And more advance directives are likely to designate friends as health and financial decisionmakers.

FORBES: Aging Outside the Nuclear Family

Insurer Aetna began using nurse-care managers to help manage both Medicare and commercially insured patients with terminal illness in 2004, using telephone consultations with patients, doctors and families to, among other things, ensure advance directives are in place and complied with.

WSJ: New Efforts to Simplify End-of-Life-Care Wishes