It’s a week into the New Year, and all I’ve done (and maybe you too) is finish up the leftover chocolates and cookies, read a biography on George Washington and laze around. So to start the new year properly, all of us should be thinking of what has changed in our lives (if nothing else, we are not getting younger). Have we started to fulfill our New Year’s resolution? And do the older or younger generations of our family, or we ourselves need to finally take simple actions that can make a big difference if sickness, or death should come without warning..

A month ago, I had bypass surgery despite years of daily working out and being in very good shape. As I learned, no matter how fit you are, heart artery blockages have nothing to do with physical fitness, except being physically fit can mask the problem. For me, there were months of feeling very tired, despite no other symptoms. After doctors could not explain it, my cardiologist ordered a nuclear stress test which showed significant blockages, and an attempted angioplasty showed 5 blockages. The surgery team at Hartford Hospital did a professional and successful four way bypass, followed by a week of hospital recovery. The protocol is to have patients do in home nursing and therapy. Hartford Hospital has an excellent reputation for that, as does Bristol Hospital, so because I live in Bristol, I chose them for the in home nursing follow up and in home therapy.

A month ago, I had bypass surgery despite years of daily working out and being in very good shape. As I learned, no matter how fit you are, heart artery blockages have nothing to do with physical fitness, except being physically fit can mask the problem. For me, there were months of feeling very tired, despite no other symptoms. After doctors could not explain it, my cardiologist ordered a nuclear stress test which showed significant blockages, and an attempted angioplasty showed 5 blockages. The surgery team at Hartford Hospital did a professional and successful four way bypass, followed by a week of hospital recovery. The protocol is to have patients do in home nursing and therapy. Hartford Hospital has an excellent reputation for that, as does Bristol Hospital, so because I live in Bristol, I chose them for the in home nursing follow up and in home therapy.

Why this occurs is beyond me, but this time of year it seems the scammers are extra busy on the phones and emails trying to separate people from their hard earned money. Maybe part of it is due to the scammers trying to piggyback into very legitimate advertisements for Medicare Advantage Plans. The scammers have nothing to do with Medicare or any other government program, but the goal is to get enough financial information from you so they can access your accounts. How do they do this? One method is to try to scare you by saying they are calling from Social Security and that there is a problem with your social security number or your benefits. Do not be fooled. Social Security doesn’t call people and threaten them with a cutoff in benefits, or say there could be an increase if you give them additional personal information.

As years go by our physical health and family situations change. Sometimes they are gradual normal changes, such as physical abilities, and sometimes it is abrupt, such as the birth of a child or death of a spouse, or changes in laws that affect us. Whenever these changes occur, it should make us think if we need to revise legal documents so that our legal and financial affairs are properly handled.

When your spouse suddenly needs nursing home care or full-time care at home, it can be emotionally draining and frightening because of the fear that all your hard earned life’s savings will be at risk. However, if you get the advice you need from an experienced elder law attorney, the average family should not have to lose their assets and can keep their home, their car, and in most cases all of their financial assets. That bears repeating. For the average couple, all of their assets can probably be protected if they are represented by an attorney who knows the Medicaid rules, and who is representing them.