In recent years, researchers and healthcare professionals have begun to recognise that financial difficulties could be an early indicator of dementia. A study by the US Federal Reserve Bank of New York found that individuals begin to show signs of financial mismanagement up to five years before a dementia diagnosis. Analysing US credit score reports and Medicare data, researchers discovered that average credit card debts increased by more than 50 per cent and mortgage debt by 11 per cent one year prior to diagnosis.
Economist Joanne Hsu noted, “Actually, the first skill that declines with Alzheimer’s disease is your ability to manage money.” This aligns with a 2020 study by Johns Hopkins University, which found dementia patients could begin missing payments seven years before diagnosis. These financial missteps are often dismissed as “senior moments” but can lead to severe consequences like eviction or bankruptcy if unnoticed.
Have there been any cases? Karen Lemay, for instance, noticed that her father, a former finance executive who was always prudent with money, began accumulating significant debts, reported CNN . “He owed $50,000 in charges, interest, and late payment fees on a Visa card,” she told the news outlet. He also financed a new car unnecessarily and failed to pay his 2021 taxes, accumulating roughly $20,000 in penalties.
When Lemay confronted her father, he refused to believe he hadn’t paid his balances. Similarly, Jayne Sibley from the UK faced .