Caregiving Employees’ Health Problems Can Cost
U.S. Companies a Potential $13.4 Billion Yearly
Caregivers Are More Likely to Report Health Problems
February 02, 2010 09:03 AM Eastern Time
WESTPORT, Conn.--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--If you are responsible for taking care of an elderly relative
or friend, it will likely impact your health and your employer’s bottom line. Employees in the U.S. who are caring for
an older relative are more likely to report health problems like depression, diabetes, hypertension or heart disease,
costing employers an estimated average additional health care cost of 8% per year, or $13.4 billion annually,
according to the MetLife Study of Working Caregivers and Employer Health Care Costs. The report, produced
by the MetLife Mature Market Institute® with the National Alliance for Caregiving in conjunction with the University
of Pittsburgh Institute of Aging, also found that younger caregivers (ages 18 to 39) cost their employers 11% more
for health care than non-caregivers, while male caregivers cost an additional 18%. It also found that eldercare may
be closely associated with high-risk behaviors like smoking and alcohol consumption. Exacerbating the potential
impact to employers is the possibility that these medical conditions may also lead to disability-related absences.
The MetLife report was drawn from an analysis of 17,000 employees of a major multinational U.S. corporation who
completed health risk assessment questionnaires (HRA). Twelve percent were caregivers for an older person.
“While this news may be distressing, our research points out that coordination of eldercare services and wellness
initiatives may open new avenues of innovation to benefit both employees and employers,” said Sandra
Timmermann, Ed.D., director of the MetLife Mature Market Institute. “Employers can provide support to their
employees and, at the same time, reduce their health care costs by anticipating and responding to the challenges of
eldercare.”
According to Gail Hunt,