The Sandwich Generation . . . Helping Your Aging Parents
by Carol Abaya, M.A.
for release June 9, 2000
Are you juggling doing errands for your aging parents, your children, yourself and working at the same time? Are you tired, stressed out and upset that your once vibrant parent is now frail and needy?
Do you feel alone? Rest assured you are not alone! The Sandwich Generation is dedicated to the 50 million Americans who may have elder/parent care concerns and/or responsibilities.
There Are Tax Breaks For Elder Care
Question: My father just died and with him went his pension. My mother will receive a small social security check each month, but not much else. She wants to stay in her own apartment and we’re helping her financially. Is there any other help available?
Answer: Yes! Utility companies have special discounts for low income seniors. There are also Meals on Wheels programs and/or lunch programs at senior centers. Depending on her assets, she may be eligible for Medicaid to pay Part B (for doctors) of her Medicare medical insurance.
Your local area of aging agencies should be able to tell you about programs in her area. You’ll need to make a few calls.
There is also help - financial - for you. If your mother’s annual income (besides social security) is less than $2,800 and you pay for at least half of her living expenses, then you can declare her as your dependent on your income taxes. She doesn’t have to live with you. Depending on your income, you can save several hundred dollars off of your tax bill.
You should keep an accounting of what you pay for your mother. And it will help you substantiate everything with IRS if you write the checks to pay her bills rather than give her cash for her to pay them. Keep her bills and copies of the checks in a separate envelope for easier year-end calculations.
If you’re a single or divorced adult child, you may be able to claim the tax-favored head-of-household status as well as declare her as a dependent. You should consult an accountant who really knows these regulations.
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Question: My mother, 72, was in the hospital for two weeks with pneumonia and hypertension. She was so sick the first week that we hired an LPN to be with her at night. Medicare has refused to pay. What should we do?
Answer: Medicare does not pay for private duty hospital nursing care, whether it be for medical or custodial reasons. It pays only for the room and direct services.
Unless your mother has special insurance that does pay, you’re on your own. We had the same situation with my mother and shelled out $1,500 a week so she wouldn’t be alone at night.
The only saving grace is that your mother can deduct the cost of this care from her income tax, provided the medical deduction criteria are met. It’s not much, but better than nothing.
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Do you have a question? Send it in. Although letters cannot be answered individually, appropriate letters will be answered in this column whenever possible. Letters may be edited. Send letters to Ms. Carol Abaya, c/o Name\Address of YOUR newspaper or e-mail her at SandwchGen@aol.com.
Carol Abaya is an international-award-winning journalist and creator of the unique magazine The Sandwich Generation: You & Your Aging Parents.
NOTES TO EDITORS: text = 420 words; other material = 160 words
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©2000 by Globe Syndicate, all rights reserved.