Millions of Ohioans are caring for an older parent or loved one – helping them to live independently at home. Providing care to a loved one is both rewarding and demanding, and Ohio lawmakers are considering a bill introduced this spring by Senator Peggy Lehner that provides some basic support and commonsense solutions to make caregiver responsibilities a little bit easier. The Area Agency on Aging, PSA 2 encourages Ohio lawmakers to enact SB 314, the Ohio Caregiving Act, to better support family caregivers as they safely help seniors stay at home and transition from hospital visits.
The Act recognizes the critical role family caregivers play in keeping their loved ones out of costly institutions. It features three important provisions:
- The name of the family caregiver is recorded when a loved one is admitted into a hospital.
- The family caregiver is notified if the loved one is to be discharged to another facility or back home.
- The facility must provide an explanation and live instruction of the medical tasks – such as medication management, injections, wound care, and transfers – that the family caregiver will perform at home.
Did you know …
- The vast majority of older Americans want to live independently at home.
- More than 1.7 million family caregivers in Ohio help their loved ones to live independently – keeping them out of costly institutions, such as nursing homes.
- Across Ohio, family caregivers provide unpaid care valued at about $17.5 billion annually.
- Family caregivers perform a variety of caregiving duties, including help with bathing and dressing, feeding, medication management, wound care, transportation, and more.
Why do we need the Ohio Caregiving Act?
- In 2014, most care recipients (69%) did not have a home visit by a health care professional after discharge from the hospital.
- 29 States have either passed a similar bill or are awaiting the Governor’s signature to sign it into law.
- Almost half (46%) of family caregivers perform medical or nursing tasks for their loved ones with multiple chronic physical and cognitive conditions.
- Three out of four (78%) who provide these medical or nursing tasks manage medications, including administering intravenous fluids and injections.
- Most family caregivers report that they received little or no training to perform these tasks.
Source: AARP report “Home Alone: Family Caregivers Provide Complex Chronic Care”
