Unpaid caregivers are the foundation of our longterm care system and an important part of the U.S. economy, with an estimated value of about $350 billion. How much is that? Well, it equals the total spending for the Medicare program ($342 billion in 2005) and exceeds the total spending for Medicaid ($300 billion in 2005). It even equals or surpasses the total sales of the world's largest companies, including Wal-Mart ($349 billion in 2006) and Exxon Mobil ($335 billion). Clearly, Caregivers are an important part of our country's economic health.
These dollar figures pale, however, when compared to the personal value of caregiving. How well would your loved ones be living if you didn't assist them? Would they be healthy, happy and safe? Would they be living in a home-like setting, or in a nursing home? Caregivers not only make life more viable, they make it more valuable.
So, are you a caregiver? You are if you:
Then YES - you are a Caregiver!
Maybe you and your siblings are pitching in to help your mom. Maybe you're the brother who visits her twice a week and brings dinner, or the sister who lives far away and calls her every morning. Maybe you're a grandparent who is now raising your grandchildren.
Or maybe you're providing support and care to your brother who has disabilities. He lives with you and you help him with dressing and bathing, prepare most meals and take him to his doctor regularly. He has complex health problems that require the use of oxygen, a special diet and regular blood tests and you're on top of it all.
You can be anyone - a relative, life partner, friend or neighbor. What makes you a caregiver is that you are helping someone you care about with everyday tasks of living. It doesn't matter what it is, how frequently you do it or how long it takes. It doesn't matter if you live with the person, live in the same neighborhood, or live across the country! You provide caregiving because you want to, because you feel a sense of responsibility. You care about the person and want to do what you can to help.
We want to thank you and also ask you to read on. This edition of the NYSOFA News is written for YOU!
(Statistics used in this article are courtesy of the American Association of Retired Persons [AARP] Public Policy Institute.)
