Family Caregiver Support Program

Families are the mainstay of long term care for older persons. It is estimated that more than seven million people in the US are caregivers, providing unpaid help to older persons. These caregivers include spouses, adult children, and other relatives and friends.

The degree of caregiver activities has remained fairly constant for more than a decade, bearing witness to the remarkable resilience of the American family in taking care of its older citizens. If the work of caregivers had to be replaced by paid home care staff, the estimated cost would be $45 - $94 billion per year. In recognition of the selfless commitment of family caregivers, lawmakers gave birth to the new National Family Caregiver Support Program, under the Older Americans Act, to support caregivers in their efforts to care for older relatives.

Information and Assistance

With so many programs and the different eligibility requirements, seniors and their caregivers often need help knowing what services are available and whether they qualify for various programs. Information & Assistance is the key to connecting older adults and their caregivers with needed services, such as housing, transportation, nutrition, respite care, and other issues of concern. See the following web site for additional information.

http://www.fullcirclecare.org/sitemap/welcome.htm

Respite

Caregivers are "on-call" 24 hours a day, 7 days a week because they want to see their loved one remain in the comfort and security of their own home. But at some point, even caregivers need a break; they need respite. Two basic forms of respite services are available in the High Country counties: in-home respite and group respite.

High Country AAA contributes funds for In-Home Respite services through the following agencies: