Getting Paid to Care for Mom and Dad

Nearly a quarter of the American adult population provide long hours of voluntary care for an older or sick family member and friends, The Aggregator - edited by Nikki Waller in the The Wall Street Journal Sunday.

How many of you have cared for your aging relatives, either getting paid or not? My family, mostly 2 sisters, cared for our parents. As a family unit we paid one sister $10 hour plus gas, and the other one lived in my parent’s home “rent free” for a couple of years. It seemed fair to the family at the time.

My friend’s family hired an older grandchild to help care for her elderly father, age 98. He just passed last month at the age of 101. The grandchild received a monthly stipend. I never asked her how much that was but it sounded like he was well compensated.

Another interesting story that you might want to read.. Mom and her teens care for dad with early onset Alzheimer’s - it seems as we get older.. our parents will need our help more and more.

What is your story? How is your family compensating the primary family caregiver for the care he/she gives to aging mom and dad?

I’ve been asked by several caregivers if the government like Medicaid is currently paying family members to help elderly parents. They believe by keeping the parents out of a nursing home helps tax payers save money. That’s a good point.

But most families are taking up that burden.

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