ALIGNING WEALTH, LAW & HEALTH: A PLAYBOOK FOR WELL‑BEING
Most family offices are precision‑tuned financial engines — until a health crisis exposes a missing part.
Serious illness can scramble investment strategy, legal protections, and medical decisions in a single week. The answer is to connect three specialists — wealth, legal, and health advisors — into an integrated “triangle of support” before trouble strikes.
The Triangle at Work
Think of the triangle as a three‑way safety net — finance, law, and health interlocking so no critical detail slips through. Here’s what each type of advisor brings to the table:
Wealth Advisor – Manages liquidity (so treatment choices follow medical merit — not price tags). And models estimated costs for long‑term care, home modifications, and other health expenditures.
Attorney – Makes certain there is a legal infrastructure — trusts, advance directives, powers of attorney — that ensures a client’s wishes are enforceable even if capacity changes overnight.
Health Advisor – Curates physicians, coordinates care plans, vets insurance coverage, and deals with billing discrepancies.
When these three professionals share information routinely — not just in emergencies — families benefit from a strategy that treats wealth, legal, and health as three sides of the triangle.
Timing and Planning: Build the Bridge Before You Need It
Proactive collaboration beats crisis coordination. Establish regular annual reviews in late Q4 — when insurance enrollment windows are open and asset structures can still be adjusted — and add ad-hoc reviews at major life transitions (a move, home purchase, divorce, new marriage, or caregiving change). A concise “Care & Wealth Roadmap” — one page listing health priorities, insurance status, and financial guardrails — keeps everyone aligned and becomes the touchstone when stress runs high.
Putting The Triangle in Place
Designate a quarterback. Choose one advisor — often the wealth manager — to convene an introductory three‑way meeting and maintain the communication cadence.
Draft a living memo. Capture key medical concerns, coverage details, and financial parameters in a single document, then revisit it annually.
Run a simulated crisis. Imagine a hypothetical middle‑of‑the‑night hospitalization to reveal bottlenecks and refine the response plan.
The Take‑Away
Great wealth management already treats money as a living organism — nurture it, protect it, watch it grow. Apply the same discipline to legal and health safeguards, and there is a resilient framework capable of absorbing even the most challenging medical developments.