chronic disease management and family caregivers
TRANSCRIPT
AAFP PANEL: CHRONIC DISEASE
MANAGEMENT AND FAMILY
CAREGIVERS
Rhonda Richards
Federal Health and Family Team
Government Affairs
AARP
Who are family caregivers?
• About 42 million family caregivers provide unpaid care to an adult with limitations in daily activities
• 3.9 million family caregivers provide care to a child under age 18 because of a medical, behavioral, or other condition or disability
• The average family caregiver is a 49-year-old female taking care of her mother for nearly 20 hours/week, but family caregivers are also incredibly diverse
Who are family caregivers?
• Over seven in ten caregivers were employed at some time when they were caregiving
• Forty-two percent of U.S. workers have provided care for an aging relative or friend in the past five years
• About half (49 percent) of the workforce expects to be providing eldercare in the coming five years
What do family caregivers do?• Family caregivers provide services including:
• Bathing
• Dressing
• Transportation
• Managing finances
• Grocery shopping, meal preparation, housework
• Care coordination
• Emotional support
• Medical/nursing tasks – almost half of family caregivers
perform these complex tasks
What is the economic impact of
family caregiving?
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• About 42 million family caregivers provide $450
billion annually in unpaid care
• More than total Medicaid spending in 2012
• Over 40 billion hours of care annually
Family Caregivers
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• Backbone of services and supports in the US
• Help older adults and people with disabilities
live in independently in their homes and
communities where they want to be
• Saving taxpayer dollars by helping to delay or
prevent more costly nursing home care &
unnecessary hospitalizations
• Play an important role in health care
Family Caregivers
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• Many family caregivers take on care willingly
• But they can also face physical, emotional, and
financial challenges
Caregiving Challenges
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• Commonly experience emotional strain and
mental health problems, especially depression
• May neglect own health due to caring for a loved
one
Caregiving Challenges
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• Juggling work and family responsibilities
• Fewer family caregivers in the future when more
people will need care
Caregiving Challenges
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• Family caregivers of people 50 and older spend
on average over 10% of their annual income on
caregiving expenses, an average of $5,531 out-
of-pocket in 2007; long-distance caregivers
averaged $8,728 in annual expenses
• Family caregivers (age 50 plus) who leave the
workforce to care for a parent lose nearly
$304,000 in wages and benefits over their
lifetime ($283,716 for men to $324,044 for
women)
Resources & Learn More
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• AARP Caregiving Resource Center:
www.aarp.org/caregiving
• Eldercare Locator: www.eldercare.gov
• Next Step in Care:
http://www.nextstepincare.org/
• AARP’s I Heart Caregivers: If you’re a caregiver,
share your story: www.aarp.org/iheartcaregivers
