Retirement income can make it difficult to pay for unexpected bills. It’s also hard to plan for home care services when money is tight. Your parents want to age in place, but you’re worried about the finances. Don’t give up on the idea. There are ways you can make aging in place and home care services work out on your parents’ budget.
Go Over Daily Expenses
There may be ways to cut expenses. Do your parents have cell phones and a landline? They may not need both. Depending on their lifestyle, they could share one cell phone and eliminate the cost of a second one. They could drop the landline and only use cell phones.
They may be able to save money on heating bills by upgrading equipment to energy-efficient models. They can join a fuel co-op that gets lower rates on heating oil, kerosene, and propane. If they don’t watch cable television often, they could drop cable and pay for services like Hulu or Netflix instead. There are also free services like Roku Channel, Vudu, Pluto TV, and Sony Crackle.
Discuss Area Options With the Agency on Aging
The Agency on Aging nearest your mom and dad may have other suggestions. Your parents may be able to get discounted or free meals at the local senior center. All they’d need is a ride to that center. There may be adult day programs if your parents have dementia that can help lower the cost of care during the day.
Create a Care Schedule With Family Members
Your family may be able to create a care schedule that lowers the number of hours home care servicesis needed. You can cook meals after work. Your sister can stop by and do laundry on Saturdays. Your brother can use his lunch break to schedule their appointments. Your aunt can drive them to medical and dental appointments.
With the entire family helping provide care, the number of hours a caregiver is needed is lowered. You can use caregiversto fill in gaps. The other benefit to this plan is that your parents have extra people to socialize with during the week.
Research these options before calling a home care agency. As you find out what is available, you’ll be able to figure out the care your mom and dad can afford.
If you are considering Home Care in Waterbury, CT, for your aging parent, please contact the caring staff at Franciscan Ever There Care. Call today 203-630-2881.
