There’s some countries that accept it as payment fairly widely, and a couple that have even properly adopted it iirc.
In general though, no, but it’s certainly usable globally and would get around OP’s problem if the recipient accepts it. And if OP can be bothered with the hassle of learning about it.
There’s also cryptocurrency. Not as invisible as many would have you believe, especially when KYC checks are involved, but there are definitely ways to stay hidden with it, by choosing certain exchanges, transfer methods, and currencies.
Not as straightforward of an answer as OP is probably hoping for though, and it also depends heavily on the recipient of the money.
Sounds like you've already answered your own question.
It might die. If it does, it's not a super big deal. You have backups. You don't like creating unnecessary e-waste.
As gets have said, crystal disk info can help detect any existing problems, but it can't predict the future if something happens suddenly. So it can be a good indicator, but don't assume it's 100%.
Prime gaslighting opportunity right there
Wish that was my worst case scenario