05/18/2026
Nearly 1 million Kentuckians (987,000) are family caregivers—helping parents, spouses, and neighbors stay in their homes and communities. Their unpaid care is valued at $8.6 billion every year.
They are truly the backbone of our care system—and they deserve our support.
Every day, millions of Americans provide care for parents, spouses, friends, and neighbors, almost always without pay. And in recent years, that care has become even more intensive and time-consuming, while the cost of care services has continued to rise.
The AARP Public Policy Institute estimates the economic value of unpaid family caregiving in the U.S. reached $1.01 trillion in 2024, up from $600 billion in 2021. What’s driving that increase?
Research suggests it’s not because there are significantly more caregivers. Instead:
• Caregivers are providing more hours of care than in previous years
• Many are taking on more medically complex responsibilities
• The cost of home care and direct care services has continued to rise
This report also uses a more detailed methodology than previous editions in the series to better reflect the different types of assistance family caregivers provide. For example, medical and nursing-related tasks were valued using wages tied more closely to professional nursing care, recognizing the skill and intensity involved.
Head to aarp.org/valuing or click the link in comments for the full report.
