Is It Bad Money Management or is it Dementia?

JAMA Internal Medicine published the results of a recent study, Financial Presentation of Alzheimer Disease and Related Dementias.

Here are the key points from the study: 

Question  Are Alzheimer disease and related dementias (ADRD) associated with adverse financial outcomes in the years before and after diagnosis?

Findings  In this cohort study of 81 364 Medicare beneficiaries living in single-person households, those with ADRD were more likely to miss bill payments up to 6 years prior to diagnosis and started to develop subprime credit scores 2.5 years prior to diagnosis compared with those never diagnosed. These negative financial outcomes persisted after ADRD diagnosis, accounted for 10% to 15% of missed payments in our sample, and were more prevalent in census tracts with less college education.

Meaning  Alzheimer disease and related dementias were associated with adverse financial events starting years prior to clinical diagnosis.

The full article is  available here.