57 Percent of Family Caregivers Provide Financial Support to Loved Ones Despite Limited Resources, According to New Survey

BALTIMORE - (BUSINESS WIRE) - Seventy-five percent of people caring for Medicare beneficiaries with complex health care needs have an annual income of less than $25,000, yet a majority provide financial support to their loved one, according to a new survey by Care Improvement Plus and the National Family Caregivers Association. Financial worries, diabetes care and care coordination are among the greatest challenges facing "higher-burden" caregivers - those responsible for a wider range of activities associated with their loved one's care over a prolonged period of time.

The survey, "A Picture of Higher-Burden Caregiving" , focuses on people caring for Medicare beneficiaries with complex health care needs, and underscores the growing challenges caregivers face as the nation's Medicare population grows.

300 caregivers of individuals enrolled in Care Improvement Plus' Medicare Advantage Special Needs Plan across five states (Arkansas, Georgia, Missouri, South Carolina and Texas) participated in the survey. The survey results revealed that individuals caring for Medicare beneficiaries with complex health care needs fall under this emerging category of higher-burden caregivers:

• 70 percent of caregivers surveyed serve as the sole or primary caregiver for their loved one;
• 66 percent have been caring for their loved one for five years or more;
• nearly three in four caregivers provide support with Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADLs) such as transportation, nutritional or physical support, and coordination of care;
• more than half (56 percent) of caregivers live at the same residence;
• 94 percent live within 25 miles of their loved one.