Family caregivers struggle with duty and paying bills. TN must expand paid leave.
During this session of the Tennessee General Assembly, lawmakers prioritize addressing a reality that is often overlooked: most Tennesseans are or will be family caregivers at some point in our lives.
We may care for children, an adult relative with a disability, or an aging parent, and often we may be 'sandwich' caregivers - caring for children and aging parents at the same time.
Caregiving is often unseen and unappreciated, but vital to our communities and economy.
For too long, we have ignored the financial and emotional toll on those who step up to care for ill or disabled loved ones.
This challenge is especially pressing in Tennessee, ranked one of the worst states in the nation by AARP for family caregiving support.
About 80% of long-term care at home is provided by family caregivers, and the majority (61%) of caregivers are employed, many working full-time.
In Tennessee, family caregivers provide $12.3 billion in unpaid labor each year. Tennessee's nearly one million family caregivers face an impossible choice between maintaining a paycheck and keeping a loved one healthy and safe.
It's time we change that by ensuring that Tennesseans have access to paid leave to care for a family member with serious health issues.
The challenges of caregiving without paid leave are deeply personal and all too common for the families our organizations serve. For example, the Tennessee Caregiver Coalition hears from caregivers every day about the heartbreaking choices they face without access to paid leave.
One caregiver shared how, after her father suffered a debilitating stroke, she had to exhaust her vacation days and eventually quit her job to care for him, leaving her family struggling to stay afloat financially.
Opinion: How to protect elders from scams and financial exploitation
Another caregiver told of missing critical medical appointments for her young child with a rare disability because taking time off without pay meant falling behind on bills.
These stories highlight the impossible choices Tennessee families face when trying to balance work and caregiving responsibilities.
A robust paid leave policy would keep Tennesseans in the workforce, stabilize families, and strengthen our economy.
Right now, many caregivers – especially women – are forced to quit their jobs or reduce their hours to care for a family member.
Paid leave would allow family caregivers to stay employed while fulfilling their caregiving duties.
Research shows that access to paid leave also improves caregivers' mental and emotional health, empowering them to provide the best care possible without sacrificing their own well-being and financial security.
According to the Bipartisan Policy Center, over 70% of people not currently working or seeking work cite personal health or family caregiving as the main reason, and for these individuals, paid leave is nearly as important as compensation when deciding whether to return to the workforce.
As the aging population grows, so will the need for family caregivers whose work takes the burden off the formal caregiving system.
Tennessee can boost our economy by fostering caregiver-friendly workplaces, recognizing that eldercare is as important as childcare, and offering paid leave to help employees navigate family caregiving.
Research shows that paid leave boosts employee recruitment, retention, productivity, and morale.
As our population ages and health needs increase, so too should our willingness to support the people who carry the heaviest burdens: Tennessee families.
At some point in life, most of us will either provide care or need it ourselves, which means everyone has a stake in improving Tennessee's low ranking for family caregiver support.
By expanding access to paid family leave, Tennessee has an opportunity to provide family caregivers with much-needed economic security while building a healthier, more prosperous state.
Mia McNeil is state director of AARP Tennessee. Dr. Megan Schwalm is executive director of Tennessee Caregiver Coalition. Grace Smith is executive director of AgeWell Middle Tennessee.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee family caregivers deserve expanded paid leave | Opinion
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
World Elder Abuse Awareness Day is a reminder to strengthen elder protection
Every year on June 15, communities across the world recognize World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, a time to shine a light on one of the most pervasive yet overlooked social issues of our time – abuse, neglect, and exploitation of older adults. With a reported one in 10 older adults experiencing abuse (according to the National Center on Elder Abuse), and with Tennessee's older population growing faster than any other population in the state, there's no room for slacking on our efforts to get ahead of the need for greater support for those working to combat elder abuse. This year, we must shine that light on the public servants working daily to stop elder abuse in Tennessee's nursing homes and assisted living facilities: Long-Term Care Ombudsmen. Tennessee is home to a small but mighty team of around 18 staff and 50 volunteer ombudsmen at the local level who consistently visit almost 700 long-term care facilities to advocate for residents. As independent, resident-directed advocates, much of their time is spent addressing concerns – everything from poor food quality and missing belongings to unexpected weight loss and abuse. They also help residents understand their options when choosing a new home, support resident councils, and work with facility staff to meet resident needs. Ombudsmen are trusted allies to family caregivers who are navigating the complex and overwhelming long-term care system. We know that caregiving doesn't stop at the nursing home doors. Ombudsmen act as a lifeline for caregivers who have nowhere else to turn with questions or when problems arise. Behind every older adult protected by the ombudsman program is the landmark public policy that makes it possible: the Older Americans Act. This federal law established back in 1965 has been the backbone of a national network of services and supports for older adults, such as home-delivered meals and caregiver respite. It's been the first line of defense against elder abuse for decades. In Tennessee, the law ensured the Long-Term Care Ombudsman program was able to respond to over 4,000 complaints and nearly 2,400 questions from family members and facility staff last year alone. Thankfully for Tennesseans, ombudsmen aren't in this alone; they work with a wide network of support services. Adult protective services, local law enforcement, the state survey agency that licenses these homes, the Attorney General's Office, area agencies on aging and disability, and district attorneys are among the many dedicated professionals partnering to fight for and protect vulnerable Tennesseans. These public servants make up some of the most dedicated, impassioned people you could hope to have working on behalf of your loved ones. In honor of public servants on the front lines combating elder abuse, let's make this June 15 more than a day of awareness and recognize that the protection of Tennessee's older adults is championed by long-term care ombudsmen and other protective service entities dedicated to the charge. The Office of the State Long-Term Care Ombudsman is a programmatically independent advocacy service located within the Tennessee Department of Disability and Aging. To find your District Long-Term Care Ombudsman, visit or call 877-236-0013. Teresa Teeple is a Tennessee State Long-Term Care Ombudsman. This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: World Elder Abuse Awareness Day puts focus on TN protectors | Opinion
New York Post
2 days ago
- New York Post
Widely-used drug can seriously increase women's odds of living to age 90
Time to re-up that AARP subscription. A popular prescription drug already in millions of medicine cabinets could be the key to unlocking a longer life for women. New research published in the Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences found that those taking this widely-used diabetes drug had a great shot at making it to the big 9-0. JackF – No, it's not Ozempic — it's called metformin, and almost 20 million Americans are estimated to be taking it to help manage their Type 2 diabetes. Like other diabetes drugs, this decades-old, dirt-cheap medication works by decreasing the amount of glucose the body absorbs from food and improves its response to insulin. Also used to treat Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), metformin has often been hailed as a 'wonder drug' due to its other health benefits, including improving fertility in women, aiding in weight management and even reducing the risks of heart disease and certain cancers. This new study set its sights on promising research indicating it may also have anti-aging effects. Researchers analyzed the data of 438 postmenopausal women — half of whom were on metformin, the other half of whom took another diabetes drug called sulfonylurea. Like other diabetes drugs, metformin works by decreasing the amount of glucose the body absorbs from food and improves its response to insulin. Halfpoint – They found that those in the metformin group had a 30% higher chance of making it to 90 when compared to the sulfonylurea group. The study has a few limitations, the most notable of which is that it had no control group — meaning none of the participants weren't on diabetes medication — as well as a relatively small sample size. However, one of its strengths was a follow-up period of 14-15 years, which is much longer than the average randomized controlled trial. All told, the new study adds to an increasing body of research on the geroscience hypothesis, which posits that 'biological aging is malleable and that slowing biological aging may delay or prevent the onset of multiple age-related diseases and disability,' the researchers wrote. The new study backs up previous research published last year which showed that metformin can slow aging and also prevent disease in healthy older adults. 'I don't know if metformin increases lifespan in people, but the evidence that exists suggests that it very well might,' Steven Austad, a senior scientific adviser at the American Federation for Aging Research who studies the biology of agin, told NPR. While scientists figure out how to biohack our systems, this little pill may just propel you into your golden years.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Bill targets NJ's worst nursing homes with new penalties
New Jersey nursing homes that routinely receive low scores would face greater sanctions from state regulators, including the possibility of forced closure, under a bill making its way through Trenton. The measure targets nursing homes that have scored one star on a federal rating system in two or more consecutive quarters — a hallmark sign that the homes' owners are likely misusing large portions of taxpayer funds intended for care, State Comptroller Kevin Walsh said at a legislative hearing on June 9. "They don't get to be one-star nursing homes because the nurse is inexperienced or the administrator is inexperienced," said Walsh, whose staff has investigated nursing home fraud for years. "The reality is poor-quality nursing homes are usually in the condition they're in because of corruption and fraud."The hearing comes on the heels of an investigation by AARP into New Jersey nursing home finances. The organization found that from 2021 to 2023, nursing home owners paid $2 billion to companies in which the owners had a stake. This amounted to $285 million over federal guidelines. A frequent practice is that a nursing home owner uses a corporation that owns the property to charge "unrestricted rent and lease fees" to the nursing home using Medicaid dollars to pay themselves, the AARP report said. This includes many other nursing home operations such as management fees, dietary services and staffing. "There's a lot of money going to places it shouldn't," Walsh said. Under the bill, S1951, nursing homes with one-star ratings in two consecutive quarters would be subject to several penalties from the state Health Department including barring admission to new Medicaid residents, limiting the number of Medicaid enrollees and reducing payments under a quality incentive program. More: What happens when an elderly relative can't live alone? What to know about aging in NJ The penalties get tougher if a nursing home has a one-star rating for three consecutive quarters. They include prohibiting the nursing home from admitting any new resident and removing current residents who are Medicaid enrollees. Some lawmakers said the bill doesn't go far enough and that it should examine nursing homes that receive more than one star (on a five-star scale) but still perform poorly. 'What this bill will do is walk [owners] away from providing the worst-quality care,' Walsh said. 'This bill will not prevent every scam. This bill will not prevent fraud, waste and abuse in all cases. It will discourage nursing homes that have made a business decision to siphon money away." Of New Jersey's 350 nursing homes, 15 had been one-star facilities for two or more years, Walsh said. Those facilities care for 1,850 residents and received $310 million in Medicaid payments from 2017 to 2019. Walsh said it took his staff two years to uncover the labyrinth of shell companies and financial transactions that exposed misdeeds at a South Jersey nursing home. About 57% of New Jersey nursing home residents are covered by Medicaid, taxpayer-funded insurance for low-income people. The average daily Medicaid payment to a nursing home is $193 per resident. The star rating system by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services was devised as a way for families to compare nursing homes and scrutinize the ones that continually score poorly. It is calculated based on health inspections, staffing ratios and other quality measures. But information on each facility is still limited. "I know more about the used car I buy than a nursing home," Sen. Joseph Vitale, chair of the Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee, said at the hearing. The bill was approved by the committee. Nursing home trade groups opposed the measure but did not offer anyone to testify at the hearing. This article originally appeared on Bill targets NJ's worst nursing homes with new penalties
