Sept 21 -- 1) The 2022 National Strategy to Support Family Caregivers was created to support family caregivers of all ages, from youth to grandparents, and regardless of where they live or what caregiving looks like for them and their loved ones.
The strategy was developed jointly by the advisory councils created by the RAISE Family Caregiving Act and the Supporting Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Act, with extensive input from the public, including family caregivers and the people they support. It will be updated in response to public comments and will evolve with the caregiving landscape.
The strategy will be open for public comment for 60 days beginning on October 1.
https://acl.gov/CaregiverStrategy
2) (press release) HHS Delivers First National Strategy to Support Family Caregivers
Today the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, through its Administration for Community Living, released the 2022 National Strategy to Support Family Caregivers. It highlights nearly 350 actions the federal government will take to support family caregivers in the coming year and more than 150 actions that can be adopted at other levels of government and across the private sector to build a system to support family caregivers. Family caregivers – who provide the overwhelming majority of long-term care in the United States– currently lack resources to maintain their health, wellbeing, and financial security while providing crucial support for others.
The strategy was developed jointly by the advisory councils established by the Recognize, Assist, Include, Support, and Engage (RAISE) Family Caregivers Act and the Supporting Grandparents Raising Grandchildren (SGRG) Act, with extensive input from family caregivers, the people they support and other stakeholders. The Administration for Community Living leads implementation of the RAISE and SGRG Acts and facilitates the work of the two advisory councils.
Each year, around 53 million people provide a broad range of assistance to support the health, quality of life and independence of a person close to them who needs assistance as they age or due to a disability or chronic health condition. Another 2.7 million grandparent caregivers – and an unknown number of other relative caregivers – open their arms and homes each year to millions of children who cannot remain with their parents. Millions of older adults and people with disabilities would not be able to live in their communities without this essential support – and replacing it with paid services would cost an estimated $470 billion each year.
While family caregiving is rewarding, it can be challenging, and when caregivers do not have the support they need, their health, wellbeing and quality of life often suffer. Their financial future can also be put at risk; lost income due to family caregiving is estimated at $522 billion each year. When the challenges become overwhelming and family caregivers no longer can provide support, the people they care for often are left with no choices except moving to nursing homes and other institutions or to foster care – the cost of which is typically borne by taxpayers.
The strategy represents the first time a broad cross-section of the federal government has collaborated with the private sector on a response to the longstanding national need for a comprehensive system of family caregiver support. It is the product of comprehensive analysis and input from 15 federal agencies and more than 150 organizations representing a range of stakeholders from across the nation. It builds upon the initial reports delivered to Congress in 2021 by the RAISE Family Caregiving Advisory Council and the SGRG Advisory Council.
The strategy will be updated every two years. The updates will be based on public input, as well as the continued work of the advisory councils and communities, states and tribes, and federal agencies that are developing, implementing and adapting policies and programs to support family caregivers.
The 2022 National Strategy to Support Family Caregivers was delivered to the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, the U.S. House Committee on Education and Labor, and to the State agencies responsible for carrying out family caregiver programs. The strategy will be updated every two years, as required by the Recognize, Assist, Include, Support, and Engage (RAISE) Family Caregivers Act of 2017 (Public Law 115-119).
https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2022/09/21/hhs-delivers-first-national-strategy-support-family-caregivers.html