2011 Survey of Nebraska Members on Long-Term Care and Caregiving Issues

This survey shows that AARP members age 50 and older in Nebraska want to be able to stay in their homes when faced with the need for long-term care and that they support additional funding for informational and support services.

Key findings from the survey include:

• Eighty-nine percent say it would be extremely or very important to stay at home as long as possible if they or their family members needed long-term care. Further, 86 percent believe it should be a top or high priority for AARP in Nebraska to ensure the availability of a broad range of long-term care services that will allow them to stay in their homes.
• Sixty-five percent surveyed say they are not very or not at all confident that they could afford long-term care services for themselves or their family and only 23 percent are extremely or very confident they could find long-term care services to remain in their home if needed.
• Nearly 20 percent of AARP members in Nebraska say they are currently or have previously provided caregiving services within the past two years.
  
  • One-third (33%) of caregivers surveyed live with the person they care for and almost half (49%) have been providing care between one and five years.
  • Sixty-nine percent of caregivers spend up to twenty hours each week on average providing care and half (51%) have an annual household income before taxes of less than $50,000.
• Most AARP Nebraska members surveyed (85%) find it either extremely or very important to have access to long-term care information in one place. The large majority (93%) of those who rate their health as poor find that it is extremely or very important to have a central place to receive unbiased information.
• AARP members in Nebraska indicate that they would find the following caregiver support resources extremely or very helpful:
  • Information about available caregiver resources in their community (72%)
  • Assistance in completing government forms and applications (71%)
  • Establishing a state income tax credit for caregivers (64%)
  • Short breaks from caregiving (63%)
  • Assistance with transportation (62%)
  • Help with understanding medical bills (61%)
    

    
The survey was conducted between October and December 2011 among 827 AARP members ages 50 and over living in Nebraska. For more information, contact Erin Pinkus at 202-434-6362.