Marcy Jackson's mother needs someone to help with shopping, fixing meals, some housekeeping and transportation to the doctor. Marcy, who works during the day, is stretched to give her mother the attention she needs after work. "If only," Marcy thinks every day, "I could get paid for taking care of Mother."

Caregivers taking care of elderly relatives are spending an average of more than 20 hours each week giving unpaid care. They give this kind of care for an average of over 4 years. Many caregivers have had to make adjustments to their work hours, cutting back to part-time, or even quitting their jobs to stay with an elderly person. Over and above immediate lost salaries, the lifetime costs in loss of raises and promotions, retirement and health benefits, and reduced Social Security income has been estimated to be $650,000 or more.

And these numbers don't include the hidden costs of exhaustion and depression as caregivers try to sandwich other family obligations into the job and caregiving mix.

How much easier would it be to keep an older loved one at home if you could be paid for the time you spend giving care?

Maybe you can.

Long-Term Care Insurance

Until recently most long-term care insurance policies required that care at home be provided by a licensed home care agency. Now it is becoming more common for long-term care insurers to allow home care benefits to be used to pay a family member to give care.

Only a small fraction of our senior population have long-term care insurance. For those who do, this may be an option.

VA Pension Benefits

Twenty-five to thirty percent of American seniors may qualify for an enhanced VA pension, informally called the "Aid and Attendance" benefit, which can be used to pay anyone for providing necessary care. Veterans over the age of 65 who served in uniform during a specified time of war who meet certain financial guidelines and who have a medical need for care can qualify for financial assistance from the VA. Spouses of veterans or widows/widowers who have not remarried can also qualify.

The VA designates these benefits as income to be used to pay for care, but they do not specify who can be paid to provide the care. Many veterans use these funds to pay family members rather than hire strangers.

Hire On As An Employee

Getting a senior to accept care at home from a stranger is often a losing battle. Many sons and daughters cringe at the idea of accepting money to care for a parent. Yet setting up an employment agreement is often the best of all possible worlds for both parent and child. It gives the parent their caregiver of choice, and it gives the family member the financial ability to be there.

According to elder law attorneys, setting up an employment contract minimizes the chance that money paid to a child might be considered a gift when applying for Medicaid. If properly prepared, an employment contract also guarantees that the caregiver's Social Security work history continues uninterrupted.

A caregiver contract should be carefully prepared by an attorney who has experience preparing these documents. Pay should be based on the standard in the area, and duties should be spelled out in as much detail as possible.