Majority of Kansans 45 and Older Support the CARE Act

AARP Kansas Director Maren Turner, along with several AARP volunteers, briefed the Kansas House Committee on Children and Seniors on the CARE Act on Tuesday, January 27, 2015.  The Act, which is contained in House Bill 2058, supports Kansas caregivers by ensuring that hospitals record the name of the patient's caregiver when the patient enters the hospital, the caregiver is informed when the patient is discharged from the hospital, and the caregiver is provided instructions on how to take care of the patient when the patient leaves the hospital.

An AARP survey (November 2014) of registered voters in Kansas age 45 and older, revealed that 95% of Kansans support proposals to require hospitals to engage with family caregivers.  More than 75% said they believe that being cared for at home with caregiver assistance is the ideal situation when basic tasks of life become more difficult due to aging or illness. 

AARP Kansas is urging Kansas legislators to vote for House Bill 2058 which will support the more than 605,000 caregivers in Kansas who may be called on to perform very demanding caregiving tasks once the patient is released from the hospital.  Patients who don't receive proper medical care at home, may need to be re-admitted to the hospital.  This is detrimental to the patient's health and costly for hospitals.

Kansas currently ranks 35th in support of caregivers.  House Bill 2058 would help provide support that caregivers need.

If you are a caregiver and would like to share your caregiving story, go to iheartcaregivers.org.