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Jhelm24 Asked March 2018

Can I get paid for family caregiving?

I take care of my disabled father. He is on in-home dialasys. Has heart and blood pressure problems. And has had a stroke. I take care of him 24 /7. Wanting to know if I can get paid as a care giver. He has SSI

AgingCareCM Mar 2018
The most common question in the AgingCare Caregiver Forum is “How can I get paid to care for a family member?”

The vast majority of family caregivers do not get paid for the provision of care.

However, a loved one may use out-of-pocket retirement savings for this purpose. If a family member has enough funds to privately pay from savings, it is important to formally complete a Personal Care Agreement. Prior to receiving any payment, this document should be prepared to outline the services provided as well as the payment to be received. A personal care agreement can not be created retroactively to pay for past care.

The Caregiver Forum is a great place to come for answers. Additionally, I’d like to offer the following AgingCare articles as reference points:

To understand the purpose of and create a formal agreement between family members, please refer to:

https://www.agingcare.com/articles/personal-care-agreements-compensate-family-caregivers-181562.htm

It is important to note that most outside sources of pay will only pay for medically based home health care provided by an authorized agency. For a general overview regarding paying for care, please refer to:

https://www.agingcare.com/articles/paying-for-home-care-155405.htm

And finally, if you would like further information regarding the decision to hire a home care company that fits your needs and your budget, please refer to:

https://www.agingcare.com/articles/how-to-select-a-home-care-company-230598.htm

If you are new to caregiving you will likely have future questions. There are many answers from experienced caregivers here. Don’t hesitate to come back and ask.

freqflyer Mar 2018
jhelm, the vast majority of grown children who are caregivers to their parents do not get paid.... unless the parent can afford to pay them from their own retirement fund.

Another option is to have your Dad apply and be accepted by Medicaid [which is different than Medicare]. Depending on your State Medicaid programs, the State may have a program where you could be paid, but note the pay would be very minimal and it would not be 24/7, maybe a few hours per day.

Now if you need to finance your own retirement/future by going back to work, Dad could go into a skilled nursing facility using Medicaid. Medicaid would pay for room, board and care.

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