The document provides statistics on family caregivers and caregiving in the United States. It finds that over 65 million Americans provide unpaid care to loved ones each year, with the typical caregiver being a 49-year-old woman caring for her elderly mother. Caregiving has significant economic and health impacts, as caregivers have lower incomes and are more likely to have physical and mental health problems. Caregiving also affects employment, with many workers needing to take time off or make adjustments to their schedules to provide care.

1. Caregiving Statistics

2. STATISTICS ON FAMILY CAREGIVERS AND FAMILY
CAREGIVING
1. CAREGIVING POPULATION
2. ECONOMICS OF CAREGIVING
3. IMPACT ON FAMILY CAREGIVER’S HEALTH
4. CAREGIVING AND WORK
5. CAREGIVING AND HEALTH CARE
6. CAREGIVER SELF-AWARENESS
Reference:
http://www.nfcacares.org/who_are_family_caregivers/care_giving_statstics.cfm

3. CAREGIVING POPULATION 1
More than 65 million people, 29% of the U.S. population,
provide care for a chronically ill, disabled or aged family
member or friend during any given year and spend an
average of 20 hours per week providing care for their loved
one.
Caregiving in the United States;
National Alliance for Caregiving in collaboration with AARP; November 2009.

4. CAREGIVING POPULATION 2
The value of the services family caregivers provide for "free,"
when caring for older adults, is estimated to be $375 billion
a year. That is almost twice as much as is actually spent on
homecare and nursing home services combined ($158 billion).
Evercare Survey of the Economic Downturn and Its Impact on Family Caregiving;
National Alliance for Caregiving and Evercare. March 2009

5. CAREGIVING POPULATION 3
The typical family caregiver is a 49-year-old woman caring for
her widowed 69-year-old mother who does not live with her.
She is married and employed. Approximately 66% of family
caregivers are women. More than 37% have children or
grandchildren under 18 years old living with them.
Caregiving in the United States;
National Alliance for Caregiving in collaboration with AARP. November 2009

6. CAREGIVING POPULATION 4
1.4 million children ages 8 to 18 provide care for an adult
relative; 72% are caring for a parent or grandparent; and 64%
live in the same household as their care recipient.
Fortunately, most are not the sole caregiver.
National Alliance for Caregiving and the United Hospital Fund,
Young Caregivers in the U.S., 2005

7. CAREGIVING POPULATION 5
20 hours per week is the average number of hours family
caregivers spend caring for their loved ones while 13% of
family caregivers are providing 40 hours of care a week or
more.
Caregiving in the United States;
National Alliance for Caregiving in collaboration with AARP. November 2009

8. CAREGIVING POPULATION 6
Family caregivers are the foundation of long-term care
nationwide exceeding Medicaid long-term care spending in all
states.
Evercare Survey of the Economic Downturn and Its Impact on Family Caregiving;
National Alliance for Caregiving and Evercare. March 2009

9. CAREGIVING POPULATION 7
51% of care recipients live in their own home, 29% live with
their family caregiver, and 4% live in nursing homes and
assisted living.
Caregiving in the United States;
National Alliance for Caregiving in collaboration with AARP. November 2009

10. CAREGIVING POPULATION 8
36% of family caregivers care for a parent and 7 out of 10
caregivers are caring for loved ones over 50 years old.
Caregiving in the United States;
National Alliance for Caregiving in collaboration with AARP.
November 2009

11. CAREGIVING POPULATION 9
14% of family caregivers care for a special needs child with
an estimated 16.8 million caring for special needs
children under 18 years old. 55% of these caregivers are
caring for their own children.
Caregiving in the United States;
National Alliance for Caregiving in collaboration with AARP. November 2009

12. CAREGIVING POPULATION 10
78% of adults living in the community and in need of long-
term care depend on family and friends as their only source
of help.
Thompson,
L. Long-term care: support for family caregivers. 2004

13. ECONOMICS OF CAREGIVING 1
Women who are family caregivers are 2.5 times more likely
than non-caregivers to live in poverty and five times more
likely to receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
Study conducted by researchers at Rice University data compiled
from the Health and Retirement Study funded by the
National Institute of Aging and conducted by the
University of Michigan, 1992-2004

14. ECONOMICS OF CAREGIVING 2
Caregiving families (families in which one member has a
disability) have median incomes that are more than
15% lower than non-caregiving families. In every state and
DC the poverty rate is higher among families with members
with a disability than among families without.
Disability and American Families: 2000, Census 2000 Special Reports,
July 2005

15. ECONOMICS OF CAREGIVING 3
During the 2009 economic downturn, 1 in 5 family
caregivers had to move into the same home with
their loved ones to cut expenses.
Evercare Survey of the Economic Downturn
and Its Impact on Family Caregiving;
National Alliance for Caregiving and Evercare. March 2009

16. ECONOMICS OF CAREGIVING 4
47% of working caregivers indicate an increase in caregiving
expenses has caused them to use up ALL or MOST of
their savings.
Evercare Survey of the Economic Downturn
and Its Impact on Family Caregiving;
National Alliance for Caregiving and Evercare. March 2009

17. ECONOMICS OF CAREGIVING 5
The average family caregiver for someone 50 years or older
spends $5,531 per year on out of pocket caregiving
expenses in 2007 which was more than 10% of the median
income for a family caregiver that year.
Valuing the Invaluable: The Economic Value of Family Caregiving,
2008 Update. AARP

18. IMPACT ON FAMILY CAREGIVER’S HEALTH 1
23% of family caregivers caring for loved ones for 5 years or
more report their health is fair or poor.
Caregiving in the United States;
National Alliance for Caregiving in collaboration with AARP; November 2009

19. IMPACT ON FAMILY CAREGIVER’S HEALTH 2
Stress of family caregiving for persons with dementia has
been shown to impact a person's immune system for up to
three years after their caregiving ends thus increasing their
chances of developing a chronic illness themselves.
Drs. Janice-Kiecolt Glaser and Ronald Glaser,
"Chronic stress and age-related increases in the proinflammatory cytokine
IL-6.“ Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, June 30, 2003.

20. IMPACT ON FAMILY CAREGIVER’S HEALTH 3
Nearly three quarters (72%) of family caregivers report not
going to the doctor as often as they should and 55% say they
skip doctor appointments for themselves. 63% of
caregivers report having poor eating habits than non-
caregivers and 58% indicate worse exercise habits than
before caregiving responsibilities.
Evercare Study of Caregivers in Decline:
A Close-Up Look at Health Risks of Caring for a Loved One.
National Alliance for Caregiving and Evercare. 2006.

21. IMPACT ON FAMILY CAREGIVER’S HEALTH 4
20% of employed female caregivers over 50 years old
report symptoms of depression compared to 8% of their non-
caregiving peers.
MetLife Study of Working Caregivers and Employer Health Costs;
National Alliance for Caregiving and MetLife Mature Market Institute.
February 2010

22. IMPACT ON FAMILY CAREGIVER’S HEALTH 5
40% to 70% of family caregivers have clinically significant
symptoms of depression with approximately a quarter to
half of these caregivers meet the diagnostic criteria for major
depression.
Zarit, S. (2006). Assessment of Family Caregivers:
A Research Perspective

23. IMPACT ON FAMILY CAREGIVER’S HEALTH 6
More than 1 in 10 (11%) of family caregivers report that
caregiving has caused their physical health to deteriorate.
How Do Family Caregivers Fare? A Closer Look at their Experiences.
Center on Aging Society. 2005.

24. IMPACT ON FAMILY CAREGIVER’S HEALTH 7
A wife's hospitalization increased her husband's chances of
dying within a month by 35%. A husband's hospitalization
boosted his wife's mortality risk by 44%.
Nicholas D. Christakis, Professor, Health-care Policy, Harvard Medical School,
Boston and Suzanne Salamon, M.D., Associate Chief, Geriatric Psychiatry,
Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital, Boston, New England Journal of Medicine,
Feb. 16, 2006

25. IMPACT ON FAMILY CAREGIVER’S HEALTH 8
Family caregivers experiencing extreme stress have been
shown to age prematurely. This level of stress can take as
much as 10 years off a family caregiver's life.
Elissa S. Epel, Dept of Psychiatry, Univ of Calif, SF, et al,
From the Proceedings of the
National Academy of Sciences, Dec 7, 2004, Vol 101, No. 49.

26. CAREGIVING AND WORK
1
Six in 10 family caregivers are employed. MetLife Study of
Working
Caregivers and Employer Health Costs;
National Alliance for Caregiving and MetLife Mature Market Institute. February 2010

27. CAREGIVING AND WORK
2
73% of family caregivers who care for someone over the age
of 18 either work or have worked while providing care; 66%
have had to make some adjustments to their work life, from
reporting late to work to giving up work entirely; and 1 in 5
family caregivers have had to take a leave of absence.
Caregiving in the United States;
National Alliance for Caregiving in collaboration with AARP.
November 2009

28. CAREGIVING AND WORK
3
64% of working parents caring for a special needs child
believe that caregiving responsibility has negatively impacted
their work performance.
Care.com and National Family Caregivers Association:
State of Care Index. 2009

29. CAREGIVING AND WORK
4
American businesses can lose as much as $34 billion
each year due to employees' need to care for loved ones 50
years of age and older.
MetLife Caregiving Cost Study: Productivity Losses to U.S.
MetLife Mature Market Institute and National Alliance for Caregiving Business.
July 2006

30. CAREGIVING AND WORK
5
Caregivers caring for elderly loved ones cost employers 8%
more in health care costs estimated to be worth $13.4
billion per year.
MetLife Study of Working Caregivers and Employer Health Costs;
National Alliance for Caregiving and MetLife Mature Market Institute. February 2010

31. CAREGIVING AND WORK
6
Over 65% of employers believe that health benefits
improve employees' health. Sixty percent (60%) believe it
increases morale and 39% believe it increases productivity.
Job-based Health Insurance in the Balance: Employer Views of
Coverage in the Workplace.Collins, S.R. et al, The Commonwealth Fund,
Commonwealth Fund Supplement to the 2003 National Organization Study.
March 2004

32. CAREGIVING AND HEALTH CARE 1
22% of family caregivers say they need help communicating
with physicians.
National Alliance for Caregiving and AARP, Caregiving in the U.S. 2004

33. CAREGIVING AND HEALTH CARE 2
Focus group research suggests that family caregivers do not
recognize that public policy has a direct impact on their
day-to-day lives. Many are uncomfortable even thinking
there might be a connection.
Lake Snell Perry & Associates, A Report on Formative Focus Groups,
conducted for the Family Caregivers Self-Awareness and Empowerment Project,
a joint program of the National Family Caregivers Association and the National
Alliance for Caregiving, September 2001.

34. CAREGIVER SELF-AWARENESS 1
Over 90% of family caregivers become more proactive about
seeking resources and skills they need to assist their care
recipient after they have self-identified.
National Family Caregivers Association,
Survey of Self-Identified Family Caregivers, 2001.

35. CAREGIVER SELF-AWARENESS 2
83% of self-identified family caregivers believe their self-
awareness led to increased confidence when talking to
healthcare professionals about their loved one's care.
National Family Caregivers Association,
Survey of Self-Identified Family Caregivers, 2001

36. CAREGIVER SELF-AWARENESS 3
For over 75% of family caregivers it was the act of helping
their loved one with personal care that contributed to their
self-identification.
National Family Caregivers Association,
Survey of Self-Identified Family Caregivers, 2001.

37. CAREGIVER SELF-AWARENESS 4
For 60% of family caregivers, their loved one's diagnosis and
their interaction with the health care system made them
aware that they were family caregivers.
National Family Caregivers Association,
Survey of Self-Identified Family Caregivers, 2001.

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