Operator warns dementia's family cost burden will drain paid care workers

Dementia and Alzheimer's disease are projected to cost the United States $818 billion in 2026, and a new study published in Alzheimer's & Dementia estimates that families and individuals shoulder more than 80% of dementia's societal costs through unpaid caregiving, lost earnings, out-of-pocket expenses, and quality-of-life losses. Faris Flournoy III, CEO of Georgia-based home care management company Flournoy Health Systems, warns the burden will thin the paid workforce itself: "Not only are individuals going to be exiting the healthcare field, but they're going to be exiting the workforce altogether to become family caregivers." The home health workforce shrank by more than 3.4% in the pandemic's first year, and 800,000 more workers could leave by 2027, Home Health Care News previously reported. Flournoy said some home and community-based service providers are exiting Medicaid for private pay, leaving Medicaid beneficiaries with fewer care options, and he expects dementia's economic burden could exceed a trillion dollars over the next decade.