss. Once cognitive decline has set in, it is more complicated and costlier to make the necessary legal arrangements to help a loved one in need.

The possibility of needing long-term care or relocation to a senior living facility is another difficult topic for many families. A good starting point is to simply ask your

loved one their thoughts and feelings on long-term care. Cost is the biggest concern for most families, and adult children are often in the dark about their parent’s financial situation and assets. Take the time to broach these topics and discuss the range of options for care. One is budgeting for in-home assistance for those who don’t need to relocate to a senior living facility, but who need help with household chores, running errands or administering daily medications.

Finally, it’s important to talk about the “little” things adult children simply don’t know. Do their parents have long-term care insurance? Life insurance? What are the details of their Medicare plan? Do they have a prescription plan? Where are their important documents kept? Consider keeping a list of your parent’s current medications in case of emergency.

An open and earnest discussion among the family about aging and care planning is not only practical and necessary, it gives everyone involved peace of mind.

Megan Flowers is an elder law attorney at Gelbman Law in Charlottesville, Virginia, where she works on matters of estate and long-term care planning.

Tough Topics

It's not recommended that all these topics be tackled at once. An ongoing dialogue is encouraged so everybody knows what parents' wishes are, what's been pre-arranged and who will make what decisions if parents become incapacitated.

Do parents have an estate plan devised by a financial advisor or attorney?

Do parents have a durable power of attorney?

Do parents have (adequate) life insurance? Longterm care insurance?

Do parents have a current will, living will and advanced health care directive?

Where do parents keep legal documents, and are they accessible? Children should keep an updated list of parents' doctors and medications

Where do parents want to live if staying in the home is not possible?

Where will parents be laid to rest, and have arrangements been made?

Reverse is South Carolina’s only publication targeted directly at the caregiver. Our mission is to provide the information they need to make educated, responsible and compassionate decisions for themselves and their loved ones. The senior care industry is preparing for a huge surge in business over this next decade as the members of the baby boom generation head into their golden years. Now in their 60s and 70s, many of them are on the cusp of or already caring for parents in their 80s and 90s. Some boomers may themselves be needing some level of assistance.

Reverse is a bi-monthly publication with an initial distribution of 5,000 copies in the Midlands provided via direct mail, senior living facilities, public places and subscription service. We will also be active in the senior care community, hosting and attending events where magazines will be available.

Critical Transitions Wealth Advisors has a proven process to bring clarity and reduce potential mismanagement. As an advisory fiduciary, we offer advice in your family’s best interest in areas such as consolidating assets, investment management, navigating Social Security & Medicare, your role as Power of Attorney & Personal Representative, and planning for a terminal illness or permanent care diagnosis. Together we can create a plan!