Alzheimer's & Dementia - The Ultimate Knockout Punch
By: Philip "Flip" O'Toole
Thirty-four years ago this month, former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson lost his first professional fight in one of the biggest upsets in boxing history. Tyson was knocked out in the 10th round by 42:1 underdog, James “Buster” Douglas. I cannot help but believe that this was the seminal moment in Tyson’s life that brought the world one of the all-time great quotes. He famously said:
“Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth”.
In TOJ’s world of serving multiple generations of families as they navigate life’s challenges, both personally and financially, the ultimate knockout punch is when a loved one is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s or another form of Dementia. Here are just six staggering statistics regarding dementia from the Alzheimer’s Association’s website, www.alz.org:
- 1) More than 6 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s today.
- 2) By 2050, this number is projected to rise to nearly 13 million.
- 3) One in Three seniors die with Alzheimer’s or other form of dementia, killing more seniors than breast cancer and prostate cancer combined.
- 4) Deaths from Alzheimer’s have more than doubled between 2000 and 2019.
- 5) At age 70, seniors living with Alzheimer’s are twice as likely to die before age 80 than those who do not have the disease.
- 6) The fastest growing segment of the population in America are those aged 85+.
As members of Generation X, my partner and I know too many families personally who are currently caring for at least one family member diagnosed with some form of dementia, and in some cases more than one family member, most often one or two parents. And by “caring” we mean either financially or by personally taking care of them with their time and energy.
This happens to hit particularly close to home for my partner Ray, whose mother received a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s Disease from the Cleveland Clinic’s Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health nine years ago and has required round the clock care in an assisted living facility since 2016. More recently, Ray’s father was admitted to the same facility after also experiencing cognitive decline. The total cost of the assisted-living facility for the family is just under $15,000 per MONTH.
If you happen to be like us, members of Generation X (between the ages of 44 and 59), then pay attention to this paragraph and the next one closely. According to US Census Data, there are currently around 65 million members of Gen X in the USA. More staggering, there are approximately 95 million Americans
(our parents) who are either Baby Boomers or Silent Generation, who are somewhere between the ages of 60 and 96.
Based solely on the statistics highlighted above, the next twenty years could see the greatest number of Alzheimer’s and Dementia diagnoses in human history. This is quite sobering to contemplate, but if all four of your parents are still living, there is a better than average chance that more than one will receive such a diagnosis in the not-too-distant future.
Ask yourselves the following two questions. Could you become financially responsible for the round-the-clock care of at least one of your parents at some point? Do you currently have a plan to fund that responsibility? Our primary job, as we see it, is to manage risk for our clients. And in our opinion, one of the biggest high-probability risks to generational wealth is when a loved one, or loved ones are diagnosed with Alzheimer’s or Dementia.
A boxing match 34 years ago this month helped usher in one of the most poignant quotes ever spoken by any athlete ever. Everybody does indeed have a plan until they get punched in the mouth. Ask yourself if your current financial plan is strong enough to withstand the ultimate knockout punch?