End of Life Planning Guide

The time to talk to your family about your end-of-life wishes is while you're still healthy and capable of making these decisions. Planning ahead and documenting your wishes through advance directive forms eases your loved ones decision-making burden.

Finances

• Update your will periodically to make disposition of your finances as easy as possible and designate someone trustworthy with financial power of attorney in the event of your incapacitation. You'll also need to decide how your end-of-life care and funeral will be paid for. Find out what your insurance, Social Security and Medicare benefits will cover.

Extent of Treatment

• Decide and document in advance the treatment you consider acceptable for end-of-life care, as well as any life-sustaining treatment you want to forgo when your health reaches a certain point. Assign someone you trust to carry out your wishes with medical power of attorney.

Funeral

• Determine how you want your remains attended to. The decision of being cremated or buried, along with funeral considerations including whether to ask mourners for flowers or to make donations to a charity of your choice, should be made well in advance of the event.