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Cut elder-care costs

1:57 PM, Nov. 23, 2009 |
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Written by

Sharon Epperson

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Family

For some, the cost of caregiving has nearly wiped out their savings

Caring for aging parents can be very challenging, emotionally and financially. Careers may be put on hold, expenses charged, savings depleted. Here are ways to help you manage better:

Seek expert help to sort through the best affordable care options for your parents. Your employer may have an employee assistance or a work-life benefit program, which can help connect you with a professional geriatric care manager. Or find one on your own through the National Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers (caremanager.org).

Take advantage of state, federal and private organizations that offer adult day centers, home visitation programs, and free or reduced-priced meals. Find out about programs through your local agency for aging online at www.eldercare.gov.

Locate a variety of resources online at AARP's Benefits Quick Link site (benefitscheckup.org/aarpkeybenefits) to help pay for health care, medicine and food; have some information about your parents' finances handy. Community or faith-based organizations also can help.

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An award-winning journalist and author, Sharon Epperson is a highly respected expert on two issues that are on the top of the minds of investors and consumers around the world—energy prices and personal financial security. At CNBC, she covers the global energy and commodities markets daily from the floor of the New York Mercantile Exchange and contributes special reports on personal finance. She also appears frequently on NBC's Today and Nightly News with Brian Williams, as well as MSNBC and NBC affiliates nationwide.