Jean Accius, Vice President, Long-Term Services & Supports and Livable Communities Group, AARP Public Policy Institute
We know the clichés for Millennials. And, for that matter, younger adults of any generation.
Or maybe they’re more assumptions, images we conjure in our heads: a younger person getting out of school, hopefully entering the workforce, and enjoying a nice social life of friends and possibly dating, pastimes (exercise, ballgames, music, etc.), maybe even some trips to exciting destinations.
Life is simple as a young adult. Life is mostly about “me.”
Not so fast on those assumptions. Today in the U.S., ten million Millennials care for a family member who is ill, has a disability or needs help with daily activities. No longer is their focus (if it ever was) on where to go on vacation, the hot new restaurant, how to grow a burgeoning career or, in some cases, getting married and starting a family. Yet the challenge of caregiving for Millennials is in many ways invisible to others, for it challenges the stereotypes many people attach to the generation: entitled, struggling to find an identity, and so on.
Millennials of course are not alone. There are roughly 40 million family caregivers across the United States. …..
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To learn more about policy options to help meet the needs of Millennial caregivers, consider attending the Academy’s 31st annual policy conference on Regenerating Social Insurance for Millennials and the Millennium, January 30 – 31, 2019.
