Lt. Governor Henry McMaster Named an AARP “Capitol Caregiver”

To recognize his leadership and support of older South Carolinians, caregivers and their families, AARP named Lt. Governor Henry McMaster as a 2015 “Capitol Caregiver.” He joins a bipartisan group of state legislators, lieutenant governors, and governors from 25 states. These elected officials have advanced policies to help family caregivers who are making it possible for older adults to live independently at home—where they want to be. Specifically, Lt. Governor McMaster worked to secure funding for respite care vouchers, additional dollars for home and community based services, and help for vulnerable adults.
“AARP SC thanks Lt. Governor McMaster for working to secure $1 million in respite care vouchers in 2015 on behalf of South Carolina’s 700,000 caregivers,” says Teresa Arnold, state director of AARP, which serves more than 600,000 members age 50 and older in South Carolina. “He provided integral leadership to make the huge responsibilities of family caregivers in South Carolina a little bit easier.”
More than 700,000 South Carolinians provide unpaid care for their older parents, spouses, and other loved ones—a contribution valued at about $7 billion annually. They help with bathing and dressing, meal preparation, managing finances, transportation, grocery shopping and more. Today, many family caregivers even perform medical tasks like wound care, injections, and complex medication management.
“Family caregivers are the back bone of our South Carolina’s care system and they need our support,” says Arnold.” AARP recognized Lt. Governor McMaster during the association’s annual State House day and presented him with his framed award.
“This is a great first step to providing a help for family caregivers,” says Arnold. “AARP will continue to work for South Carolina’s family caregivers and their loved ones in 2016: for more support, help at home, workplace flexibility, training, financial protection and more.