ABSTRACT
Objectives: This study investigated the estate planning and advance care planning (ACP) of older adults diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease (AD) for the presence of (1) a valid will, (2) a durable power of attorney for health care, and (3) a living will.
Method: We analyzed 10,273 adults aged 65 and older from the 2012 Health and Retirement Study (HRS) using multilevel logistic regression.
Results: We found that a diagnosis of AD was significantly associated with the ACP variables. Older adults with AD were more likely to assign a durable power of attorney for health care and have a written living will than older adults without an AD diagnosis. However, we found no significant association between a diagnosis of AD and having a valid will. These findings were robust when adjusting for demographic and socioeconomic variables. Other factors decreased engagement in estate planning and ACP, including lower socioeconomic status, being male, and being a minority.
Conclusion: Our findings suggest that a diagnosis of AD is associated with more engagement in ACP for individuals and their families, but important barriers exist for people with fewer resources.
Acknowledgments
Parts of these findings were presented at the 2017 American Council on Consumer Interests Conference.
Disclosure statement
The authors report no conflicts of interest.