hospice nurse here. THANK YOU FOR THIS NEWS COVERAGE!!! I cannot tell you how many tragically horrible situations I’ve seen taking care of our elderly and dying folks. This country is absolutely SHAMEFUL in the lack of support for dying/elderly folks. I don’t want to get political here but we MUST HAVE SOCIALIZED ELDER CARE. Convince me otherwise only if you also work in hospice/geriatrics.
It's the scariest part of getting old when you're poor. Bed sores, dirty cloths/sheets, beatings, prolapsed colons not managed, no mental stimulation, few or no visits, angry nurses, rape, being a burden. I figure I'm 15 years away. Still time for a miracle.
The US already has socialized short-term elder care (Medicare) but Obamacare financially broke it, practically eliminating the possibility of improving Medicare elder care, and making Medicaid unavoidable for many. Now the long term care sector of the insurance industry is such a shambles that federal agencies suggested self-funding it to their employees this year! If federal employees no longer have long term care insurance as a viable option, every senior citizen must come up with a personal safety net of some kind. What a job to have to do so late in life.
There were hundreds of programs like long term care in the ACA that got stripped from it by republicans who in the end didn’t even vote to pass it, dems have to stop being played by republicans who strip good things from bills just to do it when they have no plan to vote for the bill anyway
My Mom and Dad purchased long term care insurance and paid for 20 years. When my Mom had to go into a nursing home, it only paid for half. The nursing home still took her entire pension each month and she was a retired teacher. This nursing home cost $143,000 a year and that was for really mediocre care. I just don't understand how it costs $143,000 a year to be put in a wheelchair all day while staring at a wall. Being ignored and basically left to rot for the most part. The doctors refused to allow us to take her home because she needed nursing care but I am pretty sure that any dog on the street could watch someone in a wheelchair all day. There is nothing in their rooms. Not even a TV. We had to provide everything or she just sat there staring into space all day. You heard beeping all day from residents hitting their nurse buttons and getting no response. A doctor visited once a day and from what I can tell, didn't do anything. He didn't notice that her legs had turned black. He didn't notice that she had stopped taking her medicine for an entire week. We had to go there every single day to make sure they didn't just let her die. That was $143,000 a year! I wonder how it is for people who don't have a family advocate. Someone to check on them. It makes me shudder. Oh wait. They did feed her some crappy food and sometimes pushed her outside in her wheelchair so it all evens out.
For profit nursing homes. The profits aren't being paid to caregivers, nor to facilities upkeep. They're going to assholes on yachts, smoking their cigars. Long live our capitalist paradise.
It is truly shameful. My aunt was in a care home for a short period and when I would go visit her the residents would beg me to take them for a walk following me in their wheelchairs begging to go outside. It was the most heartbreaking thing I've ever witnesses. I didn't have the time otherwise I would have have. The fact that these places are understaffed and charge so much is reprehensible. At $143,000 a year every resident should have quality and attentive care. I am so sorry your mother was treated so poorly.
@kevinjenner9502 So true. They pretty much have a blank check to spend as they please. It's shameful how the US has spent billions making weapons and selling weapons to other countries and Congress (both parties) never has enough money to spend on its citizens.
People are facing a tough time in retirement. Low-paying jobs, inflation, and high rents make it hard to save. Now, middle-class Americans find it tough to own a home too, leaving them without a place to retire.
The increasing prices have impacted my plan to retire at 62, work part-time, and save for the future. I'm concerned about whether those who navigated the 2008 financial crisis had an easier time than I am currently experiencing. The combination of stock market volatility and a decrease in income is causing anxiety about whether I'll have sufficient funds for retirement.
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I have personally experienced this topic. It's hard for people to sympathize with you when it happens. I was so terrified of losing my house when my husband was diagnosed with cancer I relapsed after 18 years of sobriety. The loneliness, the fear of becoming homeless was just too much too bear. In the end I was able to hold onto to my house but I had to outsmart the government - lie essentially. I hate people who condone a system that forces people to lose their house when they get sick. I got sober again btw.
You have certainly been through so much. I’m glad you had 2 wins in the aftermath of your tragedy. 🙏🏻💙. It’s a shame other countries figured this out and instead we waste more billions in reckless hateful political campaigns. We must find a balance that’s fair for all.
In some states they can't take the house if a spouse is there but require direct payments which most cannot afford. The big problem, as I see it, is that people don't plan for these expenses I'm the same way they don't figure childcare expenses when having children. This should be taught at least by high school when they're teaching about budgets.
This hit home 💯% for me, as sole caregiver for my 91-yr-old disabled mother (23+ years now). While simultaneously working at a f/t office job (after sacrificing a promising career in editing) to keep a lousy apartment roof over our heads, I've been disgusted from Day 1 w/our country's system and the absence of care for its senior and/or disabled citizens, AND for all of us caregivers. There's no end to the details that describe our situation, and I'm at my wits end. Even though she was recently approved for Medi-Cal (Medicaid in CA), my burn out is now so severe I can't even figure out how to navigate that system to aquire all of the care for which she may qualify. I'm even surprised I found the clarity to write this comment. 😧
I understand, the reams of confusing paperwork that has to be filled out to qualify for the aid you qualify practically takes a law degree and one mistake, and you are kicked out. You also have to do it every year. Horrible
I stand in solidarity with both of you. You sound like courageous and loving souls, but nobody should have to go through what we do as caregivers. Something’s got to change!
I hear you. Our current system is unspeakably brutal and virtually impossible to navigate. My mom is very ill. My dad literally fought Nazis in WW2 but the Veterans keep rejecting my mom for even the meagerest benefits because she gets Social Security checks, which keep her from falling below the poverty line. I've been filling out forms for 18 months while they deny benefits and my mom declines further. It's horrible. All we can do is hang in there and hope for change.
Are you asking the rest of us to fund it? Because it will bankrupt us all before we get old. Aides deserve to be paid decently. Living at home is the most expensive possible way to care for a fragile elder.
Denmark has a better plan, but you spend 50% of income throughout life. Americans don't want that as we want wonderful life and death. It requires lifelong sacrifice to afford long-term insurance and care. We need to stop prolonging life for life's sake as it sometimes ruins lives more. Some things need to follow their natural course IMHO. You need an ironclad advanced directive for sure.
As a caregiver for both of my parents, I can say the only way it was possible is because of the support of my husband who is a disabled veteran. We have no assets. Our car is old. We rent our home. We made it work because we sacrificed in other areas. This should NOT be the norm. Our elderly, no matter what their financial situation, should be cared for with respect. How can this country spend billions per year on wars and weapons when we can't even take care of our citizens? This is a complete failure on the part of the government.
And yet Joe Biden giving away billions of American tax dollars away to other countries like if it was his own money , impeach him ASAP ! TRUMP the real ( Mvp ) ...most valuable President ! MAGA 2024
Yes, my sister and I are primary caregivers for our elderly parents and we both relate to your story. We both retired early -- way too early to think about social security, but we do it because we both are blessed with husbands who have decent careers; drive vehicles till they die, don't get the latest technology ( tv, phones, etc) live in modest homes ( coworkers 15-20 years younger live in fancier neighborhoods and drive gorgeous vehicles) and it's paid off. It's still frustrating, and I hate it, but we just don't want them in a nursing home. 😢
@@mariatomko4278 you missed the point with your self righteous rant. My sister and I are victimized by the system; having moved 1200 miles leaving family to care for TWO parents while in my 50s sucks. Thankfully, the additional financial pressure isn't there because of choices we made. We're going to, at some point, face the dilemma of horrid nursing home care because we can't sustain for more than another year of this. It's physically and mentally killing both of us. But thankfully, because we both live a simple lifestyle, we've alleviated additional stress had we had a high mortgage and an expensive vehicle. No one should be in the position of hoping their parents die before having to put them in a nursing home. It's a reality no one should have to deal with. Again, not having additional stress factors like new car, large mortgage, etc etc has helped lessen an already extremely difficult situation we live daily.
@@Daysleeper1000 Really I'm happy for you. But please don't assume that what works, however poorly, for you would also work for someone in what may be entirely different circumstances. For example, someone whose spouse wasn't at all in marriage for the long haul. Have a great day
Hospice nurse for 21 years. I would like the option of assisted death rather than a nursing-home.. Never ever!!! Do not want to spend my money down for that.. would rather leave what’s left to my family. Care of the elderly who are not wealthy is horrible in our institutions..
I might be alone on this, but when I get to this stage in my life, I’ll basically end it. I’m not afraid of dying….. I see it as me going back to where I came from - into Mother Earth, like all living things. I DO NOT see the point of prolonging my life and be a burden on my family. My money goes to them. Anyway, it’s my choice.
There have been cases of people purchasing large life insurance policies so that if they found out they could not pay for care... their "plan" then was to end their lives. Just terrible.
In my experience many feel that way until they are faced with the fact. And many of their relatives and loved ones certainly do not want that guilt burden.
I have a friend who has paid for long term care insurance for years now, but now that she needs to use it, she gets every kind of no answer imaginable. I think a law needs passed that refunds premiums to a person's estate if the die while being denied the care they paid for.
👍 Now you're talking. How abt exempting people involved in either working in elder healthcare from paying income taxes? Make it on a sliding scale. The more you are physically involved in the actual "care", the less you have to.pay. That way those families caring for their relatives would be considered.
Great. I have LTC for 15 years paying and the premiums are going up so far not a lot. Still I hope I can claim as needed. I had read something like this before. Not right.
Insurance premiums aren’t your personal savings account. If you want that then just save your money and pay cash for treatment. Just because you pay for insurance doesn’t mean you’re entitled to use it for anything you want. It goes into a giant pool that everyone uses. So if 80 year old frank has always paid for health insurance but never needed it before and now needs a heart transplant, he’s not going to get it. Because they can save 1,000 premature infants with the same amount of money and those infants will have 75 years of life ahead of each one when frank has a high probability of not even surviving the surgery plus the lifetime of after care a transplant requires. Or he may live 5 years. That’s how insurance works.
So glad this is getting some coverage! I’m a caregiver for my 57 yr old wife who has a brain injury from an event at a hospital and stopped breathing. I’m not sure how much of this I can handle before we lose everything. It’s been 8 years and we are reduced to our home and an old car. I can’t have more than $2000 in the bank at anytime or we get kicked off Medicare, the judge stipulated in her guardianship papers that I can’t sell any asset without his approval first. As if the medical and caregiving wasn’t hard enough we get the new IRS agents coming down on my taxes saying I owe $10k for some deficiency… I’m already under poverty levels and they just don’t let up on us. There was no way to save or insure ourselves from this event but regardless we are going to stay together until the end, I know she would do that for me. Our system is broke and most people have no clue, it’s a lonely existence and extremely difficult to navigate through so I can imagine a lot of people just give up.
I might be able to give you some first-hand advice here. My wife had disorganized schizophrenia and I knew it was progressive but manageable. When she was around 76, signs appeared and before the next year ended I was a full-time caregiver. I am now 78. Over the past 10 years, I took a 6-week caregiver class at a local hospital in a town of 3000 (Biggest in our county.), and I took for no certification, a 6-week EMT class so that I could take care of some problems, plus I read a lot on medical. I have bad knees and can't get an operation without rehabilitating in a center and I will die before I go to one of those. (I watched my wife go downhill in one.) I've had 2 blood clots and I live in the country and cut my own firewood and get my water off my roof and the closest town is 8 miles. She was getting frail and knew it and it is hard to get a 110-pound (by that time) dead weight out of a tub, so I had to wash her. Reading online I felt that physical therapy could help. After a few sessions, she was checked for fast heart beat and then put on an ambulance for the nearest hospital, 30 miles away. My wife stopped eating as did my dog. The dog went to the animal hospital the same day my wife went to the people hospital. Neither ever came home. At the first hospital, I calmed her down as she was prepped for the helicopter ride (I pay $75 a year for Life Flight. Then I waited. After a couple days in the hospital in the nearest city (32,000 pop.) she was put into a rehabilitation center (nursing home) where I would visit her 80 miles away. She wanted to go home, but I had no authority to take her home because she now belonged to the medical facility. Frustrating. Medicare pays for a little but not very much. My bill was to be $12000 a month. I had to get Medicaid. Not easy. My wife and I had a combined income of $24,000 a year. Our problem with medicaid was that we weren't in debt. Had we maxed out credit cards and owed money on home and cars, we would be OK.. And our assets were too high because I owned a small tractor, a necessity for one who lives in mountain country in the winter with a steep driveway. I tried every government agency I could find until the financial official at the nursing home (And of course they want to get paid.) told me how I could Medicaid. This is the advice I give to you. I contacted a Medicaid Advocate, a fellow who had worked for state Health and Welfare (Where you apply for Medicaid.) His private business is getting people on Medicaid. Most people aren't as poor as I am so for some reason, he thought it was so easy, he didn't even charge me. But even if he would have I would have paid him. I'd been working on this stressful attempt to get Medicaid for over a month and this guy did in a few days. You need to check at hospitals, nursing homes, online until you find a Medicaid Advocate. You might find a name at a local state health and welfare office.
@@PatrickThreewit I suggest you also try to get Medical Poser of Attorney or Legal Guardianship of your wife so you can exercise your rights as her husband. No medical facility's rights should supercede your rights in any case.
If you don't have $60 to $100,000 a year to pay for a nursing home...you are out of luck. It's always been this way, but it has never been this out of sight expensive.
I am so glad to hear someone talking about this. This is an outrage! The way this country treats the elderly is horrendous!!! I have worked in these places. I have talked to the people living in these places. It's all bad. All of it!
after going thru the last few years... i'm totally convinced that the health care system/government, etc... does not care and there goal is to kill off the older folk, middle class and just have the young people left to control...oh and to continue to abort infants.
My in-laws paid $60,000 over the years for long-term care insurance. Here's what I learned: 1. You have to be DISABLED to get any of your money back. The definition of "disabled" for the insurance company (Genworth) meant that you can't do things like feed yourself, transfer (move from one place to another), dress yourself, shower yourself. My in-laws needed help but didn't meet that criteria for years, so they couldn't access the $$ they paid to Genworth (insurance) to get an aide to help them a couple hours a day. 2. Once they qualified as disabled, they only got a max of $100 a day. So....all that $$ they paid was NOT immediately accessible. 3. The insurance company clearly "won" and got more money from my in-laws than what they were able to use before they died.
You speak the truth. I feel sorry for people that have paid into long-term health insurance only to discover that the fine print denies them coverage and/or sets a daily limit on coverage that isn't sufficient. Insurance companies are in business to make profits, so they are quite clever in how they structure long-term care benefits. Buyer beware!!
My father (now deceased), was diagnosed with PD in 2020. We were lucky in a way, my dad saved and was retired from the govt. this meant he had pretty good insurance (he was also a veteran). That said, he began to need serious care due to the fact that he had Lewy Body dementia (serious form of dementia). We had to fight to get the care we did. He didn’t qualify for state assistance( he made too much money from his annuity). But not enough to confortable hiring private care nor be put into dementia care housing (it can run up to 10k in our area, per month). My mom ended up being his primary care taker. I moved my whole to be near them and provide support. That meant taking my kid out the school system, they’d been in their whole life. This helped not drain too much of my folks savings. But the emotional toll this took on all of us. My dad ended up deciding to do hospice. That provided a lil assistance but not much. We had to fight, but we eventually got a good nurse for him thru hospice. But the dr saw him like twice (it was a joke). But my dad wanted to be cared for at home. He was terrified of being taken advantage of. So that’s what we did. We did all we could. My mom, with her health issues, took care of my dad. I took care of all the financials and extra stuff (I have health issues myself). The struggle we went thru. This country and our healthcare and end of life care is a fracking joke. If you aren’t rich. Forget about it. We had to watch my dad die. There’s no words for this. You don’t just go broke. You end up broken too.
I'm a hospice social worker and want to commend you for this outstanding report. This is the daily reality for many of the people I see. People working their entire life and everything goes to care. The U.S. must do something, we must do something.
I am a retired teacher, single, no children. I have retirement benefits and paid supplemental insurance, but no long term care. I have saved a significant amount in a 401k while I worked, but that has taken many hits over the years. The cost of living has also escalated so much that it has eaten into my savings. I was never able to buy a home as the cost of housing always was more than I could afford with a single paycheck. I am very worried about the future as I age. I keep thinking the only way I’ll be able to deal with it is by having a well planned “exit plan.” That seems preferable to being homeless or living uncared for or warehoused in some overcrowded,understaffed nursing home.
Sadly enough I've worked in so many nursing homes where people lose everything including their life insurance policies. It's a terrible system. I myself have brain cancer and am currently putting my house in my daughter's name so that I don't lose it in the event I end up needing LTC. There is a 7 year look back window in my state.
Wait be careful she could be reassessed to today's market value...this year! It's happening while weve been caregiving for years they passed a law they dont care if you are related if one person gets new ownership they get reassessed. Folks finally passed this year, just got reassessed to today's market value with a trust. It was the same plan as you but now no... Get better, please! Get good legal advice too.
My father fell into this situation. He ended up in a horrid place. I had no money to help him and all I could do is visit him and bring him food so he could eat because he had no teeth and they gave him tough horrible food that he couldn't chew. I tried to bring him to my home for the end, but they kept saying that he was going to live a long time and that if he fell my sister would be responsible ( she was executor of his estate ) even though he fell there and they didn't have any recourse. He only lived a few more weeks, I knew that it wasn't long before his passing. I just wanted him to die with dignity. I have peace in knowing that I did my best and I was there for him. Miss him but he lived a long life and it was good up to his last few years.
My inlaws have lost everything to the nursing homes. Worked hard for 60 years only to sell everything to pay $12,000/month for a room and minimal care.
Another complication to this problem is that families are becoming smaller, more fragmented, even dysfunctional (and increasingly under financial strain no less). A strong family unit, the one that can pool resources together and share responsibilities in caring for elderly relatives in need of long-term, persistent care, can be of immense help, and often times are. But that has become less of a case, dare I say option, for a growing number of them, of us. And this crisis is not purely an American problem. This overall picture is indeed alarming.
I take care of my mother, alone. I feel like families have always taken care of their elderly, but not alone. There was a house full of people and extended family nearby. All the care duties fall on me, all the decisions, all the medical coordination. And I am trying desperately to hang on to a job (I already lost one the last time my mom fell and was hospitalized) and take care of myself. So not only do we not have a government infrastructure, family and community have also broken down.
Sadly, there are lots of people in your situation. I had 2 brothers to help me, but I was the point person making sure that things were working out (and finding solutions when they weren't working out), while also working full time as a teacher and raising my son. Honestly, there were times when I wasn't sure I could hold onto my sanity! No one understands how hard it is to care for elderly parents and keep your own life going, until they've done it. Good luck to you!! @@beckmordini4785
Yes! For me, it is a PEOPLE problem more than a "resources" or money issue. You can only hire good nurses if there ARE good nurses! Family members are homeless and addicts, HOAs can forbid you to bring a parent & caregiver into your home. LOTS of stuff just sucks nowadays.
@@beckmordini4785Been there. Done that. I went to a dementia support group. Hispanic families showed up with 12 people. I was there alone. My professional brother lives overseas and would not fly back. There is a bit of "poor me" in this. But where was my government and social services?
I left a corporate job and became a home health aid in NYC for 2 years. The agency takes 50% of the client fee. 12 hour shifts, no break - then the agency will cap your hours at 38 / week to avoid overtime. The work is extremely draining. Most people treat aides with contempt. I know several women who do this for a living, and it basically a revolving door of exploitation.
@@amrice62 I was transitioning to early retirement and covid struck. The world was locked down, and this came up so I thought I'd "help out" a friend who was trying to start a business. 4 week course and I was on my own immediately doing hospice, Alzheimers, basically a therapist of every description - it was crazy. The upside is that I met many interesting people who'd had fascinating careers, etc (Manhattan). It was a master class in human nature. Being a "care giver" (slave) is relentless and soul crushing - particularly dementia, autism, Parkinson's - and they are treated like dirt until they burn out. Basically it's gig work, like uber driving or food delivery only much harder.
I also corporate career people who are now in assisted living facilities in the middle of nowhere surviving on government benefits until the facility throws them out (if it can make more money from someone else). Professors, Managing Directors, etc. - of sound mind and very very bitter.
@@zakatista5246 wow! An RN here. I would wonder if you considered private work- no one takes percentage of your pay. Word of mouth. Church etc. I know the pay is very low- can you go back to business work in some capacity?
During my mother's last illness, we spent almost all of her retirement savings on home health aides to provide necessary care for her while she was in the hospital -- e.g., feeding her. As a result of these two wonderful aides, who helped her not take some of the meds that were killing her, my mother regained her ability to eat and walk and her mental status improved. Once my mother was strong enough, I took her out of the hospital against medical advice (AMA) to bring her home. When we ran out of money, we surrendered -- i.e., she was re-admitted to the hospital so she would qualify for Medicare to pay for 30 days in a nursing home and, then, was discharged to a nursing home. As the aides and I expected would happen, my mother died in a little more than a month with almost all of her savings having been spent.
I want to thank you for bringing this topic to light, and I want to give a big hug to every commenter! We’re going through this with a relative with Alzheimer’s, and it has been a fresh hell every day. So many people are creative, kind-hearted and resilient, but nobody should have to go through what is expected of caregivers in this country.
I’m a doctor, I treat a lot of patients at home, it’s horrible to see how they have to live in conditions that no young person would want to live in. It’s heart breaking!
I've known people who got divorced so that one of them could keep most of their life savings. They will were a couple, but no longer married. It's disgusting that this is the way we treat elders in the US.
My parents died without a penny to their name. It's unacceptable! It's just another giant problem with our health care. The way the vulnerable in our society speaks volumes of the cruelty we cultivated out of greed
This is the side effect of life extending medical interventions. For example, my grandfather died from heart disease that could have been treated with medication today. His daughter, my mom, was kept alive on chemo for 6 years after being diagnosed with stage 4 ovarian cancer, a prognosis that used to lead to death within a few months. The older we get, the greater the risk for developing other co-morbidities like Alzheimer’s (plus cancer or diabetes, or heart disease, etc). I’m watching my best friend (57 yo) navigate a full time job and manage 3 rotating caregivers for her medically healthy mother with advanced Alzheimer’s. $8800/month for the care alone. She’s still in her own home in Arlington TX. Alzheimer’s facilities in north Texas start at $8000.00/mo. But her mom get one on one care in her home for now. It’s incredibly stressful for everyone involved. Her mom could go on like this for many years. She’s depleting her savings fast.
In Texas, many people can purchase a short-term plan that helps pay for home care. I'd look into a short term plan with Aetna. Find an independent LTC broker.
I feel so badly for your friends situation. This is why my aunt and father told me explicitly to not extend their lives if something happened to them. I followed their instructions and let them die peacefully when the time came. It shouldn't be this way.
If you are old and sick or disabled and you don’t have family that cares you are, simply put, toast. This is what happens when hedge funds own the medical system from hospital groups to insurance companies to nursing homes down to individual practices and home care companies. This is why it is imperative to try to keep yourself healthy. The medical system/big pharma has become a death delivery system. Don’t let it be you.
We are the only western country where medical care will bankrupt someone or a family caregiver (usually a woman). This is why I am looking to retire in France ( I have dual citizenship ) where there is no age limit to getting care, and certainly won’t bankrupt me.
"You won't be able to save your way out of this catastrophe, but get creative and sacrifice and save every penny for your own old-age care starting in your 40s anyway, because it's better than nothing" is the advice I'm hearing. And I'm not criticizing these reporters, they're doing great work. Our corrupt profit-over-people neoliberal medical-pharmaceutical complex is to blame. How ghastly and morbid to treat its most vulnerable citizens this way. I'm dealing with it myself, and my mom happens to be in Texas, a "bootstrap" state where you have to be a billionaire to get old. Zero funding for elder care, and a ten-year waiting list for Medicaid. It's a sick joke, a wide-awake nightmare. Thank you for covering this!
When I read here that "profit over people" was a "neoliberal" concept, I thought "Since when dud that happen??". Then I read "Texas". 'Nuf said. One of that state's most enduring traditions is how it feels nothing abt exploiting the cost of healthcare & the BUSINESS of healthcare. This is something they have been constantly prospecting for, from the strds for nursing homes to elder care to what happens to pregnant teenagers to the fate of single mothers & their kids. The law & the press finally reveals what's going on & the state govt gets embarrassed to doing something abt it; & then TX goes back to.work moving on to another medical endeavor to milk for outrageous profit & the business of attracting the speculators there who intend to do it. And in TX, anything that they get profoundly embarrassed abt inevitably always gets blamed on "liberals", "neo" & otherwise. So, I get it.
@@g.hon.4645 Neoliberalism = Reaganomics. It is absolutely profit over people, and it's not to be confused with "liberal" meaning left-wing. I agree about TX though. Horrible governing has de-funded healthcare and medicaid until only the very wealthy can afford to be old or sick. It's inhuman.
@@Sashazur Do you realize Texas is governed by Greg Abbott, a maniac who has stripped funding from every program that helps the elderly, ill, poor, and disabled, and is even trying to privatize the public school system? To make the rich even richer and screw everybody else? That is aggressive neoliberalism, my friend. Ronald Reagan on steroids.
Absolutely! We need more EOL options for old-old, severely compromised people in this country. Going to Switzerland is a possibility for some but that comes at a high cost as well.
For 30 years I wondered if it would ever come to euthanasia when there were more old, disabled people and not enough people to take care of them. I would probably volunteer if I was riddled with cancer and/or had dementia coming on. So far I'm in good health and have a healthful lifestyle (age 74). My mother lived in assisted living and then dementia care for the last 1 1/2 years and passed in 2008 at age 87. Surprisingly she had money to leave to her kids and grandkids. (She had been a geriatric nurse and my father had worked for an oil company in the fields for 45 years. They were very frugal. Father died at 82.) But even though we own our house, I am concerned we will have enough assets to last to the end of life. Everybody I know is concerned about end-of-life now.
But most states will deny you an opportunity to seek medical aid in dying (MAID) because of the religious views about end of life. There are many conditions that are horribly painful and either not well controlled by medication or that leave people in a stupor if administered at a level that does quell the pain. That's not deemed terminal so you can't even choose to depart this life peacefully in the 11 states that do allow MAID. If you're able to fly, you may be able to spend many thousands of dollars going to Switzerland to get humane euthanasia. With some measures in place to prevent abuse, MAID should be an option for those who desire it. Canada allows MAID, but you must establish residency for several years so not an option for U. S. citizens.
I am right now in Thailand. I am amazed how the Thai people respect elderly relatives and comes naturally to them taking care of elderlies . In many cases the grandchildren taking the grandma and living together. Seems working very well for them .
My 92-year-old parents still live independently because one of my daughters travels to their home 3-4x/week to do tasks for them like shopping, taking out the trash, cleaning, post office/bank errands, cooking, and so on. And my husband and I are usually there at least 1-2x/week for the more complicated jobs (our son stops by every week as well to check on them). But my father has reached the end-stage hospice point (he's had cancer for years), so even with all of our visits and all of the assistive devices which have been installed in their home, my mom is now also paying an aide for about an hour's worth of medical care a day to keep him out of a facility since he would absolutely hate being moved from his home. We'd all rather pay the healthcare workers directly than line the pockets of some scammy LTC insurance agency that denies care or a homecare agency which pays its workers peanuts.
Regarding home healthcare, one of the issues that this reporting didn't touch on was what I see (at least in the Trenton, New Jersey area where I currently live) as a spatial disconnect between where a client/patient lives and where home health aids live. My mom works for a home healthcare agency that staffs aids to take care of patients at their homes. Many of the aids she oversees rely on buses or a family member to drive them around, as they don't earn enough (even w/ state-supplied funding and working more than one job) to be able to buy a car. Meanwhile, there are clients who live in communities not served by buses, so, by default, the only aids that can be staffed for such cases are those that have reliable access to a car. This is to say nothing of the fact that there are home healthcare agencies that don't reimburse aids for traveling to visiting clients. They may not receive any extra financial incentive (e.g., bus passes, gas stipends, etc.) besides their hourly wage, not even overtime pay if they're at or near 40 hours of work for a week. Eventually, people in need of home healthcare may realize that they may have to move to a town or a part of town that is served by a system of buses or other forms of transit in order to improve their odds of getting an aid that can take care of them. Contrary to what one might think, clients don't appear to have an influence or leverage regarding this matter, not even those who privately pay a home healthcare agency for such service.
I want to plant a timed device in my body that I have to reset occasionally. When I can't remember to reset it anymore, then it will shut my body down.
It would be like one of those buttons you put on a turkey in the oven that tells you when it's done. Except that when this button pops up, you have 24 hours to push it back down.
After my dad's death in 2010 I launched a search for in-home care for my mother with MS. I contacted a local agency (owned by a former nurse) and arranged an appointment to meet this r.n.-turned-c.e.o. at my mum's bedside. She arrived (in 2 separate posh SUVs) with hedge fund kinda young man in a suit and brief case and fancy complimentary pens for signing their contract. The wolf turned out to be her son who had an MBA in elder care management from Babson College. Schooled in picking pockets of the most vulnerable. Their "fee schedule" was heart-stopping. They new every in and out. It was disgusting. One more aspect of our lives tainted by Greedy Corporate Wringers; one more harbinger that American Middle Class is lost.
This is NOT even an issue in Canada. Most aspects of elder care are provided by their government provided medic care system. Why are WE putting up with this crap in the USA?
We need to ask congress ppl and anyone up for an election....what are you going to do about this and only vote for those who agree to put this issue on the table. We also need performance reviews for election officials....how many times did they vote against things they said they would do. How we do the reviews, not sure..but everyone else has reviews. When congress cant get a budget passed, they should not be paid!
Actually, it's somewhat similar in Canada. One woman I knew was paying $4000 a month for a mediocre retirement/nursing home. My father, before he passed, was going to be kept in hospital because he was on a ventilator at no cost to us. If you have someone to take care of you at home forget getting much of any help unless you are willing to pay for private nursing. However, in Canada we do have assisted suicide which if it comes down to it, I'll be choosing, rather than years upon years in long-term care.
Good retirement and nursing homes are very expensive in Canada. My parents paid $5,300 per month for a tiny assisted-living 1-bedroom apartment back in 2018.
This is what happens to most Americans. You go into the hospital a few times as you get older and it eats up all your savings. You end up in the hospital again but this time you end up having to sell your house to cover the bill. It is anticipated that you are going to need assistance thereafter in activities of daily living so they place you in a nursing home the cost of which will be covered by medicaid as they switch you to medicaid from medicare. You are now in an awful nursing home with 2 people to a room, one shower per week that is done by a different person each time, you are required to wear a diaper if you have any incontinence which is changed twice per shift and you are kept in bed accept up for meals for the most part. Shelved until you pass away from illness and total depression wondering how you got there. This is what is waiting for most Americans as you get older.
And that's exactly why @ least 3yrs ago Cons corporate America began buying up & consolidating the funeral industry - just like they started doing w/charity hopts back in the '60's.
Wealthy elders stay in assisted living as long as they can. Quality of life is better, care is better (all private pay), food is better, and this environment can extend abilities. It is about 2/3 of the cost of a NH. It is still awful. Try not to outlive your brain or your money. Refuse treatments that are likely to result in an extended death, not an extended life. If you push providers to be completely and brutally honest, they will tell you what the likely trajectory is. And then you can make decisions. This takes a brass pair. But then, so does watching someone die slowly.
@@jacquielapierredufresne5468 Actually, you don't understand it at all. Once people are unsafe alone in their home they need supervision. Paying for it at home out of pocket is the most expensive method. Unless you think that having your family member quit their job to sit with you all day is good for you or for them. It isn't. Wealthy people get social interaction and semi-skilled care in luxury assisted living.
If you're not very wealthy, long term care will break virtually everyone. The majority of bankruptcies are medical bankruptcies. My aunt has dementia and it costs my Uncle 22k a month for her care. That's outrageous! They were forced to sell their home and now exhausting all their savings. That's over 250k a year.
We spent $250K on my mother-in-law’s care in the last two years of her life. I wanted her to have good care, but I spent a lot of sleepless nights wondering what would happen if the money ran out…
Gosh I can so relate. My mother died with $10K savings left after spending all she had for six years of private memory care. I was in a panic about the looming depletion of her savings because at the time I could not have covered it and I knew she would be headed for a Medicaid nursing home. She thankfully died before that became her new awful awful reality. I'm so glad you were able to do right by your mother-in-law in spite of this horrific situation.
@@Karen-dq8nw whoever is telling you it's not that bad, obviously hasn't done it. I apparently have not starved to death, but I have gone without food for a long time, and it sucks.
"They" would end up force feeding you...against your will. They think you're demented if you refuse to eat, so you could end up with a feeding tube with your hands tied so you won't pull it out.😢
Everyone should know this. Nursing homes are private . How they operate is to keep you alive until you run out of money , and then "let you go " . Insane fees . They want ALL the money .
I am willing to admit that I could be wrong but I believe we are in this situation because we got talked into extreme medical care to extend life as long as possible and attached that to morality. We exchanged quality of life with quantity of life. I am 81yr old and have lived around old people for a long time and witnessed more suffering because we have been talked into having open heart surgery, lung transplants, legs and feet cut off when we already into our 90's just to get 6 months extra life. We have been taught to fear death, #1 reason why I do not believe in organized religion, I believe in God and have no fear of death it is truly liberating. Social Security is not breaking the bank, it is the amount of money we spend keeping people alive when they have no quality of life. I did have the talk with my son's, even had legal papers drawn up that states that if I am not able to say no, they will have the right to stop any treatment that will extend my life, if I can't take care of myself there is no reason to be here.
Me too. LTC nurse here. It’s freakin scary. Sometimes I don’t know how much longer I can continue to do this job, knowing how badly these old people are ripped off.
There should be a choice for assisted death or assisted living. I believe many people would opt for dying if it could be done humanely and with dignity. This would in turn free up money for long term care as well.
People need to be cognizant of the fact that we are living longer and the medical system is making it easier to extend your life through endless treatments and interventions, many of which are not necessary after so many years of life. There is a point where we need to acknowledge our finitude and decide not to have any more medical interventions, treatments or medications.This society is not ready to have such a vast population of the elderly being kept alive at a burdening cost to society and the caregiver’s time.
A dear elderly doctor friend had health issues that got progressively worse over the past 3 years since his retirement. He refused treatment and peacefully passed away. My medical professional friends tell me that most often, the medical establishment is prolonging death and that most medical professionals know when to let go, refuse treatment, and die with grace.
@@Quetzali19 That is a good point. Doctors see the reality of the situation on a daily basis, but their job is to save lives. It is up to the patient to asses their life and not be afraid of their passing. I have an ALF next door to my house. It used to be that patients would be there between 4-5 years on average, this was around ten years ago. Now they are staying even longer. It is expensive, many had no children and can afford it. But for most people, this is not the case. And you also have the lives of the caregivers, mostly relatives that will spend their retirement with the responsibility of a person who is only getting worse. The mental stress is great, many suffer from depression. It is a very sad situation, especially for those taking care of relatives with Alzheimers.
Really interesting. I saw this with my mom. She had dementia. It was shocking to see the sticker price for memory units. The better ones were 10k+ a month. I'm getting older now and thinking about how im going to live later. Dementia runs in my family and I worry that it may show up in me or immediate family. The part that made me reflect is when he said you can't plan for major illness.
I am 67 and in failing health. What amazes me is I have four siblings none of whom visit..two live nearby..and seldom contact me let alone stop in to visit. Did not call me on Thanksgiving. I am fortunate. I had a therapist from a young age..suggested by a concerned friend. He helped set up a financial plan for me…which my father decided to set up for all of my siblings. I am the beneficiary but I have never had any direct access to the funds. The lack of empathy amazes me on an ongoing basis. Two of my siblings have continually admonished me that I am fortunate my expenses are paid and are wanting to limit expenses…they want some money too when I am gone. I likely will not end up in this train wreck of American healthcare…but my family is integral to this scenario. Middle class baby boomers who have no interest in anything that is not about themselves. I am in awe Americans are struggling because they care about their aging loved ones. I don’t know that context of things but it is everyone for themselves.
My husband is now with his 93 year old mother and has been there for almost three months now. I am here alone seven hours away. It’s hard but I’m willing to do this to support him. He has a brother and sister that t live near to their mother but they really don’t help. She cannot be alone and they don’t volunteer their time.
What I've noticed time and time again is that people in the higher net worth arena and can afford the lawyer set up trusts to protect their assets and the poorer people lose it all and the heirs are left with nothing
Lawyers laugh to the bank and casually forget to inform of Medicaid Asset protection because you won't qualify for Medicaid due to income or assets depending on State laws that are not available to you the consumer of trusts and assets IRA that you will drain to cover your costs speeding your way to Medicaid quickly after you lost every last dime Lawyers on the golf ⛳️ course tee off Say HI to your congressman
In WA state it can be $6000 to $10,000 a month for private pay community long term care such as adult family home or assisted living. Insurance isn't paying for that. It is a shame.
thank you for this much needed expose. I was caregiver to my mother for 17 years at various capacities. First just living with her to finally 24 hour care with part time help. At one point I could no longer work and financially ended up spending 1/2 of my retirement savings. I know our country's failings both from this experience as well as from being a nurse for over 30 years. In 2015 there was a glimmer of hope as one person did understand and made it a campaign promise, but unfortunately lost the presidency in 2016. Whatever your political bent, this will eventually and greatly affect you and yours.
Tax the rich. Plug corporate tax loopholes. Reduce the military budget. Help the sick and their caregivers. Help the poor and middle class. Repeal Citizen's United which floods Congress with bought and paid for lawmakers. We have a wealth crisis!#!#
This is such an important topic. Many seniors are facing this. We are seniors now but fairly young seniors. However, staring down this kind of stuff is frightening to us since we have no children. But even people with adult children to help them still have their backs against the wall in regards to their parents for the reasons you outline.
While trying to get Medicaid, I read an article in AARP regarding who can get Medicaid easily---the very rich and the very poor but not the middle class. The very poor have debt and no real estate and few assets. The very rich have lawyers who can play down their assets which they do to avoid taxes. The middle class get screwed.
Had to drop the long term care insurance because the premiums became too expensive. My neighbors have sold their houses to afford care. Rather than turn my life savings over to the care facilities; I plan to commit a crime and go to prison where I can get food and a place to sleep. I will then turn my house over to my children.
When my grandmother needed round the clock care after a serious surgery cut cost $4000 per WEEK. Once she moved to assisted living, we paid $65,000-70,000 per year for her dementia care. I don’t have those type of resources, I will have to go without care, at this point.
This is extremely sad. Most of us have family we love and want to care for, but the incredible stress of the reality is enough to kill US. Just so sad.
This is a topic I have been thinking about for my own care as I age. I’m closing in on 80 and I live alone. I have some savings, but they would be quickly depleted if I were to lose my ability to take care of myself. I am considering buying into a continuing care retirement community (CCRC) which guarantees I will have supportive care as needed for as long as I live, even if I run out of money. This kind of thing isn’t a society wide solution to aging care, but for individuals who can afford the initial buy-in, it seems to present a very promising path for planning for the day we can no longer live independently.
We decided not to do a CCRC for my mom because of the buy-in cost. We didn’t understand the benefits. I’m sure there are downsides, but from the outside looking in, it seems like a good solution. We’ve had to find a new facility on an emergency basis when mom falls outside her current facility’s care. Right now mom’s in rehab from a fall and I’m not sure she can go back to her assisted living facility, so we’ll have to find a new place. In a CCRC, they have multi-levels of care, so you stay in the same place, but move through their system. Just be sure the advanced levels of care are run as well as the independent living area. Look at sq footage in memory care and particularly staff to patient ratios.
@@kristinb5121 Thanks for those suggestions. I am fortunate to have a CCRC nearby that is quite affordable, yet very attractive. It’s a non-profit, church related facility and seems so welcoming and well run (though I’m not of their religious persuasion). The buy-in will be easily covered with funds from selling my current home. My own mother is 102 and living in 55+ apartment, with frequent help from a relative, but she would’ve benefited so much from being in a CCRC. She falls frequently and I’m afraid one of these falls could be her last.
In a nutshell this is America today.. Over 50 disjointed disconnected inconsistent quality health systems. Endless conflicting regulatory agencies. Entire system infested with equipment manufacturers, pharma, construction companies each taking advantage of our lousy old cranky legal system. High Princes of hospitals many "non-profit" paid obscene salaries and benefits while the folks that do the work are seriously under compensated. The system charged with providing healthcare for all 333 million of us 100% focused on profits not patients. Simultaneously US operates two huge systems just for our military. This fact alone further evidence of our out of control military industrial complex and it's owners operators the corporate Warfare Queens who never lose a contract. When you're spending $900 billion in visible spending and similar amount in dark money on endless wars there's little money left for the welfare of your citizens. Healthcare is intertwined with many of the horrible situations growing across the country. Lastly the party of greed, death, inhumane cruel policies sees anyone not wealthy enough to pay for this Rube Goldberg system as an American version of India's untouchables. It cannot continue....
Today we received our upwardly revised LTC premium notice for 2024. My spouse (94 Y/O) and I (soon to be 87) will pay almost $12,000/year for our policy. When we bought it 25 years ago, we thought we were being proactive in preparing for our old age. We have a lot invested in our policy, but I'm not sure how much longer we can afford to keep it if the premiums continue to increase. Neither of us expected (or wanted) to live as long as we have. But here we are. So far, we have not needed care, but the system definitely is NOT designed to favor ordinary Americans when/if they get old.
We will never fully address this issue if we avoid discussing the general trend of privatization of our healthcare system. And specifically, how the lobbying and political actions of the nursing home sector influences the current crisis and stalls progress on offering better safety nets for our elderly.
I agree with you. I also would like to add that we must take responsibility and plan. Most people in the US don't have sufficient savings, let alone look into purchasing long-term care insurance. In the US, we are very much attached to our "freedom" and independence. With freedom and independence comes responsibility.
I agree this is a major issue. As they stated, nursing homes,agencies that provide help are having difficulty finding people to work. Low pay, difficult patients and just plain hard work is not appealing to most people. You can have all the programs available, but without a workforce it will do no good.
Interesting that the aged senators and representatives lack the political will to pass legislation supporting long term care for families. They receive excellent health care. Is long term health care one of their benefits? They say they support families but do they?
They have taken millions of dollars from special interest groups and their bank accounts runneth over. Why would they care for the American people who put them in office? Should be term limits, and why are they millionaire while serving the people? They are not serving the American people.
Home care worker here. Good luck finding us to help you, as many of us earn low wages (sometimes Walmart actually pays better), have no benefits/insurance/PTO, and many depend on government programs just to survive-and that only adds to the problems that are excellently detailed here.
When I started interviews after I came out of school, I was stunned to figure out that people working on the backside at the race track would still be making more than me in a clinic or hopt. That is where I came from & after 2 yrs on the interview merry-go-round where I returned.
When we begin to understand the corporates are frisking American citizens of our wealth from birth to death… we begin to understand how oppressively dystopian this system is. We don’t have to live this way. If we all stop working… protest peacefully on the steps of OUR government and demand term limits, ban lobbyists, audit all elected officials and judges.
My mom used every penny of her savings for her care at a nursing facility. Once her savings was depleted, she (I) signed her up for medicaid. I'm so relieved my mom was in a nursing facility pre covid. My heart was broken for everyone who was in a nursing facility at that time. My mom died in 2009, and it was a devastating time for everyone. I couldn't imagine the heartache of being locked out to be with a parent. I'm 64 ..not old..not young anymore. I hope whatever happens in life, my husband & I do not live to be a burden to our kids. Nobody wants to linger if their life has no meaning. I also hope that what little we have in material value goes to our kids and not to subpar care in a nursing facility. I hope to die before I have to die in a hospital or nursing facility. I love my life & hope many more years of living independently.
I lost my entire 401k, including $30k in taxes and penalties, my entire savings and had to give half the profits of my house when sold to Medicaid because my mother had “life-use” of my house. It was hers, but she signed it to me years ago and she wasn’t even living here, so this wouldn’t happen, but it did. She’s getting good care now in a nursing home, but I have nowhere to live and no future for myself. I have no kids to help me. I would do it again to help her, but no idea what I’m going to do.
I have studied genealogy, reviewing records since the 18th century, and most of my family members lived beyond their useful working years. It's fair to assume that their experience was similar to that of far older generations despite our lack of documents. I am struck by the modern passion to make our parents/grandparents live somewhere other than with us. That didn't begin until politicians passed laws that make it financially possible (albeit difficult) to do so (Social Security and Medicare). Before the 1930s, everyone who lived long enough to do so took up housing with one of their children. While some simply can't do that, they are the minority. Most people can, but it has become 'unheard of' or something of which to be embarrassed. So now we have news reports on the "terrible (new?) problem" of being unable to afford the costs of old age. Elders have more to contribute to the raising of children and wisdom for their adult kids. Most families miss out on that now, and it's remarkable that living as humans did for 79,920 of their 80,000 year history has become 'strange'.
I absolutely dread getting elderly. Im in my 50s now and have no family or children. Its a shame when someone like me has to decide about suicide at a certain age rather than live in one of the united states disgusting filthy nursing homes. It is a thought that haunts me the older i get.
Exactly my thoughts. I'm 65, and stress has put me in imperfect health, chronic variety. I need to measure my money, house taxes and expenses, and how long I can make a run on a very tiny SS income. (self employed entire low earning career)
I lost both my parents back to back last year. I struggled to get them services especially my dad who had severe dementia. My mom died from all the stress when my dad went into a nursing home. It was traumatic because I found her at home as we were going to see dad. He died 4 months later and was treated horrible in nursing care. Unfortunately and thankfully he passed away before cost became astronomical. I feel that the only solution is to build communities where we can take care of each other. Extended family and communal living have to happen. We can't rely on the government or our personal investments.
I'm 50, receive less than $12,500/yr SSDI, and was hit by a car in my wheelchair, in a crosswalk, into my 4th month wait-listed for long-term care at home. No broken bones, but my case "care" nurse blamed me for being out. Clearly if there's a wait-list for care, I have to BE OUT to care for myself. Who are these horrible people?! I quit long-term care 6 wks later. HUD is now helping to get my landlord to make the subsidized apartment I've lived in for 10 years, 2.5 in a wc, wc accessible. Accessible housing would make a big difference in premature institutionalization.
One of the few books I've saved after downsizing is Final Exit. The system is set up to wipe out assets, just like the 08 mortgage crisis was all planned. The states with the least amount of help also won't pass death with dignity laws to allow someone to choose to end their suffering legally. It's all about the $.
It's worse for the elderly but also affects everyone who has a job without benefits. My son has a decent job and he has colitis. He doesn't qualify for state help and can't afford to take time off. We all know emotional health is tied to overall well being.
We need to start paying our caregivers more. CNAs can’t make a living wage. It’s the same for child day care workers. Many of them pay for bachelor degrees in child development. Some are hired as private nannies for the very wealthy. Some end up working in other industries. We don’t value caregivers’ work in the US. 😕
hospice nurse here. THANK YOU FOR THIS NEWS COVERAGE!!! I cannot tell you how many tragically horrible situations I’ve seen taking care of our elderly and dying folks. This country is absolutely SHAMEFUL in the lack of support for dying/elderly folks. I don’t want to get political here but we MUST HAVE SOCIALIZED ELDER CARE. Convince me otherwise only if you also work in hospice/geriatrics.
Thank you for doing what you do 💜
It's the scariest part of getting old when you're poor. Bed sores, dirty cloths/sheets, beatings, prolapsed colons not managed, no mental stimulation, few or no visits, angry nurses, rape, being a burden. I figure I'm 15 years away. Still time for a miracle.
The US already has socialized short-term elder care (Medicare) but Obamacare financially broke it, practically eliminating the possibility of improving Medicare elder care, and making Medicaid unavoidable for many. Now the long term care sector of the insurance industry is such a shambles that federal agencies suggested self-funding it to their employees this year! If federal employees no longer have long term care insurance as a viable option, every senior citizen must come up with a personal safety net of some kind. What a job to have to do so late in life.
There were hundreds of programs like long term care in the ACA that got stripped from it by republicans who in the end didn’t even vote to pass it, dems have to stop being played by republicans who strip good things from bills just to do it when they have no plan to vote for the bill anyway
@@buyerbware25You are wrong.
My Mom and Dad purchased long term care insurance and paid for 20 years. When my Mom had to go into a nursing home, it only paid for half. The nursing home still took her entire pension each month and she was a retired teacher. This nursing home cost $143,000 a year and that was for really mediocre care. I just don't understand how it costs $143,000 a year to be put in a wheelchair all day while staring at a wall. Being ignored and basically left to rot for the most part. The doctors refused to allow us to take her home because she needed nursing care but I am pretty sure that any dog on the street could watch someone in a wheelchair all day. There is nothing in their rooms. Not even a TV. We had to provide everything or she just sat there staring into space all day. You heard beeping all day from residents hitting their nurse buttons and getting no response. A doctor visited once a day and from what I can tell, didn't do anything. He didn't notice that her legs had turned black. He didn't notice that she had stopped taking her medicine for an entire week. We had to go there every single day to make sure they didn't just let her die. That was $143,000 a year! I wonder how it is for people who don't have a family advocate. Someone to check on them. It makes me shudder. Oh wait. They did feed her some crappy food and sometimes pushed her outside in her wheelchair so it all evens out.
💔😢💔😧💔
For profit nursing homes. The profits aren't being paid to caregivers, nor to facilities upkeep. They're going to assholes on yachts, smoking their cigars. Long live our capitalist paradise.
That’s neglect. You should turn that place into the state for elder abuse!!
It is truly shameful. My aunt was in a care home for a short period and when I would go visit her the residents would beg me to take them for a walk following me in their wheelchairs begging to go outside. It was the most heartbreaking thing I've ever witnesses. I didn't have the time otherwise I would have have. The fact that these places are understaffed and charge so much is reprehensible. At $143,000 a year every resident should have quality and attentive care.
I am so sorry your mother was treated so poorly.
There are a lot of nursing homes going out of business because it is hard to find good help these days. They cannot make any money.
How can we justify our defense budget that is ten times more than other countries while our seniors "die broke"? It must change!
There is always money for wars, but not for those who pay for it (taxpayers).
“Pentagon fails audit for sixth year in a row”. Reuters 11/15/23
@kevinjenner9502 So true. They pretty much have a blank check to spend as they please. It's shameful how the US has spent billions making weapons and selling weapons to other countries and Congress (both parties) never has enough money to spend on its citizens.
The defense budget is why you aren’t speaking Russian right now. It would be better to ask about tax cuts for the super wealthy and corporate welfare.
@@michellestevens2454 I definitely agree with you on those tax cuts for the super wealthy & corporations!
People are facing a tough time in retirement. Low-paying jobs, inflation, and high rents make it hard to save. Now, middle-class Americans find it tough to own a home too, leaving them without a place to retire.
The increasing prices have impacted my plan to retire at 62, work part-time, and save for the future. I'm concerned about whether those who navigated the 2008 financial crisis had an easier time than I am currently experiencing. The combination of stock market volatility and a decrease in income is causing anxiety about whether I'll have sufficient funds for retirement.
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I have personally experienced this topic. It's hard for people to sympathize with you when it happens. I was so terrified of losing my house when my husband was diagnosed with cancer I relapsed after 18 years of sobriety. The loneliness, the fear of becoming homeless was just too much too bear. In the end I was able to hold onto to my house but I had to outsmart the government - lie essentially. I hate people who condone a system that forces people to lose their house when they get sick. I got sober again btw.
You have certainly been through so much. I’m glad you had 2 wins in the aftermath of your tragedy. 🙏🏻💙.
It’s a shame other countries figured this out and instead we waste more billions in reckless hateful political campaigns. We must find a balance that’s fair for all.
Thank you for your understanding and kind words. It's truly appreciated.
My late husband was a good soul. He never took more than what he needed. He left a small footprint but a large hole in my heart.
In some states they can't take the house if a spouse is there but require direct payments which most cannot afford. The big problem, as I see it, is that people don't plan for these expenses I'm the same way they don't figure childcare expenses when having children. This should be taught at least by high school when they're teaching about budgets.
What, we should teach people that you can lose your house when you get sick?
This hit home 💯% for me, as sole caregiver for my 91-yr-old disabled mother (23+ years now). While simultaneously working at a f/t office job (after sacrificing a promising career in editing) to keep a lousy apartment roof over our heads, I've been disgusted from Day 1 w/our country's system and the absence of care for its senior and/or disabled citizens, AND for all of us caregivers.
There's no end to the details that describe our situation, and I'm at my wits end. Even though she was recently approved for Medi-Cal (Medicaid in CA), my burn out is now so severe I can't even figure out how to navigate that system to aquire all of the care for which she may qualify. I'm even surprised I found the clarity to write this comment. 😧
I understand, the reams of confusing paperwork that has to be filled out to qualify for the aid you qualify practically takes a law degree and one mistake, and you are kicked out. You also have to do it every year. Horrible
I stand in solidarity with both of you. You sound like courageous and loving souls, but nobody should have to go through what we do as caregivers. Something’s got to change!
I hear you. Our current system is unspeakably brutal and virtually impossible to navigate. My mom is very ill. My dad literally fought Nazis in WW2 but the Veterans keep rejecting my mom for even the meagerest benefits because she gets Social Security checks, which keep her from falling below the poverty line. I've been filling out forms for 18 months while they deny benefits and my mom declines further. It's horrible. All we can do is hang in there and hope for change.
Welcome to capitalism.
We voted for this.
@@geekmeee They have made it impossible to vote for anything else.
This is a disgrace for this country. Work your whole life and lose everything when you age or get sick.
Medicaid then takes one's estate and personal effects as reimbusement leaving nothing to family members who may need the assets to live.
Are you asking the rest of us to fund it? Because it will bankrupt us all before we get old. Aides deserve to be paid decently. Living at home is the most expensive possible way to care for a fragile elder.
Correct. You don't see this problem in western Europe.
Denmark has a better plan, but you spend 50% of income throughout life. Americans don't want that as we want wonderful life and death. It requires lifelong sacrifice to afford long-term insurance and care. We need to stop prolonging life for life's sake as it sometimes ruins lives more. Some things need to follow their natural course IMHO. You need an ironclad advanced directive for sure.
It isn’t a disgrace being irresponsible responsible for yourself, and not saving is a disgrace
As a caregiver for both of my parents, I can say the only way it was possible is because of the support of my husband who is a disabled veteran. We have no assets. Our car is old. We rent our home. We made it work because we sacrificed in other areas. This should NOT be the norm. Our elderly, no matter what their financial situation, should be cared for with respect.
How can this country spend billions per year on wars and weapons when we can't even take care of our citizens?
This is a complete failure on the part of the government.
And yet Joe Biden giving away billions of American tax dollars away to other countries like if it was his own money , impeach him ASAP !
TRUMP the real ( Mvp ) ...most valuable President !
MAGA 2024
A person can’t own anything to get help; if you do own property, the Government wii take it at the end... shameful !
Yes, my sister and I are primary caregivers for our elderly parents and we both relate to your story. We both retired early -- way too early to think about social security, but we do it because we both are blessed with husbands who have decent careers; drive vehicles till they die, don't get the latest technology ( tv, phones, etc) live in modest homes ( coworkers 15-20 years younger live in fancier neighborhoods and drive gorgeous vehicles) and it's paid off. It's still frustrating, and I hate it, but we just don't want them in a nursing home. 😢
@@mariatomko4278 you missed the point with your self righteous rant. My sister and I are victimized by the system; having moved 1200 miles leaving family to care for TWO parents while in my 50s sucks. Thankfully, the additional financial pressure isn't there because of choices we made. We're going to, at some point, face the dilemma of horrid nursing home care because we can't sustain for more than another year of this. It's physically and mentally killing both of us. But thankfully, because we both live a simple lifestyle, we've alleviated additional stress had we had a high mortgage and an expensive vehicle. No one should be in the position of hoping their parents die before having to put them in a nursing home. It's a reality no one should have to deal with. Again, not having additional stress factors like new car, large mortgage, etc etc has helped lessen an already extremely difficult situation we live daily.
@@Daysleeper1000 Really I'm happy for you. But please don't assume that what works, however poorly, for you would also work for someone in what may be entirely different circumstances. For example, someone whose spouse wasn't at all in marriage for the long haul. Have a great day
Nurse here- Americans wake up. Thank you for covering this.
Hospice nurse for 21 years. I would like the option of assisted death rather than a nursing-home.. Never ever!!! Do not want to spend my money down for that.. would rather leave what’s left to my family. Care of the elderly who are not wealthy is horrible in our institutions..
I might be alone on this, but when I get to this stage in my life, I’ll basically end it. I’m not afraid of dying….. I see it as me going back to where I came from - into Mother Earth, like all living things. I DO NOT see the point of prolonging my life and be a burden on my family. My money goes to them. Anyway, it’s my choice.
Yes! I agree!
Many, and I mean, almost all of my friends feel exactly the same way!
But the Taylor swifts....make. 000000. CNN anchor 11 million. A year.....
There have been cases of people purchasing large life insurance policies so that if they found out they could not pay for care... their "plan" then was to end their lives. Just terrible.
In my experience many feel that way until they are faced with the fact. And many of their relatives and loved ones certainly do not want that guilt burden.
I have a friend who has paid for long term care insurance for years now, but now that she needs to use it, she gets every kind of no answer imaginable. I think a law needs passed that refunds premiums to a person's estate if the die while being denied the care they paid for.
You didn’t mention the company and her health condition. Curious.
👍 Now you're talking.
How abt exempting people involved in either working in elder healthcare from paying income taxes? Make it on a sliding scale. The more you are physically involved in the actual "care", the less you have to.pay. That way those families caring for their relatives would be considered.
Great. I have LTC for 15 years paying and the premiums are going up so far not a lot. Still I hope I can claim as needed. I had read something like this before. Not right.
Insurance premiums aren’t your personal savings account. If you want that then just save your money and pay cash for treatment. Just because you pay for insurance doesn’t mean you’re entitled to use it for anything you want. It goes into a giant pool that everyone uses. So if 80 year old frank has always paid for health insurance but never needed it before and now needs a heart transplant, he’s not going to get it. Because they can save 1,000 premature infants with the same amount of money and those infants will have 75 years of life ahead of each one when frank has a high probability of not even surviving the surgery plus the lifetime of after care a transplant requires. Or he may live 5 years. That’s how insurance works.
That's s completely different LTC insurance
So glad this is getting some coverage! I’m a caregiver for my 57 yr old wife who has a brain injury from an event at a hospital and stopped breathing. I’m not sure how much of this I can handle before we lose everything. It’s been 8 years and we are reduced to our home and an old car. I can’t have more than $2000 in the bank at anytime or we get kicked off Medicare, the judge stipulated in her guardianship papers that I can’t sell any asset without his approval first. As if the medical and caregiving wasn’t hard enough we get the new IRS agents coming down on my taxes saying I owe $10k for some deficiency… I’m already under poverty levels and they just don’t let up on us. There was no way to save or insure ourselves from this event but regardless we are going to stay together until the end, I know she would do that for me. Our system is broke and most people have no clue, it’s a lonely existence and extremely difficult to navigate through so I can imagine a lot of people just give up.
I might be able to give you some first-hand advice here. My wife had disorganized schizophrenia and I knew it was progressive but manageable. When she was around 76, signs appeared and before the next year ended I was a full-time caregiver. I am now 78. Over the past 10 years, I took a 6-week caregiver class at a local hospital in a town of 3000 (Biggest in our county.), and I took for no certification, a 6-week EMT class so that I could take care of some problems, plus I read a lot on medical. I have bad knees and can't get an operation without rehabilitating in a center and I will die before I go to one of those. (I watched my wife go downhill in one.) I've had 2 blood clots and I live in the country and cut my own firewood and get my water off my roof and the closest town is 8 miles.
She was getting frail and knew it and it is hard to get a 110-pound (by that time) dead weight out of a tub, so I had to wash her. Reading online I felt that physical therapy could help. After a few sessions, she was checked for fast heart beat and then put on an ambulance for the nearest hospital, 30 miles away. My wife stopped eating as did my dog. The dog went to the animal hospital the same day my wife went to the people hospital. Neither ever came home. At the first hospital, I calmed her down as she was prepped for the helicopter ride (I pay $75 a year for Life Flight. Then I waited. After a couple days in the hospital in the nearest city (32,000 pop.) she was put into a rehabilitation center (nursing home) where I would visit her 80 miles away. She wanted to go home, but I had no authority to take her home because she now belonged to the medical facility. Frustrating.
Medicare pays for a little but not very much. My bill was to be $12000 a month. I had to get Medicaid. Not easy. My wife and I had a combined income of $24,000 a year. Our problem with medicaid was that we weren't in debt. Had we maxed out credit cards and owed money on home and cars, we would be OK.. And our assets were too high because I owned a small tractor, a necessity for one who lives in mountain country in the winter with a steep driveway. I tried every government agency I could find until the financial official at the nursing home (And of course they want to get paid.) told me how I could Medicaid.
This is the advice I give to you. I contacted a Medicaid Advocate, a fellow who had worked for state Health and Welfare (Where you apply for Medicaid.) His private business is getting people on Medicaid. Most people aren't as poor as I am so for some reason, he thought it was so easy, he didn't even charge me. But even if he would have I would have paid him. I'd been working on this stressful attempt to get Medicaid for over a month and this guy did in a few days. You need to check at hospitals, nursing homes, online until you find a Medicaid Advocate. You might find a name at a local state health and welfare office.
I hope you don't vote Republican. That is howpeople rear-end themselves.
@@PatrickThreewit I suggest you also try to get Medical Poser of Attorney or Legal Guardianship of your wife so you can exercise your rights as her husband. No medical facility's rights should supercede your rights in any case.
You get kicked of MediCAID not off of MediCARE. What you describe is terrible. I am far-left-wing because I want us to be more like Europe.
If you don't have $60 to $100,000 a year to pay for a nursing home...you are out of luck. It's always been this way, but it has never been this out of sight expensive.
I just visit a Nursing home this morning, besides the large "" Enter Fee "" I have to pay $50,000 per month like rent.
I am so glad to hear someone talking about this. This is an outrage! The way this country treats the elderly is horrendous!!! I have worked in these places. I have talked to the people living in these places. It's all bad. All of it!
after going thru the last few years... i'm totally convinced that the health care system/government, etc... does not care and there goal is to kill off the older folk, middle class and just have the young people left to control...oh and to continue to abort infants.
It's a horrific nightmare for the elder and the caregivers
My in-laws paid $60,000 over the years for long-term care insurance. Here's what I learned:
1. You have to be DISABLED to get any of your money back. The definition of "disabled" for the insurance company (Genworth) meant that you can't do things like feed yourself, transfer (move from one place to another), dress yourself, shower yourself. My in-laws needed help but didn't meet that criteria for years, so they couldn't access the $$ they paid to Genworth (insurance) to get an aide to help them a couple hours a day.
2. Once they qualified as disabled, they only got a max of $100 a day. So....all that $$ they paid was NOT immediately accessible.
3. The insurance company clearly "won" and got more money from my in-laws than what they were able to use before they died.
You speak the truth. I feel sorry for people that have paid into long-term health insurance only to discover that the fine print denies them coverage and/or sets a daily limit on coverage that isn't sufficient. Insurance companies are in business to make profits, so they are quite clever in how they structure long-term care benefits. Buyer beware!!
Hahahahaahahahahah
My father (now deceased), was diagnosed with PD in 2020. We were lucky in a way, my dad saved and was retired from the govt. this meant he had pretty good insurance (he was also a veteran). That said, he began to need serious care due to the fact that he had Lewy Body dementia (serious form of dementia). We had to fight to get the care we did. He didn’t qualify for state assistance( he made too much money from his annuity). But not enough to confortable hiring private care nor be put into dementia care housing (it can run up to 10k in our area, per month). My mom ended up being his primary care taker. I moved my whole to be near them and provide support. That meant taking my kid out the school system, they’d been in their whole life. This helped not drain too much of my folks savings. But the emotional toll this took on all of us. My dad ended up deciding to do hospice. That provided a lil assistance but not much. We had to fight, but we eventually got a good nurse for him thru hospice. But the dr saw him like twice (it was a joke). But my dad wanted to be cared for at home. He was terrified of being taken advantage of. So that’s what we did. We did all we could. My mom, with her health issues, took care of my dad. I took care of all the financials and extra stuff (I have health issues myself). The struggle we went thru. This country and our healthcare and end of life care is a fracking joke. If you aren’t rich. Forget about it. We had to watch my dad die. There’s no words for this. You don’t just go broke. You end up broken too.
No wonder Robin Williams hung himself. That's what we are all being driven toward. Disgraceful.
❤god bless you for your care!❤ families go through emotional hell will worry and fear for their loved ones.
I'm a hospice social worker and want to commend you for this outstanding report. This is the daily reality for many of the people I see. People working their entire life and everything goes to care. The U.S. must do something, we must do something.
Repeat after me. NOBODY IS COMING TO SAVE YOU! You're on your own.
I am a retired teacher, single, no children. I have retirement benefits and paid supplemental insurance, but no long term care. I have saved a significant amount in a 401k while I worked, but that has taken many hits over the years. The cost of living has also escalated so much that it has eaten into my savings. I was never able to buy a home as the cost of housing always was more than I could afford with a single paycheck. I am very worried about the future as I age. I keep thinking the only way I’ll be able to deal with it is by having a well planned “exit plan.” That seems preferable to being homeless or living uncared for or warehoused in some overcrowded,understaffed nursing home.
And teachers have a better retirement and health plan than most on SS. Consider yourself lucky.
Yes - completely agree.
We all need a “final exit” plan.
This is America.
Jesus is coming back within a few years. You don’t need to worry.
@@AmyMichelleMosier I heard that same statement in 1955 in church. Im sure they will say the same thing in 200 years.
I’m sure they won’t.
Really 👁eye opening.
So sad for a country that calls itself the best and the richest country in the 🌎 world 🤦🏻♀️😪💔
Richest for a select group.
Just disgraceful !
Our TAX dollars @ work!! 😖😢😡
✌️🇺🇲💙☮️🌐🫶
Sadly enough I've worked in so many nursing homes where people lose everything including their life insurance policies. It's a terrible system. I myself have brain cancer and am currently putting my house in my daughter's name so that I don't lose it in the event I end up needing LTC. There is a 7 year look back window in my state.
Wait be careful she could be reassessed to today's market value...this year!
It's happening while weve been caregiving for years they passed a law they dont care if you are related if one person gets new ownership they get reassessed.
Folks finally passed this year, just got reassessed to today's market value with a trust. It was the same plan as you but now no...
Get better, please! Get good legal advice too.
My father fell into this situation. He ended up in a horrid place. I had no money to help him and all I could do is visit him and bring him food so he could eat because he had no teeth and they gave him tough horrible food that he couldn't chew. I tried to bring him to my home for the end, but they kept saying that he was going to live a long time and that if he fell my sister would be responsible ( she was executor of his estate ) even though he fell there and they didn't have any recourse. He only lived a few more weeks, I knew that it wasn't long before his passing. I just wanted him to die with dignity. I have peace in knowing that I did my best and I was there for him. Miss him but he lived a long life and it was good up to his last few years.
My inlaws have lost everything to the nursing homes. Worked hard for 60 years only to sell everything to pay $12,000/month for a room and minimal care.
Another complication to this problem is that families are becoming smaller, more fragmented, even dysfunctional (and increasingly under financial strain no less). A strong family unit, the one that can pool resources together and share responsibilities in caring for elderly relatives in need of long-term, persistent care, can be of immense help, and often times are. But that has become less of a case, dare I say option, for a growing number of them, of us. And this crisis is not purely an American problem.
This overall picture is indeed alarming.
I take care of my mother, alone. I feel like families have always taken care of their elderly, but not alone. There was a house full of people and extended family nearby. All the care duties fall on me, all the decisions, all the medical coordination. And I am trying desperately to hang on to a job (I already lost one the last time my mom fell and was hospitalized) and take care of myself. So not only do we not have a government infrastructure, family and community have also broken down.
Sadly, there are lots of people in your situation. I had 2 brothers to help me, but I was the point person making sure that things were working out (and finding solutions when they weren't working out), while also working full time as a teacher and raising my son. Honestly, there were times when I wasn't sure I could hold onto my sanity! No one understands how hard it is to care for elderly parents and keep your own life going, until they've done it. Good luck to you!! @@beckmordini4785
Yes! For me, it is a PEOPLE problem more than a "resources" or money issue. You can only hire good nurses if there ARE good nurses! Family members are homeless and addicts, HOAs can forbid you to bring a parent & caregiver into your home. LOTS of stuff just sucks nowadays.
@@beckmordini4785Been there. Done that. I went to a dementia support group. Hispanic families showed up with 12 people. I was there alone. My professional brother lives overseas and would not fly back. There is a bit of "poor me" in this. But where was my government and social services?
My heart goes out to you both. 💔
I really wish this country would make provisions for assisted suicide with dignity. This whole situation is inhumane.
But, but that would mean bodily autonomy!
@@down-to-earth-mystery-school I know 😖
Idk they saying in CA they trying to force you to do it
Shout out to Dr Kevorkian.
How much does it cost that will be the next medical care cost I'm sure insurance and Congress are considering it
I left a corporate job and became a home health aid in NYC for 2 years. The agency takes 50% of the client fee. 12 hour shifts, no break - then the agency will cap your hours at 38 / week to avoid overtime. The work is extremely draining. Most people treat aides with contempt. I know several women who do this for a living, and it basically a revolving door of exploitation.
What prompted leaving corporate care job for home health aide job? Night and day
I do the same for a living in UK , and what you said is on point.
@@amrice62 I was transitioning to early retirement and covid struck. The world was locked down, and this came up so I thought I'd "help out" a friend who was trying to start a business. 4 week course and I was on my own immediately doing hospice, Alzheimers, basically a therapist of every description - it was crazy. The upside is that I met many interesting people who'd had fascinating careers, etc (Manhattan). It was a master class in human nature. Being a "care giver" (slave) is relentless and soul crushing - particularly dementia, autism, Parkinson's - and they are treated like dirt until they burn out. Basically it's gig work, like uber driving or food delivery only much harder.
I also corporate career people who are now in assisted living facilities in the middle of nowhere surviving on government benefits until the facility throws them out (if it can make more money from someone else). Professors, Managing Directors, etc. - of sound mind and very very bitter.
@@zakatista5246 wow! An RN here. I would wonder if you considered private work- no one takes percentage of your pay. Word of mouth. Church etc.
I know the pay is very low- can you go back to business work in some capacity?
During my mother's last illness, we spent almost all of her retirement savings on home health aides to provide necessary care for her while she was in the hospital -- e.g., feeding her. As a result of these two wonderful aides, who helped her not take some of the meds that were killing her, my mother regained her ability to eat and walk and her mental status improved. Once my mother was strong enough, I took her out of the hospital against medical advice (AMA) to bring her home. When we ran out of money, we surrendered -- i.e., she was re-admitted to the hospital so she would qualify for Medicare to pay for 30 days in a nursing home and, then, was discharged to a nursing home. As the aides and I expected would happen, my mother died in a little more than a month with almost all of her savings having been spent.
Just horrible. I'm so sorry.
It’s awful. Both our Moms are currently 92. The care expenses are horrendously insane. 🙏🏻💙
I am so so sorry to hear this. 💔
I want to thank you for bringing this topic to light, and I want to give a big hug to every commenter! We’re going through this with a relative with Alzheimer’s, and it has been a fresh hell every day. So many people are creative, kind-hearted and resilient, but nobody should have to go through what is expected of caregivers in this country.
I’m a doctor, I treat a lot of patients at home, it’s horrible to see how they have to live in conditions that no young person would want to live in. It’s heart breaking!
I've known people who got divorced so that one of them could keep most of their life savings. They will were a couple, but no longer married. It's disgusting that this is the way we treat elders in the US.
And this is best case scenario if you have a decent retirement, which MOST Americans do not. God forbid one ends up in a state run residence 😢
I hope I kick off quickly. I would hate to leave my family in financial ruin. That would be a horrible legacy.
Or move to another country this video is about America
It’s an eye opening experience. I took care of our aunt for years. We are not prepared as a country for what’s coming. Thanks for this information.
My parents died without a penny to their name. It's unacceptable! It's just another giant problem with our health care. The way the vulnerable in our society speaks volumes of the cruelty we cultivated out of greed
This is the side effect of life extending medical interventions. For example, my grandfather died from heart disease that could have been treated with medication today. His daughter, my mom, was kept alive on chemo for 6 years after being diagnosed with stage 4 ovarian cancer, a prognosis that used to lead to death within a few months. The older we get, the greater the risk for developing other co-morbidities like Alzheimer’s (plus cancer or diabetes, or heart disease, etc). I’m watching my best friend (57 yo) navigate a full time job and manage 3 rotating caregivers for her medically healthy mother with advanced Alzheimer’s. $8800/month for the care alone. She’s still in her own home in Arlington TX. Alzheimer’s facilities in north Texas start at $8000.00/mo. But her mom get one on one care in her home for now. It’s incredibly stressful for everyone involved. Her mom could go on like this for many years. She’s depleting her savings fast.
In Texas, many people can purchase a short-term plan that helps pay for home care. I'd look into a short term plan with Aetna. Find an independent LTC broker.
I feel so badly for your friends situation.
This is why my aunt and father told me explicitly to not extend their lives if something happened to them. I followed their instructions and let them die peacefully when the time came. It shouldn't be this way.
I share your opinion and it is not a popular one. People are kept artificially alive with drugs.
If you are old and sick or disabled and you don’t have family that cares you are, simply put, toast. This is what happens when hedge funds own the medical system from hospital groups to insurance companies to nursing homes down to individual practices and home care companies. This is why it is imperative to try to keep yourself healthy. The medical system/big pharma has become a death delivery system. Don’t let it be you.
We are the only western country where medical care will bankrupt someone or a family caregiver (usually a woman). This is why I am looking to retire in France ( I have dual citizenship ) where there is no age limit to getting care, and certainly won’t bankrupt me.
"You won't be able to save your way out of this catastrophe, but get creative and sacrifice and save every penny for your own old-age care starting in your 40s anyway, because it's better than nothing" is the advice I'm hearing. And I'm not criticizing these reporters, they're doing great work. Our corrupt profit-over-people neoliberal medical-pharmaceutical complex is to blame. How ghastly and morbid to treat its most vulnerable citizens this way. I'm dealing with it myself, and my mom happens to be in Texas, a "bootstrap" state where you have to be a billionaire to get old. Zero funding for elder care, and a ten-year waiting list for Medicaid. It's a sick joke, a wide-awake nightmare. Thank you for covering this!
How is this created by "neoliberals"? They're equally complicit, but this is straight-up unrestrained Capitalism.
When I read here that "profit over people" was a "neoliberal" concept, I thought "Since when dud that happen??". Then I read "Texas".
'Nuf said. One of that state's most enduring traditions is how it feels nothing abt exploiting the cost of healthcare & the BUSINESS of healthcare. This is something they have been constantly prospecting for, from the strds for nursing homes to elder care to what happens to pregnant teenagers to the fate of single mothers & their kids. The law & the press finally reveals what's going on & the state govt gets embarrassed to doing something abt it; & then TX goes back to.work moving on to another medical endeavor to milk for outrageous profit & the business of attracting the speculators there who intend to do it. And in TX, anything that they get profoundly embarrassed abt inevitably always gets blamed on "liberals", "neo" & otherwise.
So, I get it.
@@g.hon.4645 Neoliberalism = Reaganomics. It is absolutely profit over people, and it's not to be confused with "liberal" meaning left-wing. I agree about TX though. Horrible governing has de-funded healthcare and medicaid until only the very wealthy can afford to be old or sick. It's inhuman.
Texas is not exactly a hotbed of neoliberal thinking. Don’t blame the lack of elder care support in Texas on neoliberal policies!
@@Sashazur Do you realize Texas is governed by Greg Abbott, a maniac who has stripped funding from every program that helps the elderly, ill, poor, and disabled, and is even trying to privatize the public school system? To make the rich even richer and screw everybody else? That is aggressive neoliberalism, my friend. Ronald Reagan on steroids.
When I am so far gone that I can't take care of myself I would rather die than impose this kind of burden on others.
Absolutely! We need more EOL options for old-old, severely compromised people in this country. Going to Switzerland is a possibility for some but that comes at a high cost as well.
Yes….I don’t want life saving medical care only to bankrupt MY children. Let me die and let my children try to prosper raising their families.
For 30 years I wondered if it would ever come to euthanasia when there were more old, disabled people and not enough people to take care of them. I would probably volunteer if I was riddled with cancer and/or had dementia coming on. So far I'm in good health and have a healthful lifestyle (age 74). My mother lived in assisted living and then dementia care for the last 1 1/2 years and passed in 2008 at age 87. Surprisingly she had money to leave to her kids and grandkids. (She had been a geriatric nurse and my father had worked for an oil company in the fields for 45 years. They were very frugal. Father died at 82.) But even though we own our house, I am concerned we will have enough assets to last to the end of life. Everybody I know is concerned about end-of-life now.
But most states will deny you an opportunity to seek medical aid in dying (MAID) because of the religious views about end of life. There are many conditions that are horribly painful and either not well controlled by medication or that leave people in a stupor if administered at a level that does quell the pain. That's not deemed terminal so you can't even choose to depart this life peacefully in the 11 states that do allow MAID. If you're able to fly, you may be able to spend many thousands of dollars going to Switzerland to get humane euthanasia. With some measures in place to prevent abuse, MAID should be an option for those who desire it. Canada allows MAID, but you must establish residency for several years so not an option for U. S. citizens.
Same. No way will I exist like that to enrich some corporation or the government.
I am right now in Thailand. I am amazed how the Thai people respect elderly relatives and comes naturally to them taking care of elderlies . In many cases the grandchildren taking the grandma and living together. Seems working very well for them .
That's our plan.
Everyone too selfish in the US
My 92-year-old parents still live independently because one of my daughters travels to their home 3-4x/week to do tasks for them like shopping, taking out the trash, cleaning, post office/bank errands, cooking, and so on. And my husband and I are usually there at least 1-2x/week for the more complicated jobs (our son stops by every week as well to check on them). But my father has reached the end-stage hospice point (he's had cancer for years), so even with all of our visits and all of the assistive devices which have been installed in their home, my mom is now also paying an aide for about an hour's worth of medical care a day to keep him out of a facility since he would absolutely hate being moved from his home. We'd all rather pay the healthcare workers directly than line the pockets of some scammy LTC insurance agency that denies care or a homecare agency which pays its workers peanuts.
This is the way.@@juliestade7529
Regarding home healthcare, one of the issues that this reporting didn't touch on was what I see (at least in the Trenton, New Jersey area where I currently live) as a spatial disconnect between where a client/patient lives and where home health aids live.
My mom works for a home healthcare agency that staffs aids to take care of patients at their homes. Many of the aids she oversees rely on buses or a family member to drive them around, as they don't earn enough (even w/ state-supplied funding and working more than one job) to be able to buy a car. Meanwhile, there are clients who live in communities not served by buses, so, by default, the only aids that can be staffed for such cases are those that have reliable access to a car.
This is to say nothing of the fact that there are home healthcare agencies that don't reimburse aids for traveling to visiting clients. They may not receive any extra financial incentive (e.g., bus passes, gas stipends, etc.) besides their hourly wage, not even overtime pay if they're at or near 40 hours of work for a week.
Eventually, people in need of home healthcare may realize that they may have to move to a town or a part of town that is served by a system of buses or other forms of transit in order to improve their odds of getting an aid that can take care of them. Contrary to what one might think, clients don't appear to have an influence or leverage regarding this matter, not even those who privately pay a home healthcare agency for such service.
I want to plant a timed device in my body that I have to reset occasionally. When I can't remember to reset it anymore, then it will shut my body down.
It would be like one of those buttons you put on a turkey in the oven that tells you when it's done. Except that when this button pops up, you have 24 hours to push it back down.
It think that’s called a pace maker/
Lol
@@brians2328 you have a rather odd sense of humor. I support this! L O L.
@@brians2328 it was the turkey button, wasn't it? Fair enough. It is kind of funny.
If we as a country stop sending money to other countries to pay for their wars, we could have national health care.
After my dad's death in 2010 I launched a search for in-home care for my mother with MS. I contacted a local agency (owned by a former nurse) and arranged an appointment to meet this r.n.-turned-c.e.o. at my mum's bedside. She arrived (in 2 separate posh SUVs) with hedge fund kinda young man in a suit and brief case and fancy complimentary pens for signing their contract. The wolf turned out to be her son who had an MBA in elder care management from Babson College. Schooled in picking pockets of the most vulnerable. Their "fee schedule" was heart-stopping. They new every in and out. It was disgusting. One more aspect of our lives tainted by Greedy Corporate Wringers; one more harbinger that American Middle Class is lost.
This is NOT even an issue in Canada. Most aspects of elder care are provided by their government provided medic care system. Why are WE putting up with this crap in the USA?
We need to ask congress ppl and anyone up for an election....what are you going to do about this and only vote for those who agree to put this issue on the table. We also need performance reviews for election officials....how many times did they vote against things they said they would do. How we do the reviews, not sure..but everyone else has reviews. When congress cant get a budget passed, they should not be paid!
Actually, it's somewhat similar in Canada. One woman I knew was paying $4000 a month for a mediocre retirement/nursing home. My father, before he passed, was going to be kept in hospital because he was on a ventilator at no cost to us. If you have someone to take care of you at home forget getting much of any help unless you are willing to pay for private nursing. However, in Canada we do have assisted suicide which if it comes down to it, I'll be choosing, rather than years upon years in long-term care.
Good retirement and nursing homes are very expensive in Canada. My parents paid $5,300 per month for a tiny assisted-living 1-bedroom apartment back in 2018.
Because most Americans are profoundly ignorant, stupid and naive when it comes to how great they think this country is.
This is what happens to most Americans. You go into the hospital a few times as you get older and it eats up all your savings. You end up in the hospital again but this time you end up having to sell your house to cover the bill. It is anticipated that you are going to need assistance thereafter in activities of daily living so they place you in a nursing home the cost of which will be covered by medicaid as they switch you to medicaid from medicare. You are now in an awful nursing home with 2 people to a room, one shower per week that is done by a different person each time, you are required to wear a diaper if you have any incontinence which is changed twice per shift and you are kept in bed accept up for meals for the most part. Shelved until you pass away from illness and total depression wondering how you got there. This is what is waiting for most Americans as you get older.
I planning at 44 and single!!! Getting out of this country is my best bet.
We need to keep this conversation going, pressure the government and come up with solutions. Death and old age aren’t going away!
And that's exactly why @ least 3yrs ago Cons corporate America began buying up & consolidating the funeral industry - just like they started doing w/charity hopts back in the '60's.
It's been a fact for decades if not centuries
Wealthy elders stay in assisted living as long as they can. Quality of life is better, care is better (all private pay), food is better, and this environment can extend abilities. It is about 2/3 of the cost of a NH. It is still awful. Try not to outlive your brain or your money. Refuse treatments that are likely to result in an extended death, not an extended life. If you push providers to be completely and brutally honest, they will tell you what the likely trajectory is. And then you can make decisions. This takes a brass pair. But then, so does watching someone die slowly.
@@jacquielapierredufresne5468 Actually, you don't understand it at all. Once people are unsafe alone in their home they need supervision. Paying for it at home out of pocket is the most expensive method. Unless you think that having your family member quit their job to sit with you all day is good for you or for them. It isn't. Wealthy people get social interaction and semi-skilled care in luxury assisted living.
A lot of talk about preschool being so essential but nothing about caring for our seniors. It’s all about productivity and $$$.
Pitting toddlers against the elderly is playing right into their corrupt game. Make the rich pay taxes and we could care for both.
Thank god I live in Denmark, one of the last progressive leaning countries,
I had a friend from denmark. Taxes were hi but you don't have to worry about what happens to you when you are old or sick. So worth it not to worry.
Won’t the new leader change this?
Won't be totally shocked if things change and no one knows.
SOCIALISM PROTECTS EVERYONE EQUALLY. ITS NOT FOR GREEEDY EGOMANIAC NARCISISTIC
If you're not very wealthy, long term care will break virtually everyone. The majority of bankruptcies are medical bankruptcies. My aunt has dementia and it costs my Uncle 22k a month for her care. That's outrageous! They were forced to sell their home and now exhausting all their savings. That's over 250k a year.
We spent $250K on my mother-in-law’s care in the last two years of her life. I wanted her to have good care, but I spent a lot of sleepless nights wondering what would happen if the money ran out…
I know, right?!, do they kick a dementing patient in her 90's out on the street when the $$$ runs out?!?!
Gosh I can so relate. My mother died with $10K savings left after spending all she had for six years of private memory care. I was in a panic about the looming depletion of her savings because at the time I could not have covered it and I knew she would be headed for a Medicaid nursing home. She thankfully died before that became her new awful awful reality. I'm so glad you were able to do right by your mother-in-law in spite of this horrific situation.
If Uncle Sam won’t let a doctor put you down then you have to do it yourself.
When I can't really function very well anymore, I think I will take up skydiving. I can save a little money by not renting the parachute.
Just stop eating. It works and is not that bad (or so I'm told by people doing it.)
@@Karen-dq8nw whoever is telling you it's not that bad, obviously hasn't done it. I apparently have not starved to death, but I have gone without food for a long time, and it sucks.
As I understand it, elderly lose much of their appetite in the end of life. So I assume it could be that easy.
"They" would end up force feeding you...against your will. They think you're demented if you refuse to eat, so you could end up with a feeding tube with your hands tied so you won't pull it out.😢
Everyone should know this. Nursing homes are private . How they operate is to keep you alive until you run out of money , and then "let you go " . Insane fees . They want ALL the money .
I am willing to admit that I could be wrong but I believe we are in this situation because we got talked into extreme medical care to extend life as long as possible and attached that to morality. We exchanged quality of life with quantity of life. I am 81yr old and have lived around old people for a long time and witnessed more suffering because we have been talked into having open heart surgery, lung transplants, legs and feet cut off when we already into our 90's just to get 6 months extra life. We have been taught to fear death, #1 reason why I do not believe in organized religion, I believe in God and have no fear of death it is truly liberating. Social Security is not breaking the bank, it is the amount of money we spend keeping people alive when they have no quality of life. I did have the talk with my son's, even had legal papers drawn up that states that if I am not able to say no, they will have the right to stop any treatment that will extend my life, if I can't take care of myself there is no reason to be here.
ai am a nurse in LTC facility i think it’sdisgraceful how we over medicate dementia patients in trying to keep them alive. longer.
Me too. LTC nurse here. It’s freakin scary. Sometimes I don’t know how much longer I can continue to do this job, knowing how badly these old people are ripped off.
There should be a choice for assisted death or assisted living. I believe many people would opt for dying if it could be done humanely and with dignity. This would in turn free up money for long term care as well.
Isn’t it sad that everything is about money?
People need to be cognizant of the fact that we are living longer and the medical system is making it easier to extend your life through endless treatments and interventions, many of which are not necessary after so many years of life. There is a point where we need to acknowledge our finitude and decide not to have any more medical interventions, treatments or medications.This society is not ready to have such a vast population of the elderly being kept alive at a burdening cost to society and the caregiver’s time.
A dear elderly doctor friend had health issues that got progressively worse over the past 3 years since his retirement. He refused treatment and peacefully passed away. My medical professional friends tell me that most often, the medical establishment is prolonging death and that most medical professionals know when to let go, refuse treatment, and die with grace.
@@Quetzali19 That is a good point. Doctors see the reality of the situation on a daily basis, but their job is to save lives. It is up to the patient to asses their life and not be afraid of their passing.
I have an ALF next door to my house. It used to be that patients would be there between 4-5 years on average, this was around ten years ago. Now they are staying even longer. It is expensive, many had no children and can afford it. But for most people, this is not the case.
And you also have the lives of the caregivers, mostly relatives that will spend their retirement with the responsibility of a person who is only getting worse. The mental stress is great, many suffer from depression. It is a very sad situation, especially for those taking care of relatives with Alzheimers.
Really interesting. I saw this with my mom. She had dementia. It was shocking to see the sticker price for memory units. The better ones were 10k+ a month. I'm getting older now and thinking about how im going to live later. Dementia runs in my family and I worry that it may show up in me or immediate family. The part that made me reflect is when he said you can't plan for major illness.
The extreme greed of the health care system was not mentioned.....??????
Exactly. HUGE miss to not investigate why these places cost so much yet pay their workers so little and provide atrocious neglectful care.
I am 67 and in failing health. What amazes me is I have four siblings none of whom visit..two live nearby..and seldom contact me let alone stop in to visit. Did not call me on Thanksgiving.
I am fortunate. I had a therapist from a young age..suggested by a concerned friend. He helped set up a financial plan for me…which my father decided to set up for all of my siblings. I am the beneficiary but I have never had any direct access to the funds. The lack of empathy amazes me on an ongoing basis. Two of my siblings have continually admonished me that I am fortunate my expenses are paid and are wanting to limit expenses…they want some money too when I am gone.
I likely will not end up in this train wreck of American healthcare…but my family is integral to this scenario. Middle class baby boomers who have no interest in anything that is not about themselves.
I am in awe Americans are struggling because they care about their aging loved ones. I don’t know that context of things but it is everyone for themselves.
At that age is expect to be in failing health. Me I'm 60 and in failing health. 😅
My husband is now with his 93 year old mother and has been there for almost three months now. I am here alone seven hours away. It’s hard but I’m willing to do this to support him. He has a brother and sister that t live near to their mother but they really don’t help. She cannot be alone and they don’t volunteer their time.
Maybe they have cause 😢
I'm an Occupational therapist. The apparent lack resources is shameful. Don't get sick.
Hilfe....DEUTSCHLAND.......hilfeeee
What I've noticed time and time again is that people in the higher net worth arena and can afford the lawyer set up trusts to protect their assets and the poorer people lose it all and the heirs are left with nothing
Lawyers laugh to the bank and casually forget to inform of Medicaid Asset protection because you won't qualify for Medicaid due to income or assets depending on State laws that are not available to you the consumer of trusts and assets IRA that you will drain to cover your costs speeding your way to Medicaid quickly after you lost every last dime Lawyers on the golf ⛳️ course tee off Say HI to your congressman
In WA state it can be $6000 to $10,000 a month for private pay community long term care such as adult family home or assisted living. Insurance isn't paying for that. It is a shame.
thank you for this much needed expose. I was caregiver to my mother for 17 years at various capacities. First just living with her to finally 24 hour care with part time help. At one point I could no longer work and financially ended up spending 1/2 of my retirement savings. I know our country's failings both from this experience as well as from being a nurse for over 30 years. In 2015 there was a glimmer of hope as one
person did understand and made it a campaign promise, but unfortunately lost the presidency in 2016. Whatever your political bent, this will eventually and greatly affect you and yours.
Tax the rich. Plug corporate tax loopholes. Reduce the military budget. Help the sick and their caregivers. Help the poor and middle class. Repeal Citizen's United which floods Congress with bought and paid for lawmakers. We have a wealth crisis!#!#
YES BRAAVO EXCELLENT
Well that didn’t help my depression and dread of the future since I have no one to take care of me.
This is such an important topic. Many seniors are facing this. We are seniors now but fairly young seniors. However, staring down this kind of stuff is frightening to us since we have no children. But even people with adult children to help them still have their backs against the wall in regards to their parents for the reasons you outline.
While trying to get Medicaid, I read an article in AARP regarding who can get Medicaid easily---the very rich and the very poor but not the middle class. The very poor have debt and no real estate and few assets. The very rich have lawyers who can play down their assets which they do to avoid taxes. The middle class get screwed.
Had to drop the long term care insurance because the premiums became too expensive. My neighbors have sold their houses to afford care. Rather than turn my life savings over to the care facilities; I plan to commit a crime and go to prison where I can get food and a place to sleep. I will then turn my house over to my children.
When my grandmother needed round the clock care after a serious surgery cut cost $4000 per WEEK. Once she moved to assisted living, we paid $65,000-70,000 per year for her dementia care. I don’t have those type of resources, I will have to go without care, at this point.
This is extremely sad. Most of us have family we love and want to care for, but the incredible stress of the reality is enough to kill US. Just so sad.
We were offered a insurance option for long care at my work, the problem is, the premiums were more than my pay!
Only in America, and it thinks it is the best country, disgraceful
Hire a vetted private caregiver who really cares, like me. I have become part of the families I care for.
At the place my mom stays at it costs 300 dollars a day out of pocket!! That’s 108 thousand dollars a year!
This is a topic I have been thinking about for my own care as I age. I’m closing in on 80 and I live alone. I have some savings, but they would be quickly depleted if I were to lose my ability to take care of myself. I am considering buying into a continuing care retirement community (CCRC) which guarantees I will have supportive care as needed for as long as I live, even if I run out of money. This kind of thing isn’t a society wide solution to aging care, but for individuals who can afford the initial buy-in, it seems to present a very promising path for planning for the day we can no longer live independently.
We decided not to do a CCRC for my mom because of the buy-in cost. We didn’t understand the benefits. I’m sure there are downsides, but from the outside looking in, it seems like a good solution. We’ve had to find a new facility on an emergency basis when mom falls outside her current facility’s care. Right now mom’s in rehab from a fall and I’m not sure she can go back to her assisted living facility, so we’ll have to find a new place. In a CCRC, they have multi-levels of care, so you stay in the same place, but move through their system. Just be sure the advanced levels of care are run as well as the independent living area. Look at sq footage in memory care and particularly staff to patient ratios.
@@kristinb5121 Thanks for those suggestions. I am fortunate to have a CCRC nearby that is quite affordable, yet very attractive. It’s a non-profit, church related facility and seems so welcoming and well run (though I’m not of their religious persuasion). The buy-in will be easily covered with funds from selling my current home. My own mother is 102 and living in 55+ apartment, with frequent help from a relative, but she would’ve benefited so much from being in a CCRC. She falls frequently and I’m afraid one of these falls could be her last.
In a nutshell this is America today.. Over 50 disjointed disconnected inconsistent quality health systems. Endless conflicting regulatory agencies. Entire system infested with equipment manufacturers, pharma, construction companies each taking advantage of our lousy old cranky legal system. High Princes of hospitals many "non-profit" paid obscene salaries and benefits while the folks that do the work are seriously under compensated. The system charged with providing healthcare for all 333 million of us 100% focused on profits not patients. Simultaneously US operates two huge systems just for our military. This fact alone further evidence of our out of control military industrial complex and it's owners operators the corporate Warfare Queens who never lose a contract. When you're spending $900 billion in visible spending and similar amount in dark money on endless wars there's little money left for the welfare of your citizens. Healthcare is intertwined with many of the horrible situations growing across the country. Lastly the party of greed, death, inhumane cruel policies sees anyone not wealthy enough to pay for this Rube Goldberg system as an American version of India's untouchables. It cannot continue....
Long-term care insurance is impossible to afford.
Today we received our upwardly revised LTC premium notice for 2024. My spouse (94 Y/O) and I (soon to be 87) will pay almost $12,000/year for our policy. When we bought it 25 years ago, we thought we were being proactive in preparing for our old age. We have a lot invested in our policy, but I'm not sure how much longer we can afford to keep it if the premiums continue to increase. Neither of us expected (or wanted) to live as long as we have. But here we are. So far, we have not needed care, but the system definitely is NOT designed to favor ordinary Americans when/if they get old.
We will never fully address this issue if we avoid discussing the general trend of privatization of our healthcare system. And specifically, how the lobbying and political actions of the nursing home sector influences the current crisis and stalls progress on offering better safety nets for our elderly.
I agree with you. I also would like to add that we must take responsibility and plan. Most people in the US don't have sufficient savings, let alone look into purchasing long-term care insurance. In the US, we are very much attached to our "freedom" and independence. With freedom and independence comes responsibility.
I agree this is a major issue. As they stated, nursing homes,agencies that provide help are having difficulty finding people to work. Low pay, difficult patients and just plain hard work is not appealing to most people. You can have all the programs available, but without a workforce it will do no good.
Interesting that the aged senators and representatives lack the political will to pass legislation supporting long term care for families. They receive excellent health care. Is long term health care one of their benefits? They say they support families but do they?
They have taken millions of dollars from special interest groups and their bank accounts runneth over. Why would they care for the American people who put them in office? Should be term limits, and why are they millionaire while serving the people? They are not serving the American people.
Home care worker here. Good luck finding us to help you, as many of us earn low wages (sometimes Walmart actually pays better), have no benefits/insurance/PTO, and many depend on government programs just to survive-and that only adds to the problems that are excellently detailed here.
thank you for your service
When I started interviews after I came out of school, I was stunned to figure out that people working on the backside at the race track would still be making more than me in a clinic or hopt. That is where I came from & after 2 yrs on the interview merry-go-round where I returned.
A long life is expensive and the cost of elder care is outrageous! I would rather live a good life,not a long life. Couldn’t afford it anyway!
Even long term care insurance is struggling to have resources needed by elderly. It should be part of healthcare insurance for everyone
LT care insurance only covers a small fraction of nursing home care and may not cover home aides at all.
@@mimirows indeed. I’m fortunate I bought mine early on & it comes with better coverage, but none cover everything.
We are looking at doing the end scene of Soylent Green. Our politicians and their bribing friends would prefer that.
When we begin to understand the corporates are frisking American citizens of our wealth from birth to death… we begin to understand how oppressively dystopian this system is. We don’t have to live this way. If we all stop working… protest peacefully on the steps of OUR government and demand term limits, ban lobbyists, audit all elected officials and judges.
My mom used every penny of her savings for her care at a nursing facility. Once her savings was depleted, she (I) signed her up for medicaid.
I'm so relieved my mom was in a nursing facility pre covid. My heart was broken for everyone who was in a nursing facility at that time. My mom died in 2009, and it was a devastating time for everyone. I couldn't imagine the heartache of being locked out to be with a parent.
I'm 64 ..not old..not young anymore. I hope whatever happens in life, my husband & I do not live to be a burden to our kids. Nobody wants to linger if their life has no meaning.
I also hope that what little we have in material value goes to our kids and not to subpar care in a nursing facility. I hope to die before I have to die in a hospital or nursing facility. I love my life & hope many more years of living independently.
Get all assets out of your name asap so you too can sign up for medicaid.. it's the only way
Richtig
I lost my entire 401k, including $30k in taxes and penalties, my entire savings and had to give half the profits of my house when sold to Medicaid because my mother had “life-use” of my house. It was hers, but she signed it to me years ago and she wasn’t even living here, so this wouldn’t happen, but it did. She’s getting good care now in a nursing home, but I have nowhere to live and no future for myself. I have no kids to help me. I would do it again to help her, but no idea what I’m going to do.
I have studied genealogy, reviewing records since the 18th century, and most of my family members lived beyond their useful working years. It's fair to assume that their experience was similar to that of far older generations despite our lack of documents.
I am struck by the modern passion to make our parents/grandparents live somewhere other than with us. That didn't begin until politicians passed laws that make it financially possible (albeit difficult) to do so (Social Security and Medicare). Before the 1930s, everyone who lived long enough to do so took up housing with one of their children. While some simply can't do that, they are the minority. Most people can, but it has become 'unheard of' or something of which to be embarrassed. So now we have news reports on the "terrible (new?) problem" of being unable to afford the costs of old age.
Elders have more to contribute to the raising of children and wisdom for their adult kids. Most families miss out on that now, and it's remarkable that living as humans did for 79,920 of their 80,000 year history has become 'strange'.
Many of us have no children. Then what happens?
I absolutely dread getting elderly. Im in my 50s now and have no family or children. Its a shame when someone like me has to decide about suicide at a certain age rather than live in one of the united states disgusting filthy nursing homes. It is a thought that haunts me the older i get.
Exactly my thoughts. I'm 65, and stress has put me in imperfect health, chronic variety. I need to measure my money, house taxes and expenses, and how long I can make a run on a very tiny SS income. (self employed entire low earning career)
I lost both my parents back to back last year. I struggled to get them services especially my dad who had severe dementia. My mom died from all the stress when my dad went into a nursing home. It was traumatic because I found her at home as we were going to see dad. He died 4 months later and was treated horrible in nursing care. Unfortunately and thankfully he passed away before cost became astronomical. I feel that the only solution is to build communities where we can take care of each other. Extended family and communal living have to happen. We can't rely on the government or our personal investments.
I'm 50, receive less than $12,500/yr SSDI, and was hit by a car in my wheelchair, in a crosswalk, into my 4th month wait-listed for long-term care at home. No broken bones, but my case "care" nurse blamed me for being out. Clearly if there's a wait-list for care, I have to BE OUT to care for myself. Who are these horrible people?! I quit long-term care 6 wks later. HUD is now helping to get my landlord to make the subsidized apartment I've lived in for 10 years, 2.5 in a wc, wc accessible. Accessible housing would make a big difference in premature institutionalization.
One of the few books I've saved after downsizing is Final Exit. The system is set up to wipe out assets, just like the 08 mortgage crisis was all planned. The states with the least amount of help also won't pass death with dignity laws to allow someone to choose to end their suffering legally. It's all about the $.
It's worse for the elderly but also affects everyone who has a job without benefits. My son has a decent job and he has colitis. He doesn't qualify for state help and can't afford to take time off. We all know emotional health is tied to overall well being.
We need to start paying our caregivers more. CNAs can’t make a living wage. It’s the same for child day care workers. Many of them pay for bachelor degrees in child development. Some are hired as private nannies for the very wealthy. Some end up working in other industries. We don’t value caregivers’ work in the US. 😕
Agreed. What I don’t understand is this is that care so expensive, yet the workers make peanuts. Where’s all the money going?
Corporations. Most facilities are not privately owned anymore.