Deana Healy CFP®

Special Needs Planning: Opportunity, Scope, and Challenges
Thursday, June 10, 2021 | 9:10 AM - 10:00 AM ET

According to the CDC, 61 million adults live with a disability. According to the 2019 American Community Survey (ACS), the percentage of children with a disability in the United States increased between 2008 and 2019, from 3.9 percent to 4.3 percent. Given the prevalence of disability across age groups, advisors are likely to encounter families needing support for special needs planning. Special needs planning encompasses all the key elements of financial planning, but will require advisors to look beyond core financial factors, to understand the whole picture of what a family may face. We'll explore those financial and non-financial factors, identify possible family goals and how to address them, and talk through challenges and potential roadblocks. Advisors will gain insight into some of the programs and resources available to families, and learn how to incorporate those resources into a comprehensive plan. Advisors will learn what could cause a special needs recipient to lose access to vital government benefits. And lastly, advisors will identify the network of professionals they should consider building to support their special needs families.

About Deana 

Deana is a Certified Financial Planner (CFP®) professional with 21 years in financial services and 5 years as a financial advisor.  She graduated with a M.A. from Princeton University and a B.A. in Middle Eastern Studies from Wellesley College. She contributed to a boutique financial planning firm specializing in holistic, comprehensive financial planning for high net worth clients.

Deana specializes in the ability to break down complex situations, document processes, and effectively communicate outcomes that deliver results. She leads the Ameriprise Financial Advanced Advice team to find opportunities to further support advisors, build strategies behind new specialty advice areas that meet advisor and client needs, and connect advisors with Advanced Advice on how they can support their practice.

Outside of work,  Deana takes pleasure in traveling to places like South Africa, Botswana, Russia, and Morocco to continue to gain global cultural understanding.