The daily struggles of paid caregivers trying to make ends meet
Caregivers who are paid privately or through state funds say they're working around the clock, but are barely earning enough to get by. Lisa Ling has more.
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We waste money bailing out billion-dollar corporations but can't pay health care workers a decent wage. Worse, our country has ALWAYS been obsessed with youth and disrespectful and dismissive of the elderly.
And now ilegal emigrants 😢??
Well said 👏👏👏👏👏
Thanks for saying that out loud. I was shocked to see that pet sitters are getting paid more than elder caretakers 😔 This society also exploits anyone with a shred of compassion.
@@Here4TheHeckOfItWell said! Greed has consumed the extreme wealthy, and the working and middle class is a faint memory. We are in a rapid decline, and I don't think we will recover! Sad to witness! Blessings to everyone!
This is America
But we have enough to send hundreds of billions overseas!!
That’s the sad part!
We have enough to use 70% of the budget for weapons and military stuff.
@@carloszentenoexactly.
Ukrainian in Chicago....this is horrific....my mother suffered and I just don't understand our money going for wars we cannot win. Ukraine could never beat Russia, it is a proxy war. I miss my mom and she left on her own terms so young. War, she be dead knowing Ukraine is in a proxy war and billions wasted as 500,000 dead Ukrainian....and my mom was born during the Holocaust in Gernamy.
💯
They don't pay care workers, aides, assistants, don't get paid enough money! They work so hard!
Being a caretaker is very hard. You sacrifice your own needs and feelings in order to help a loved one. You rarely have time for yourself.
Very true. I am currently living in the moment solely.
Very true, I’ve taken care of my Aunt for the past 4 years until she passed away in January 12th of this year. I did everything for her, she solely dependent upon me. And no you don’t have time for yourself nor time for anything but taking care of them. I’m here in Florida, I had a full time job until 2020 when Covid-19 hit and I was laid off and the company closed down indefinitely. I got up and worked my job and came home and took care of my Aunt and at times I had to take off from work to take her back and forth to the hospital also going to her doctors appointments with no help. It’s very sad that the government doesn’t care what happens with the elderly or the caregivers.
You're Right to each his own I cannot do it I got to live my life for myself
So true..I'm helping to care for my mom..its rough..😩
We don't respect or care for the senior citizens.
until we are the senior citizens
No and we should listen and honor.
And we do not value the people doing this work
@@nehemiahstewartFacts
Or people with disabilities
This woman is an absolute angel Mile is not even a biological family member and she has stepped in to care for him ! God is truly going to bless her. Caretakers should get paid for taking care of loved ones! There is little to resources and help for the elderly and care takers
When you don't have kids or your kids are estranged.
But so many are not her and use the system or the person. 😅
I have been a care provider for 5 years now. Been with my client for 4 years and when her husband passed away 3 years ago yesterday I promised him that I would take care of her and not let her go to a nursing home. Of all the providers she's had none were as reliable as I am. I live 30 miles away, my car is down and I'm still at work on time every day.
Amen. She's an Angel. ❤🎉
Abbott in Texas only pays care givers 11$ an hour...you cant feed a dog on this. Shameful!!
Wow!
That is my word of late. Shameful.
Wow!!! I thought Texas paid better than that. Since everyone claims Texas is where you make all the money.
It’s the nursing home business that pays. Not ABBOTT. THATS NOT TRUE. NURSING HOME owners should be in jail. It’s a business to them.
@@mandybradley3079 its called ihhs in home health services and it is his fault he can raise the rates. it's government funded
America should be ashame! These folks built our country😢😢
❤
Amen
As a caregiver of a disabled daughter I know what she's going through. God bless this woman.
God bless u
I very much appreciate Lisa Ling's series on this topic and her compassion for the families and in-home workers.
Lisa is the best there is❤
All I can say is, LORD thank You for people like her. This government seems to know no shame. Monies spent in the wrong areas. ☝🏼👤🙏🏼
That lady is an angel and God sent!
Actually, in Texas, A LOT of places only pay $8-$9 an hour. As big as Texas is, to be at the bottom of the list in caregiver pay is absolutely SICKENING smh!!!!
I worked doing that for a lady that just passed $15 an hour, the family never visited , but they always had something to say when they called. The family members should pay the care giver , not only the government
Thank you Lisa Ling for shining a light on this nation wide problem. We need to come up with creative solutions on how to support caregivers, funding is definitely needed first and foremost.
She is right. She does her job with love.
We paid &6500.00 a month for my mothers living in a a nursing facility. These people do heroes work. Pay them what they deserve . NOW. Don't rob them of their humanity.
Our country should be ashamed.
This series has been so, so enlightening. I hope law makers take notice.
I hope society notices.
I wish our Government would too but I don’t think it will. When my Republican friends complained about the budget recently, I brought up this very topic, and they said ‘there just isn’t enough money for everything’.
I hope VOTERS take notice and vote for a President who won’t give majority of our tax money to illegals and actually use it to provide for the citizen who have been living here and need help like these fine people.
They won’t. They don’t care
@@onileemusic3444 Your comment is so thoughtless. If you think that illegal immigrants are getting free money and this is what is causing these systems that have been broken for years or never put in place, then your anger and blame is pointed at the wrong people. You realize that for years we have known that the Baby Boomer population was reaching retirement age and we knew that our healthcare system would face a crisis. Heck, they used to say that there would be no more SS for millennials. We’ve never invested in the care for our elderly because people claim it’s socialism if we do place funds. Stop listening to the fear mongering that many politicians only know how to do to get reelected because they will always use illegal immigration as the reason why everything is wrong. And they’ll never work to fix the actual problem.
It's so disheartening that the government doesn't value these workers. We will all need this help
It starts at the state level. What are our state representatives doing for our elderly in our states? How are they handling taxes?
I did caretaker work. It’s especially hard when the patient has dementia. It’s heartbreaking. And the pay is horrible. In MS the normal pay is about 10-11.00. I was paid 13. It’s not enough
Yes! Mentally and physical exhausting, backbreaking work. America doesn’t treat its nurses, caretakers and elderly well.
Im a resident aid by day 9am 5pm, 11 hour, then in home care at night7p7a 11.25 hour one week on my night job I work 5 nights and the next week4 nights. I've been working my night job for 7years and my day job for almost a year. I do like caring for the elderly but the pay is just not good and thats why I'm working 2 jobs almost 100 hours weekly just to survive. I am thankful that I'm able to work.
My heart just breaks for caregivers I’m in tears . I wish I could advocate for them . This is disgusting that the caregivers are not paid well .. we need caregivers
Thank you Sabrina for the care you provide to Mike, the promise that you kept, the sacrifices you make, and for the strong, loyal, caring and loving woman you just are ❤
I remember being a caregiver for my father before he passed away 4 years ago. It was tough. I salute this lady and all who give care to our seniors and disabled. They are the unsung heroes.
I worked at a large senior living organization the average cost per month was around $5k per resident. The caregivers were paid sometimes as low as $15/$16 per hour requiring a state license as a CNA. Most of the caregivers worked 2-3 job to get by. For how hard they work and how much we need them, this pay is sickening.
AND, they literally spend more time with the patients than any doctors or nurses do.
I worked at a smaller care facility and yes monthly the care facility gets what seems like alot of money per client, but with that money the facility needs to pay off for the full care and operation (mortgage, property tax, health consultants, lvn, rn, doctors, staffs, their food 3 meals a day, utilities, other reoccuring costs to basically operate the business, there are also bed fees which run a couple thousand per bed, adult day care which is a big chunk of cost because that was like their daily school, their supplies for activties and stock items, furnitures when things break, repairs,etc! With all those expenses deducted, its not as much as you think left. So the government needs more increase so they can then say to increase the caretakers wage with benefits they can apply for.
@@tigerx22Thank you for the breakdown! This is very insightful.
@tigerx22 What is a bed fee? And why would it cost thousands per month? Adult day care? Provided by whom? Aides? The RNs who work at these facilities don't make that much either. And actual doctors come in to write prescriptions maybe once a week.
My mom passed away two weeks ago from Alzheimer’s and her caretaker was with our family until her last breath. She is now part of our family. She took care of our mom for over 8 years. We paid her for a month of work until she can get another case. We have to do better to help these caretakers get a descent wage for the wonderful job they do taking care of our loved ones. They are amazing.❤
There are a lot of rich people who could pay into this program. How many homes and boats does one need?
Amen! I thought the same thing… athletes, actors, musicians, business men and women, etc. making millions and billions. Aetna’s total net profit in 2023 was $6 billion!! It’s despicable… the neglect of the elderly and sick in our country, the richest country on the planet.
Sad to say, the rich don't 😪 want to help 😢 in that category because it doesn't bring them fame
💯
So true
I’m 66 and can’t make my bills most of the time because of pay
I find it perplexing why several wealthy nations, including Scandinavian countries, prioritize direct care workers and recognize them as integral components of their societal soft infrastructure, while the United States does not.
Are leaders care more about money.
Good question.
Pure greed and the rampant anti-socilaism propaganda employed to keep things in favor of the wealthy and powerful. This country has enough resources to set up a system like you mentioned.
I've worked in the senior care industry for more than 15 years and this is the sad reality. Most companies are choosing revenue over care. Caregivers ARE the industry! Yet they are the most overworked and the least paid. This has to change.
Caregivers should be paid more, the families of some of the ppl being cared for they don’t even care about their own family, put them in nursing homes and some never come back to visit them!!
Not just elderly care givers ALL disabled carers have this issue. I myself do both.
I am a 59 year old caregiver, it is very hard work, I really love working with the senior population but I can say it is HARD. It is not a respected job but we are so needed. I live in Washington state and there is a shortage of caregivers in Seattle . I just decided my 40 hour week which is actually 50 hours a week (commute time) is just too much, caregiver burnout is real. I’m giving up 8 hours a week so that my quality of life improves. I’m exhausted.
My family is dealing with this issue. My husband's uncle has a live in care provider. She is there 24 hours a day and gets free room & board. Even then she needs the weekend off. As a family we have all come together to be there for our uncle by coming in on the weekends & staying with him. He enjoys the change of pace & his care provider gets a break. Families need to pitch in too and not depend solely on care providers. They need breaks, too!
So true!! some family members are so selfish and fight over money! 😭🤮
@@naturalbeauty4734Oh you can best believe those same relatives will be at the funeral will their hands out looking for "their share".
People don’t get it. Health is wealth. Do not understand what sick is.
Yes they are under paid and so are CNA. But at the same time we have to be careful because some providers take advantage of elderly.
That why people need families that care and watch over there loved ones .
And CNA could get there liscnese snatched. Caregivers get ?
I agree. They do take advantage of these elderly
@@melodyocampo227not everyone has kids
Because not to pay the workers that put in the work due to a few bad apples taking advantage?
Sabrina is one of the unsung heroes in life. Mike is very fortunate to have her. Heartbreaking how little people are paid that do this work.
Caregivers are priceless. Sabrina is a highly valuable source of care, 24 hour care. Mike surely is blessed. I hope Congress addresses this issue of the aging of our high population of the "Baby Boomer" generation.
she's a true angel
😭😭😭😭This really hurt my heart. I have worked this job and I have purchased stuff for clients myself. I respect anyone that can do this job because it’s really underpaid 😩
We started taking care of my husbands parents 20 years ago - they passed away 15 years ago. Then we started taking care of my parents - they passed away 5 years ago. We were caring for a parent or two for 15 years. While we had kids and grandkids.
I do the same work she does and make less than that! Its shameful!
12.00
I understand... going through the same thing.. paid only 40 hours per week for a 24 hrs per day job I'm doing... it's the system not paying caretakers and pcas enough for the hard daily back breaking labor we're doing...
Only the bare minimum is what the systems are willing to pay.. and it's just not enough to get by... so glad there shedding light on this.
I use to do it most I made was 14 hour at 10 years experience but would be more if worked for a nursing home
I’m in North Carolina and I’m a healthcare worker and the elderly are kicking out 8000 every two weeks sometimes one week depending on the services they are also tapping into their nest egg, They’re charging $23 an hour to the client and paying $10-$14 an hour for the caregiver here in North Carolina overall, it’s a hot mess! and with some facilities, you don’t even get off with pay if the person is sick or in the hospital, you don’t get paid!
That's why I'm trying to start my own agency in ga need a year window to accept . medicare
Exactly! Once I seen an invoice on a previous clients dresser i was flabbergasted!
Insane how working at certain fast food places and retail stores pay more than this but it’s even more that $18 is supposed to be a blessing because most places pay bar far waaaaaay less smh
Caregivers should definitely be paid more! I worked in homecare, and the pay was real low, plus they dont pay mileage like they should.
Direct Care Worker here. This report is 💯 correct. Many of us depend on government programs to survive. One day a loved one of yours might have to be cared by one if us. What are you all going to do about this?
I was a caregiver full time but i had to find another career path because caregivers simply don't get paid enough. I absolutely loved being a caregiver and still do it part time. I always felt like we deserved 50 bucks a hour! God bless this lady ♥️
My Grandmother in Law lived with me and my husband for 14 years. She turns 90 this year and she was diagnosed with Parkinson's as well as congestive heart failure years ago. Needless to say she slowly deteriorated and it became harder and harder. As her mind deteriorated further she would scream for help all hours of the day and night but then wouldnt remember calling for help or even why she would have done that. On top of caring for her Im caring for my small child who was diagnosed with a chronic illness at a very young age. We are talking about a grandparent. Not a parent. I think there is a major generational failure where they don't want to take responsibility for their loved ones and that forces the younger generations to pick up that slack even if it means their ability to grow and provide for their family suffers.
God bless this Lady.
It is shameful! They should be paid more.
God bless caregivers. Its unfortunate that we as a nation forget we all grow older and will need assistance. Caregiving is a respectful job and the pay should reflect it.
We should all be terrified.
I'm a hospice worker and a caregiver. Our bodies break down with major injuries and were living in poverty. This doesn't stop my hard work and dedication to others!! I have desired to go to nursing school for years. However, the price tag is insurmountable, and I don't see a change coming. we are definitely the forgotten so sad
So true I take care of my mom 7 days week.
I had 2 Angels that helped me with my parents. Here in Texas pay like 9 something and less than 20 hours a week. So many have 2 clients a week.
The USA IRS needs to apply heavier taxes to the rich people and rich corporations, to provide more funds. It’s that simple.
But, they ARE the rich.
And, at the same time this is happening, lots of black women with decent-paying jobs are being targeted with discrimination and harassment - to force them to leave or to fire them. So, this means they can't make or retire with a decent amount of money to afford to help take care of their loved ones.
As the only "first world"(?) economy without 'universal healthcare' or 'paid maternal leave', one can't expect the U.S. to care a jot for the dying cheap labor force that helped build this nation! C'mon this is America!
Here in the U.S. we call them heroes so we don't have to pay them. It's empty appreciation like "Thank you for your service or thoughts and prayers". Much easier to call them heros than to compensate them fairly
I have cared for 3 family members, two being my parents for 12 years. I had to quit my job and there is NOTHING for family members who have to care for aging parents…24/7. It’s a shame!
$11 in Texas??!! Seriously??? Insane
May God bless this caring and loving woman . It's so sad , that this is going on all over the world! And there are so many "caregivers " that steal from the client's, don't properly take care of them , abuse them , etc . 😢✝️🛐
She wouldn’t make more money at McDonald’s because she wouldn’t get more then 20 hours a week. McDonalds doesn’t give 40 hour work weeks. $20*20 is $400 a week. $18.50*40 is $740 plus overtime and benefits (hopefully).
Oftentimes, the agencies in charge of these home heath aid services keep a huge chunk of the money, paying the actual human doing the work minimal. Families should care for their own whenever possible. Mike is fortunate to have his own home. It would be terrible if he ended up in a facility. That would be calamitous. All these young tv personalities doing all this talking will one day grow old and be in the same boat. They have the power to continue exposing these issues. Lets hope they and their respective networks do so. Time will tell who will step in with the power and desire to solve this critical problem once and for all.
Thank you so much for covering this topic. I have been a direct care worker for over 20 years. I love the work and I love my clients. I have tried other jobs and I come back to this because it is my calling. As this woman said, if everyone left this field, what would these elderly and disabled people do? Not just anyone can do this work, either; people with the wrong temperament won't make it in this field and frankly, neither would the clients. You can tell who and what society values by how much is paid for service. Consider which fields get the most funding and which ones constantly face budget cuts. Social Services usually get the cuts, and that means human beings will suffer. And yes, to the point made at the end, the ugly irony is that many caregivers can not afford care for themselves; they are not offered benefits, health insurance and they don't make nearly enough to save for retirement. I'm with a new company now. It's a small company and they treat me well, but there are no benefits and there's no paid time off. If I don't work, I don't get paid. Prior to this, I worked at a company for nearly 11 years. I started out at $9.00 an hour. When I left, nearly 11 years later, I was making $13.80. I had won multiple awards, been employee of the month many times, and got good performance reviews, but budget cuts prevent much advancement or raises. I got so burned out I was physically sick and eventually, I had to resign for health reasons. Caregivers are truly some of the unsung heroes of our society. They/we are kind of an invisible support structure without which a lot of other things could not get done. A lot of other people would not be able to do their jobs if we did not do ours. I wish we had reliable, guaranteed pay and benefits. It's not about getting rich or anything. I wish this whole field were funded better so that workers and clients can simply live with dignity.
Everything you said is 100% correct.
Remember the same Union that got $20 an hour for Fast Food workers kept CareGivers at $16
I'm glad somebody is speaking out about this. I' ve been a caregiver for 15 years in South Carolina and we are NOT appreciate nor paid no where near what we deserve!!! But ALL the other "health care " positions are paid above and beyond for less work. Don't get me wrong, I love what I do but we deserve deserve way better than what we're getting. I have a family and can't make it on just my salary either. It's just not right.
This isn’t a new issue or problem The real issue and problem is that society and government don’t care My family took care of their elderly and we made room and there was room for this as it is the process of life But now a days, no one has time for anything and ppl are aging with issues like dementia, etc It’s a sad reality and fact I hope ppl think and adjust accordingly that we all age, need help, and will die Not always possible I know but we need to pay attention
No sad this was a new issue 🙄. It’s an issue that’s not talked about in the media though and Lisa Ling is addressing it publicly.
I'm my mom's caregiver and I don't get paid I'm all by myself an I'm trying to empty her 2 story home An I give KUDOS to all caregivers If you haven't done it it's very very very stressful I take her to all her doctors appointments
Also it’s more than a money issue, it takes a toll on the caregivers health and livelihood
As a cna working with an agency they paid $14 per hour and $15 for weekends,terrible and the job is not easy,yes government should do better,we don't have benefits at all none.
$20/hr. Those people are not taking that home. The more you make the more they take
Thank You for this Broadcast!!! I’m a 66yr widow on Social Security, barely making by check to check, no defendants. I’m extremely concerned about my future. They say in 10yrs there may Not be any SS. 😐
SHE'S AN ANGEL!!! ❤
I enjoyed listening to her, brought tears to my eyes
Bless this woman!!!
Truth we aren't valued. Although we are Blessed.
Thank you, for the Love and dedication you give Michael. ❤
Caregivers should be paid no less than $25hr. Pay them $32hr and make the rules strict. No lazy or abusive caregivers.
Years ago, I took care of my mom and no outside help from city, government, or anything! It was hard! No resources.
Ppl wake up! We’re all gonna be this man some day. Tragic!!
Yes we need to support our care givers!! They deserve to earn more and have retirement support!!
Thank you for reporting on this, please keep doing so. This is such an important issue.
Thank you for talking about these issues.
This is such a sad situation for both the elderly individual and the caretaker. The responsibilities are endless and aside from empathy, a caregiver needs to have the patience of a saint. The work is often physically grueling🙏🙏🙏
Unfortunately this is true all over the states, I pay more to get my pups groomed than CNA earn. Why is this? SHAMEFUL
Thank you so much for making sharing this powerful story! It resonated for me and for sure so many other care providing families! I am an IHSS Care Provider for our youngest son who has severe Autism and is nonverbal. Since we homeschool him and I had to quit my career to become a full time caregiver and because there is no one that can provide the proper care and attention to our son I chose to become his care provider. I am very grateful for the program but it truly is not fair that we make less than employees at McDonald’s. It is barely minimum wage. It is NOT a job where one gets healthcare, vacation pay, worker’s comp, or unemployment insurance. At best, a parent’s IHSS compensation will offset a portion of the costs of keeping a developmentally disabled family member at home, and would not go far in meeting the family’s daily needs especially with the spike of rent, food & gas prices! I hope this story is seen by congress and they finally do something about it! I highly doubt they would want any one of their family members to be in this boat!
We need to value care in our country. Professional caregivers must make a living wage and this increase cannot be passed on to the family caregivers who are already drowning. Thank you for this cost-of-care series. Keep them coming!
We have so many needs in this country and we couldn’t afford to fund wars. Number 1 should be the healthcare. In nursing home, nurse assistants has 1:18 ratio. The staff and patients suffered. Not to mention being short staffed, that ratio goes up. Sad reality, after working 30+ years, our seniors are forgotten, not valued, and just waiting for their death. Very depressing if you put yourself in their shoes.
Sad part everyone will end up old one day and this is sad that this is not being addressed more
$20 in Cali is nothing.
Being an aide is super hard work and pay here in New Jersey is horrible. Cannot pay rent with salary. The State and agencies make the lions share of money. There will not be enough caregivers in the future. There aren't enough good caregivers now. This is a crisis.
I can relate to this need for financial assistance after the client or family member passes, I had to return to work asap and found a easy job to make income for myself within one week after my family member passed. I was still in mourning. I had God Jehovah to get me through a rough spot. Now, in our state there are benefits for assistance for family members caregivers who qualify.
God Bless her soul.
In Texas the pay is as low as $8.50 an hour
Our country doesn't care about children or the elderly.
Exactly
Seems like the elderly doesn't care for the elderly. A lot of the elderly voted for this but had foresight in thinking they'd need care from others.
An added note, however, childless couples should prepare for the possibility of this scenario of need by recruiting family members. Later in life Mike's wife asked a church member. Non family member caregivers expect compensation as do family so save up, and invest for this planned need of caregivers for future.
This profession is necessary but we pay them crumbs! My heart hurts for the clients and caregivers alike
This is going on in Florida too. DSP!
Thank you , Thank you for giving us a voice.
God bless this woman's heart! Thank you for all you do!
I need younger black women to see these type of stories and to make sure they take care of themselves!!!!! If every black female caregiver/CNA walked off the job TODAY, senior centers making billions would crumble! 2. This remarkable lady is doing amazing, but what’s amazing for her??? What’s her end game? Who takes care of her once she ages if she can’t afford it😢. America will be a 3rd world country quicker than I expected. Teacher shortages, school closures, tent cities, more juvenile crimes, trafficking of children😢 and adults, crooked medical staff, overworked medical staff, shortages of medical staff, INSURANCE THROUGH THE ROOF! Border crises, MENTAL HEALTH! Selfish parents, parents working several jobs to make end meets…less time w/family…. And behold , our beloved crooked politicians taking backhanded deals for cooperate AMERICA 😢. I left out a lot, please feel free to continue the list…..
I agree with you regarding who is shouldering the burden of this type of work. I go to hospitals, nursing homes, and assisted living facilities for work weekly and Black women make up a disproportionate share of the people doing this type of work. If they organized they could demand better wages and benefits in no time. Without them the caregiver industry would collapse.