Although taking care of elderly parents and relatives is a task that commonly falls to Baby Boomers, almost a quarter of all adults caring for seniors are Millennials between the ages of 18 and 34, according to research by the AARP Policy Institute and the National Alliance for Caregiving and reported by Kaiser Health News.
According to AARP, about 40 million Americans considered themselves a caregiver in 2013, and the work they perform is estimated at $470 billion. Caregivers routinely face significant financial and emotional stress, a 2015 AARP report notes.
In Connecticut, about 459,000 caregivers, about 12.8% of the state’s population, contributed 427 million care hours in 2013, according to the 2015 AARP report. This is just slightly higher than the national average of 12.7%. The report estimates the economic value of this caregiving at $5.9 billion.
Mississippi has the highest concentration of caregivers, with 16.8% of the population caring for an elder. North Dakota, in contrast, has the lowest concentration at 8.6%.
