Growing cost of elder care an increasing burden for families

The growing cost of elder care is putting an increasing burden on American families. NBC News' Christine Romans profiles one American family dealing with the financial and emotional burdens of Alzheimer's Disease.

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#ElderCare #Alzheimers #Health

[suejaracz]

My best friend was diagnosed with Alzheimers at 64. I moved in with her and her husband to help take care of her and keep her safe. Paid care givers are super expensive and many times don't show up. I feel so bad for this couple and wish they had more supportive friends and family. It truly is almost impossible by yourself.

[llamalover]

Don't force your children to take care of you. Some people do not have the emotional or mental bandwith for caregiving. If they want to offer their care, wonderful. But do not expect it without asking or guilt trip them into it. Everyone is capable of different things.

[sanmassara]

I love this women with my whole heart. God will give you strength sweet girl when you think there isn't any left. This is love. ♡

[ljaaraica]

My father died of cancer last Dec, in a sad way it's a kind of blessing because I would have hated seeing my father suffering from horrible diseases like Alzheimer or Dementia. My father was a low paid priest and he would have been impacted financially, given the Church is declining.

[ThessDavidson]

I am blessed Sweden will pay for my mothers day care and later full time alzheimerscare.
I’m so sorry this is your reality.

[DorisFaust-mx]

Please provide fast and painless exit!

[fatsilver]

And people still want to live long lives...for what??

[wbrown]

This scares me as a parent and child my parents are getting older why my kids are growing I work hard but not enough to cover a disaster like this 😢.

[sct]

I can’t believe she said all that in front of her husband. He understands more than she knows. 🤔☹️

[pandawandafloop]

Sucks that America doesn't have universal healthcare. One must really have retirement funds if he or she doesn't want to burden his or her family. Yes, I said burden, because it truly is financially, mentally, and physically draining to fully take care of a person. Please just make sure to save up for retirement so your kids don't suffer even more.

[MysticLadyFae]

My mom has dementia and is bed bound. $9, 500 per month for her adult foster home. Social Security barely covers 1/3 of it. She has savings, but it goes fast as her needs increase. Medicare should also cover nursing and foster homes for the elderly.

[elbt]

I have to tell you, the husband isn't going broke for you

[reemagee]

I live in a state where the lottery is supposed to benefit older citizens. Why can't some of the money go towards funding for situations like this? Where does all that money go?

[geralddrolet]

I’m not feeling bad for everyone else because from age 25-30 I had to be a family caregiver for my grandmother because my mother and uncle put the burden on my Aunt and I. It greatly affected my ability to pursue college education and taking on extra jobs that paid more money. It affected me time wise and financially so I believe everyone else should have to go through what I did because it builds character. If I had to loose pay so should everyone else!

[lilblackfish]

thats why i aways say live ur life young cuz you never know if you can when ur older

[Rayjack-mo]

Don't rely on so-called elder care rely on yourself and your family, Who else is their ! Focus on things that are truly important.

[culturalobserver]

In the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, an aunt of mine was paid a stipend each month for caring for both of her elderly parents full time. She lived in California. Not sure if the county paid her or the state. And by the way, this was when we had a good, conservative governor and California was doing very well economically. I don’t know if California still has that program for full time family caregivers.

[KILLKING]

Messed up part is the elderly expect the younger generations to sacrifice our personal and financial future to take care of them essentially using us younger generations as "retirement plans" which is slowly but surely backfiring on them.

[algernon]

I took care of my parents for 12 years ( very little income). Savings depleted, retirement fubds whats that. But I'd go it again and again.

[Groovygal]

My mom got diagnosed with early onset Parkinson’s a week after I turned 18. She kept it a secret. What else did she keep a secret that I didn’t have a college fund. But she let me burry myself in debt on the promise that it’s coming. When I found out I had no college fund and I was on my own for the student loans for half a degree. No chance of paying for the rest of it bc I don’t have a degree or a job. And my mom drops on us that she has Parkinson’s and has had it for years now and has been getting treatment in secret. Of course the first few years of symptoms are very mild, by the time she did tell us it was so pronounced. And she had been gaslighting us about it for a year bc we had began to notice. I’m an unpaid caregiver to my single mom. She has a very wealthy immediate family but they will not help her and kept her secret for her. My godmother found my mom’s neurologist for her Parkinson’s diagnoses bc my mom was so inept she didn’t even know how to find a doctor. My godmother then sat on that information and her hand for 3 years and is mia now that my moms needs double brain surgery.