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CMCarter Asked March 2017

What about the elderly?

There are thousands of us taking care of someone, and yet I don't hear anything on the news about helping them. They pay SS Tax on SS, every raise goes to rising health care, which is 200 or so out of SS check, and for full coverage another 300 per month. They worked their whole lives, they put into the American Economy, and Medicare doesn't even give them a wheelchair when released from rehab. I get no help from the government, yet a woman with a kid in school gets free education, 2500 in food stamps (which is ridiculous), lives with/off their parents, and never worked a day in their life. Equality, Nope. Free healthcare for foreigners, welfare, food stamps. Elderly...nothing. We care givers get support, but help that is not going to happen unless we speak up. We are no different then those mom's taking care of a child, except it doesn't get easier with age, it gets harder. I want to work, can't afford to. I get a pension (early), but I want to be out there with everyone else. Cost a whole paycheck for someone to care for him. No healthcare help from government, because he has Social Security. No time out, no time off, and the world wants me to worry about someone who's never worked a day in their life, someone that is not American, or someone who lives with mom/dad and gets government help, and that might go away. Start Caring about our elderly, not what they can get for free on the backs of our elderly who worked for theirs. We need help, not just support, and I say that because my husband served in the cold war, he worked until the stroke, and for two years I have gone everywhere for help on getting just a day off. Nothing. My daughter, who's 30, lives with her dad who has two pension and Social Security, her son goes to school all day, she gets food stamps and the tax payers have paid for college and books for her for the last 9 years.

AliBoBali Mar 2017
I get the point very much, but don't be "angry" with society for watching out for the basic welfare of the future by taking care of kids whose parents don't have the means to do so, please. The food stamp rate in U.S. is $3 per day and that amount is lessened with ANY income that an applicant brings in. The most an unemployed mother and her child would get in a year is basically $180 per month x 12 months. That's not $2,500 per year. I get your point. It's a good one. We don't have to choose the well being of children OR elders. The care of vulnerable people in society should be something that "Developed Nations" do...  and we haven't even touched on the non-care of the mentally ill in American society, most of whom end up incarcerated in the modern version of being "institutionalized"... 

It's my bedtime.

Hang in there, all. (((hugs)))

KayKay13 Mar 2017
I agree. Elderly no where get what the need or deserve. My Grandma S.S only pays for the house bills and her insurance. Doc, meds, food, etc we need help from various family members to help pay. We need around 700$ more to cover everything, and money is still ridiculously tight. How do they expect them to live? Let alone if someone needs to be with them 24/7 (like my Grandma), and their caregiver can't get a job?

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freqflyer Mar 2017
It's time to stress to everyone, young and almost ready to retire to save big time for those "rainy days", believe me there can be a lot of storms out there when one is older.

It is so sad seeing so many people on the forums who left their jobs and used up all their savings to help their parent(s)... thus continuing the saga with their own children.

I learned to start saving when I was 5 years old and got my first bank book. So every $1 and $5 I got for birthdays, and holidays went into that bank book. By the time the 1980's came around, interest rates on savings accounts were 12% and higher.... compared to the .02% or whatever silly amount it is today.

My parents were the children of the Great Depression, so they viewed first hand what could happen. My parents were very frugal and they made a game out of it, and it sure paid off when they were in their 80's and into their 90's. It was MAJOR sticker shock to see how much it cost for professional at-home caregivers... the cost of Assisted Living... and the high cost of long-term-care.

My local newspaper, The Washington Post, every couple of weeks has articles about aging care. Of course, those who read such articles are already caregivers.... not future caregivers. I know in the past I never paid attention to such articles because I never envisioned my parents getting old.

geevesnc Mar 2017
CMcarter- I am concerned as you are. Society needs to address the fact that our population is aging and more and more people are having to care for those who cannot care for themseslves. I believe the U.S. is a bit behind and will be sorry in about 10-15 years because we will have a huge retired poplution and people starving because they were forced to stop working to take care of loved ones.

Veronica91 Mar 2017
CMCarter, thanks for your observations. We are all hurting. I have never seen anyone on this forum say they were rich enough to afford all the help they need.
Last year we were over $800 a month out of pocket expenses for healthcare and that does not include the education fromm SS for part B.
Drug prices for a start are killing everyone and it's high time the manufacturers were reined in but no one dares do anything about it because the drug companies make big political contributions (bribes) to both parties.
Well no more politics or the admins will get me.

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