AARP Maine Speaks Up at the State House in Favor of Paid Family Medical Leave

**New opportunity!

• Join our Tele-town Hall on 3/29 at 11AM: What is Paid Family and Medical Leave and why does Maine need it? Join a conversation with Sen. Daughtry and Rep. Cloutier to learn and ask questions about current proposals to create a Paid Leave Program in Maine. Register here.

The following remarks were delivered by AARP Maine Volunteer State President, Carl Bucciantini, at the Maine State House News Conference on February 7, 2023

Greetings, my name is Carl Bucciantini, and I am the Volunteer State President for AARP Maine. For those of you who may not be familiar, AARP is the nation’s largest nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering Americans 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. In Maine alone, we have 200,000 members.

I would like to take a few moments to share with you the unquestionable importance of Maine’s 181,000 unpaid family caregivers.

Many Mainers are or have been family caregivers, or they will be in the future. A family caregiver provides support to an older adult, a sibling, a spouse, child or another loved one. They may provide complex care such as administering injections or providing support to someone who uses a feeding tube. Other caregivers may help with everyday activities such as delivering groceries, preparing meals, or driving someone to a medical appointment.  No matter who they care for or what they offer in their role as a caregiver, we know they are a vital part of Maine, and an essential part of our long-term care system. They are also, unfortunately, often unrecognized. They take on expenses and experience great stress in their efforts to provide care for their loved one. As we have heard many caregivers say, “It’s what you do for the people you love.”

At AARP Maine, we recognize these important Mainers for all their work, and we are here today to say that we can, and must, do a better job supporting them. For many family caregivers in our state, a paid family medical leave program would be lifeline.

Maine’s family caregivers provide critical support and often do so while juggling a full or part-job. The stress of balancing both can be daunting. Lack of workplace support can even result in individuals quitting their jobs or experiencing negative health outcomes.  Maine family caregivers need a paid family medical leave program and they need it now.

Access to paid family leave is vital for caregivers like Melissa from Bangor who quit her job in 2021 to be a full-time caregiver for her mother-in-law who had Alzheimer’s. In her own words Melissa shared:

 “I had every intention of continuing to work, but soon learned it was overwhelming to manage both.  My job was coming back strong after the pandemic and was going to require 150% of my energy.  I felt like my home life was also now going to require 150% of my energy and I had about 50% left to give anyone.”

We cannot continue to ask Maine’s family caregivers to give 200% of themselves while balancing work and caregiving. This is why Maine must initiate a paid family medical leave program without delay.

Maine’s nearly 181,000 family caregivers have been providing care for years without complaint. We have an opportunity to create a program that works for Maine and for Maine families. Caring for mom or dad or another loved one can be expensive, stressful, and isolating, and it should not mean losing your pay or even your job. Across Maine, 181,000 family caregivers help older parents, spouses or other loved ones live independently at home, where they want to be. It is time to support them through the creation of a Paid Family Medical Leave Program.

To share your own caregiver story or to get involved in our efforts, please send an email to me@aarp.org.