HHS launches National Family Caregiver program

HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson today approved the release of $113 million in grants to states under the new National Family Caregiver Support Program, which helps family members provide care for the elderly at home.

Secretary Thompson said the grants will be used by states to run programs that provide critical support, including home and community-based services, to help families maintain their caregiver roles. It is the largest new support program under the Older Americans Act since 1972, when Congress established nutritional programs to serve the elderly.

"We must do all we can to ensure that our older residents can remain at home and receive care from loved ones for as long as possible," Secretary Thompson said. "This money will allow states to develop systems of support to ease the burden on hundreds of thousands of family caregivers nationwide."

In November 2000, Congress created the new caregiver program as part of the Older Americans Act Amendments of 2000. The principal component of the program consists of grants to states distributed through a congressionally mandated formula. Other components include innovative competitive grants and a new Native American caregiver support program. Information about these components will be announced in the near future.

In January, the department's Administration on Aging (AoA) issued comprehensive program guidance to states and has been providing technical assistance as states provide needed information for the grant program. AoA's Web site includes a description of the program and a list of frequently asked questions about the Older Americans Act and the new caregiver program (http://www.aoa.gov).

"States will work closely with their local area agencies on aging and other service providers in the community to put into place program services," said Norman L. Thompson, acting principal deputy assistant secretary for aging. "Among those services are information and assistance, training, counseling and support, and respite opportunities to allow caregivers to take short breaks from their often stressful daily caregiving responsibilities."

A list of state and territorial allocations under the grant program is below.

National Family Caregiver Support Program grant allocations
Arizona 1,956,318	Arkansas 1,125,177
California 11,359,851	Colorado 1,245,978
Connecticut 1,509,874	Delaware 564,300
District of Columbia 564,300	Florida 8,721,584
Georgia 2,305,333	Hawaii 564,300
Idaho 564,300	Illinois 4,732,281
Indiana 2,331,599	Iowa 1,391,731
Kansas 1,139,251	Kentucky 1,516,043
Louisiana 1,535,025	Maine 564,300
Maryland 1,843,229	Massachusetts 2,766,510
Michigan 3,848,418	Minnesota 1,875,522
Mississippi 1,031,878	Missouri 2,337,876
Montana 564,300	Nebraska 732,458
Nevada 603,803	New Hampshire 564,300
New Jersey 3,496,629	New Mexico 594,433
New York 7,612,334	North Carolina 2,916,628
North Dakota 564,300	Ohio 4,739,721
Oklahoma 1,388,901	Oregon 1,396,517
Pennsylvania 6,097,763	Rhode Island 564,300
South Carolina 1,421,896	South Dakota 564,300
Tennessee 2,083,754	Texas 6,147,379
Utah 573,563	Vermont 564,300
Virginia 2,354,500	Washington 2,083,944
West Virginia 854,259	Wisconsin 2,203,655
Wyoming 564,300	American Samoa 70,538
Guam 282,150	Northern Marianas 70,538
Puerto Rico 1,203,867	Virgin Islands 282,150