This is the start of a month-long celebration to honor family caregivers in the United States.
According to AARP and the National Alliance for Caregiving, approximately 59 million family caregivers provide an estimated 49.5 billion hours of unpaid care each year.
This unpaid labor equates to roughly 24 million full-time jobs, representing about 17% of the entire U.S. full-time workforce.
The estimated average economic rate for this care is valued at $20.41 per hour (ranging by state from $14.12 in Louisiana to $27.05 in Washington).
The economic value of unpaid family caregiving in the United States is estimated at $1.01 trillion annually.
Family caregivers spend an average of nearly $7,000 per year of their own money on care-related expenses (such as medical supplies, food, and household goods).
Individual caregivers spend an average of 27 hours per week looking after their loved ones.
Canada, United Kingdom, Italy, France, Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, and Australia all have some form of family caregiver compensation.
The United States has no program for compensating family caregivers. A few states have limited programs.
When you vote tomorrow, please keep this in mind. We need politicians who care about more than just enriching themselves.
Stepping off my soapbox now.
