Can I Avoid the Economic Dangers of Caregiving?

AARP’s recent article entitled “5 Steps to Avoid Economic Pitfalls of Caregiving” reports that 20% of family caregivers have to take unpaid time off from work due to their caregiving responsibilities.

The average lifetime cost to caregivers in lost wages and reduced pension and Social Security benefits is $304,000 — that is $388,000 in today’s dollars. This does not count the more than $7,200 that most caregivers spend out of pocket each year, on average, on housing, health care and other needs for loved ones in their care, according to the AARP report.

Step 1: Calculate the gap. The average cost of a full-time home health aide is nearly $62,000 a year, and a semiprivate room in a nursing home runs about $95,000. Ask your parents about the size of their nest egg, how fast they are spending it, whether they have long-term care insurance and how much equity they have in their home. Compare your parents’ assets against their projected expenses to determine your gap.

Step 2: Fill the gap without going broke. Try to find free resources: Use the National Council on Aging’s BenefitsCheckUp tool to find federal, state and private benefit programs that apply to your situation. Then create a budget to determine what you can contribute, physically and in dollars, to closing the gap. In addition, ask your siblings if they can pitch in.

Step 3: If a gap remains, consider Medicaid. This program can cover long-term care. However, your parent or parents may need to spend down assets to qualify. Note that if just only one parent is in a nursing home, the other can generally keep half of the assets, up to a total of $137,400 (not including their house). However, the rules differ by state. As a result, this can get complicated. Speak with an elder-law attorney for help.

Step 4: No matter what the gap, try to get paid. If your parents have enough resources, you may discuss having them pay you for caregiving. However, you should speak with an attorney first about drawing up a contract. This should include issues like the number of hours a day you will spend on providing care and whether doing so will require you to quit your job. The caregiving agreement is written carefully, so that it does not violate Medicaid regulations about spending down assets.

Step 5: Protect your own earning ability. If you are mid-career, it is very difficult to leave a job for ​family responsibilities like caregiving and then go back into the workforce at the same salary. The Society for Human Resource Management says that it costs six to nine months’ salary to replace an employee, so many employers now see it is less expensive to make an accommodation.

Reference: AARP (Feb. 24, 2022) “5 Steps to Avoid Economic Pitfalls of Caregiving”