“Life Is What Happens to You While You’re Busy Making Other Plans” (John Lennon)

“Joanne and Everett Parhiala had a plan. They would move from the Lexington house where they had raised their three children to a smaller Boston condo. Then, Joanne, 53, and Everett, 57, would work for a few more years before settling into retirement in the city.” (Aging parents add to retirement planning challenge. Boston Globe, May 21, 2012)   

Sadly,  their plans were derailed. The Parhialas instead began looking for a larger house in which to care for Joanne’s aging father and developmentally disabled brother.  

As I have said repeatedly in this blog, the need for long-term care (LTC) can have a staggering emotional, physical and financial impact on the lives of families. This couple’s retirement plans were radically interrupted by unplanned parental caregiving duties. This unplanned interruption most likely not have occurred if the parents had done reasonable and responsible LTC planning when they were able to.  OR if Joanne and her husband had had a frank discussion with their parents about LTC insurance years ago and, if necessary, helped cover the cost of the premiums for their parents.