It has subtle beginnings. A parent or loved one needs a little help taking care of themselves or getting to appointments. Then, as days go by, you realize that care provided by a child or loved one has expanded and requires a significant amount of time and energy.
Family caregivers are critical for caring for people as they age, but some argue that more compensation is needed for those caregivers who often are also balancing a job and their own responsibilities at home.
AARP found that family caregivers provide $600 Billion in unpaid care across the United States. In a recent article, AARP spells it out clearly, “Time is money. No one knows this better than the nation’s 38 million family caregivers who devote 36 billion hours of free care to older parents, spouses, partners and friends with chronic, disabling and serious health conditions. Family caregivers are the backbone of the long-term care system in the U.S. But with over 60 percent of family caregivers working either full-time or part-time — and 30 percent living with a child or grandchild — they need and deserve more assistance from city, state and federal governments, says the report. For instance, states can expand caregiving tax credits and workplaces can adapt more family-friendly policies such as paid family leave.”
The organization wants to see Congress take action to help ease the burden faced by this country’s family caregivers.
>>Click here to read the article and learn more about what AARP is doing.
>>Also, learn about the National Strategy to Support Family Caregivers.
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