Though you may not want to think about the possibility of becoming incapacitated, you should because your loved ones may suffer if the worst does happen and you failed to plan for the possibility. Learn more about incapacity planning in South Carolina in this presentation.

1. IN YOUR SOUTH CAROLINA ESTATE PLAN

7. If you are 20 years old right now you stand a 1
in 4 chance of suffering a period of disability
before you reach retirement age
About 12% of the population is considered
disabled
Half of all disabled individuals are under
retirement age

8. About 2.5 million workers between the ages of
20-40 are receiving SSDI benefits
60 % of wage earners know someone
personally who has suffered a period of
disability that lasted more than 3 months
An average long-term disability claim is 2.5
years

9. 1 out of every 8 workers will be disabled for 5
years or longer during their working years
1 in 3 seniors dies with Alzheimer’s or another
dementia disease
Alzheimer’s is the 6th leading cause of death in
the United States

15. Someone will have to make medical decisions
for you. Absent a choice made by you prior to
your incapacity a court may have to decide
who to appoint. Moreover, your wishes with
regard to treatment, including end of life care,
may not be honored because they are not
known.

16. You may lose your income. For the immediate
future your family will likely lose whatever
financial assistance you contributed to the
family.

17. Someone must take control of your assets
and pay your bills. If you failed to legally give
someone authority ahead of time a court may
have to make the decision. Worse still, your
loved ones could end up in a lengthy, and
costly legal battle over the right to control
your assets during your incapacity.

18. Everyday decisions must be made for you by
someone. Decisions, such as where you will
live and what doctor will treat you must be
made by someone. Absent a plan the matter
may end up before a judge.

20. o You create the trust and name yourself as the Trustee
o You appoint a spouse/parent/adult child as the successor
Trustee.
o You then transfer all of your major assets into the trust.
o You control and manage all trust assets as long as you
are capable
o If you become incapacitated control automatically shifts
to the successor Trustee
Works like this
Most common strategy

22. Advanced directives – these allow you to
appoint an Agent to make healthcare decisions
for you should and to make important
treatment decisions for yourself now.
Power of attorney – if a POA is a durable POA it
will survive your incapacity.

23. Joint ownership – holding assets jointly means
the co-owner will have control over the asset if
you are incapacitated.
Disability insurance – short-term disability
insurance is often a wise addition to your
estate plan as it can cover your family’s
immediate cash flow problems until long-term
disability benefits kick in.

25. Kuhn & Kuhn Law Firm