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You/r wife may be responsible for the full payment / balance due.
Certainly, take the card away and make arrangements to either limit her access to any and all finances or block totally.

Often, a third party can make arrangements to make a deal for you.
They are not tax prep people although that work on behalf of the consumer.
You will need to do some research to find these people (or someone here may know). (I found at a local church.)

In addition, get documentation from MD that she has dementia.
REALLY IMPORTANT TO GET THIS DOCUMENTATION
MD documentation will (hopefully) go a long way to get balance reduced or forgiven.

And, then there are pro bono attorneys and/or attorneys specializing in elder care. Call any of them in your area and ask if they would consider helping on a pro bono basis. I found one for my friend - this attorney did a Will for him. I said my friend could pay something although he lived in Sec 8 housing / low income. Attorney didn't charge him anything.

And, then call the Alz Associaton / local or national. This must be a common problem and they may have ideas on how to proceed.

Sounds like you would / could benefit from someone managing your finances. Depending on what is involved, a fiduciary, an attorney, a social worker?

Gena / Touch Matters
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Reply to TouchMatters
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oldandtiredout, welcome to the forum. The only way to stop credit card debt from piling up is to cut your wife's credit card into small pieces and throw it out. Then call the bank, explain the situation, and ask for a new card for yourself with a new credit card and pin number. Then pay off as much as you can of the debt, by cutting back on other unnecessary expenses.


So your wife has funds to use, she can use cash instead. Give her a small allowance. My elderly Dad was happy when I gave him $25, as with his memory going more back to childhood, that was a lot of money.
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Reply to freqflyer
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What do you think you can do about it?
It seems a little late now to be addressing this issue. This debt likely will not have a big impact on your life at this point. Go ahead and take care of yourselves and don't worry about it. Either your estate assets will cover the debt, or the rest of us poor schmucks will be paying for it, as the credit card company absorbs the uncollectible debt.
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Reply to CaringWifeAZ
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Call your Office of Aging. See if they provide a credit councelor. Also, ask about other resourses they have you can take advantage of.
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Reply to JoAnn29
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Honestly, credit card debt is not the biggest issue. You should be able to contact an attorney that specializes in elder issues and ask what you need to do to secure your future.
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Reply to JustAnon
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Do you have a financial advisor, accountant of Power of Attorney who can manage the finances?
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Reply to IncrediCare
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Please clarify what your question is and provide more details.
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Reply to lealonnie1
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