You know - or maybe you are - one of our nation's dedicated family caregivers.

An estimated 40 million Americans and 300,000 West Virginians are working regularly to provide at-home care for their parents, spouses, children or other adults with disabilities. Some days they help their loved ones eat, bathe and dress. Other days it might be taking them to the doctor or shopping for their groceries or other needs. For many, these volunteer duties also include managing finances and helping to make all the other decisions that allow their loved one to continue to live independently.

Many of these patients might otherwise be in an expensive nursing-home setting - which we as taxpayers help fund through Medicare and Medicaid - and this unpaid care is valued at around $470 billion annually, according to the AARP, which deserves much of the credit for putting the issue on the national agenda.

So, what are we doing to support these caregivers? Until now, not a whole lot.

But the passage of the RAISE (Recognize, Assist, Include, Support, and Engage) Family Caregivers Act by Congress last week could take some important steps to change that. The bill now goes to President Donald Trump for approval.

The RAISE Act does not actually detail many specifics and only creates an advisory council of representatives from the private and public sectors to come up with a "national strategy" to support caregivers. But hopefully that group will outline specific ways to help. Some of the strategies that have been discussed include: 

  • Providing some type of respite care. In other words, local programs that could provide manpower to give caregivers a break every once in a while.
  • Training for caregivers and sharing of information about innovative family caregiving models. Many family members just gradually fall into a caregiver role with little preparation about the best way to handle the many problems that arise.
  • Finding ways to make the care more feasible financially, such as tax credits or an expansion of family leave policies.
  • Allowing Social Security to recognize the work of family caregivers who leave their jobs to care for a family member full time.

None of that will be easy or without cost, but it makes sense to do it.

"It is truly a full-time job, and caregivers need all of the support they can get. ... I strongly believe family caregivers in West Virginia and across the nation deserve a national strategy to recognize and support the vital services and care they provide," said U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., who was a co-sponsor of the Senate version of the bill.

This is an action that is long overdue, and we hope the advisory council can soon get to work on developing a network of support for our nation's family caregivers.