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By Rick Law, elder law estate planning attorney, and founder of the multi-generation law firm at Law Elder Law. LEL is home to the Estate Planning Center at Law Elder Law in Aurora, IL.
Personal-care agreements are important for the person receiving the care, but they are also important for the caregivers.
Individuals that take on long-term-care duties often see a decrease in earning potential and frequently have to cut into their own savings to provide for the person they are caring for. Caregivers usually cannot afford to quit their nine-to-five job, but they may be forced to cut back their hours in order to care for an elderly parent. These caregivers often put their own retirement at risk to care for a parent.
A 2009 national survey of caregivers showed that over half of the responding caregivers reported a medium to high level of burden. A 2010 national survey of the full-time workforce also came to the conclusion that individuals who were employed full time and who also had caregiving responsibilities suffered from lower well-being than those without such responsibilities.
Extensive data about the characteristics of caregivers and care recipients is available from an in-depth survey of a nationally weighted sample of caregivers providing assistance to persons people aged 50 and or older conducted in 2009 by the National Alliance for Caregiving and the AARP, Nat’l Alliance for Caregiving, Caregiving in the U.S. 2009: A Focused Look at Those Caring for the 50+ (2009), in which surveyed caregivers were more likely to report a high level of burden if they were primary caregivers, they were older, they were in fair or poor health, they were not employed, they had lower incomes, or the care recipient lived with them, id.; the survey used an index to measure the burden of care based on the number of hours of care per week provided and the number of instrumental activities of daily living performed.
The survey, conducted by Gallup and Healthways, used an index consisting of six areas—life evaluation, emotional health, physical health, healthy behavior, work environment, and basic access to necessities—to measure overall well-being.
Too many families needlessly lose everything they have. Don’t let that be you. If you need help paying the overwhelming cost of long term care, give our office a call at 800-310-3100. Your first consultation is absolutely free. We’ll let you know what steps you need to take, right now, to protect yourself and your family. Call now, because when you’re out of money, you’re out of options!
Sincerely,
Rick L. Law, Attorney, Estate Planner for Retirees.
Rick has been named the #1 Illinois elder law estate planning attorney for the past 8 years in a row by Leading Lawyer Magazine. He has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, AARP Magazine, TheStreet.com, and numerous newspapers and articles. Rick is the lead attorney for Law Elder Law, LLP, focusing in Estate Planning, Guardianship, and Nursing Home Solutions. His goal is to give retirees an informed edge when it comes to dealing with an uncertain future. Get flexible retirement strategies that work during good times and bad, plus information on how you can save your home and assets from being used to pay for long term care. Call 800-310-3100 for your free consultation now!