More than 38 million Americans provide unpaid caregiving to seniors and other loved ones, spending an average of more than $7,000 a year on out-of-pocket costs, according to AARP. In 2021, the value of that care topped $600 billion, an increase of $130 billion from 2019. But because caregiving is often physically and mentally exhausting — particularly when you’re caring for elderly parents — many caregivers fail to focus on their own finances.
Amy Goyer, caregiving expert for AARP, had to quit her full-time job to care for her mother, who died in 2013, and her father, who died in 2018. Goyer eventually had to file for bankruptcy to pay off the debts she incurred while caring for her parents, whose income made them ineligible for the Medicaid public health-insurance program.
