My mom’s driver's license expires soon. She has dementia. Will she need an ID?

I was able to get my mom a CA ID online during the pandemic. It may still be an option. She has needed ID a few times already: to get a disabled parking permit (for me to park when taking her to appointments), to get a covid vaccine, to request certain documents from Social Security and for a replacement Medicare card. These are just few examples when your mom may need ID.

She should probably have just a state ID card and that would do for identification. She needs to know that this is NOT a driver's license.

My old client hadn't driven for years, but she did get a state ID which she needed sometimes to cash a check or show ID.

I brought my mom to the DMV to get her a senior ID. Some doctors offices will ask for an ID and if your mom needs to fly or go to a courthouse she will need it. I never expected my mom would need one, but she did when I moved to a different state and brought her with me. Just remember to take all of the proper items to the DMV needs like bills with her address and sometimes an original SS card

Yes. Get an ID card.
Otherwise, what other non-expired ID does she have?
It is needed for a lot - legal affairs, medical needs.
Certainly, it is better to have and not need it . . . than to not have and need it!

Gena Galenski / Touch Matters

Hey MamaBearlyThere,

My name is Emma and I am an Alzheimer’s Dementia specialized caregiver and although I live in Washington state and ID requirements may be different I have found with my patients until they are at later stages it is important to still have identification. I just had my newest patients renew their passports and ID cards for identification purposes even though one of their dementias is progressing and the other may stop driving soon.

Again don’t take my word for it as I am in another state but the need for an ID has remained with my patients until late stages when the POA takes over most of the work to present ID and personal information when it is needed.

i hope this helps in your decision making process!

best
Em

Get her a state ID which is similar in appearance to a driver's license. It helps whenever you need to show an official picture ID for her. You can get this as the DMV.

Yes. Get her a legal ID of some kind. Passport or state ID. She will need it.

Yes, she will need an id. When I filed moms taxes last year, it asked for a number from a state issued id. She hadn't had one in ten years so I had to gather all of her information and take her to the BMV to get a state issues ID card. My mom asked me in front of the clerk which name she should use. LOL I said, the only one you've got!

@MamBearlyThere,

I strongly recommend you get your mother Real ID.

In my state the elderly are entitled to get their Real ID and/or renew driver’s license on-line or by mail rather than being forced to show up in person at DMV due to ongoing Covid restrictions, and I just looked to refresh my memory but even if the elderly’s DL expired March 2020 or thereafter, they can get a renewal. Yes, I read it repeatedly on our DMV website.

So in your state, too, you may be in luck to easily get mother Real ID without her needing to physically show up at DMV.

And to avoid unnecessary kerfuffle, get your father’s DL or switch it to Real ID before his renewal date,

You need to check CAREFULLY the Department of Motor Vehicles website for your parents’ state. Rules vary by state. And if you cannot determine the answer from the website, phone your state’s DMV, and if the person who takes your call can’t answer firmly and with assurance, thank them, call back and speak with another representative until someone can answer and point you to where on the website the information resides, so that if your local DMV balks, you have proof on the state DMV website. I only caution because I, on behalf of our elderly loved one was given wrong info that caused enormous difficulty, then when we got an in-person appointment with first availability 6 weeks later and brought in the bundles of proof necessary including bills (invoices) in her own name which was nigh on to impossible, then stood in line for 45 minutes even with confirmed appointment time, the minute we got to the window the representative said “why did you bring all this stuff and come in, in-person? This could’ve been done on-line or by mail due to ongoing Covid rules”. I honestly thought I was going to pass out. I was so angry I actually tracked down our state’s head honcho of DMV (with great difficulty) and gave him a voicemail telling calmly but forcefully of my utter disdain and disgust for the runaround we received, and bore eyewitness to the fruitless chaos of our local DMV and names of those who gave us incorrect info along the way. I got a stilted phone call of apology from his PA.

Anyway, to make a long story even longer, I stress that yes, having a valid ID card is wise, and try to get it on-line or by mail if your state allows. Don’t forget to get your father’s license renewed before it expires, or if he should no longer drive, switch it for Real ID before the DL expires. Maybe you can handle both parents’ card renewals at same time.

Good luck.

A regular state ID card will be fine for doctors appointments, prescription pickups, or voting, but if you take her on a flight after next May she will need a “real ID” or a passport. I got my mom a real ID this spring, since her passport had expired. Check with your state DMV for what is required, I had to collect a few documents, including a copy of her marriage license from PA, which took some time. The DMV folks were very kind and helpful, though, took us to the front of the line and found her a chair to sit while they worked, not many 96 year olds come through.