Florida’s 2.67M Family Caregivers Provided $29.7B in Free Care in 2013

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Family caregivers nationwide provided more than 37 billion hours of care to their parents, spouses, partners and loved ones in 2013, worth an estimated $470 billion, a report released today by the  AARP Public Policy Institute states.

Out of Florida’s 19 million residents, 2.67 million caregivers provided 2.49 billion hours of care to adults with limited capacity to successfully handle with activities for daily living, according to the report. The economic value is $11.93 per hour, which totals $29.7 billion in free care.

“Families across the country are caring for older or disabled loved ones in a host of ways, and were it not for them, many older Americans would be in deep distress. Those family caregivers act out of love and gratitude, but juggling caregiving with all of the other necessities of family life takes an emotional and financial toll,” said AARP Florida State Director Jeff Johnson.

AARP Public Policy’s Valuing the Invaluable biennial report chronicles the contributions family caregivers make when they care after loved ones.

In 2009, the nationwide unpaid contributions were valued at $450 billion, the report states. Florida at that time had 2.78 million caregivers providing $29 billion in unpaid care.

Underscoring the importance of the billions of hours of unpaid contributions by family members across the United States, AARP endorses the Recognize, Assist, Include, Support, and Engage (RAISE) Family Caregivers Act, introduced today by U.S. Reps. Kathy Castor (D-FL) and Gregg Harper (R-MS) in U.S. House.  The bill would require the development of a national strategy to support family caregivers.  The Senate bill, S. 1719, was introduced last week by U.S. Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI.)

“Given the fast growing elder population in Florida, it is very encouraging to see Congresswoman Castor and her colleagues taking the lead in introducing bipartisan, bicameral legislation to identify how government, the private sector, public interest groups and individuals can best support family caregivers” Johnson said.