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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The population of the State of Illinois that is 85
3years of age or older is projected to rise from 260,000 in 2012
4to 392,000 in 2032; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Nationally, 70% of people with Alzheimer's
6disease or a related disorder live at home and need assistance
7with activities of daily living; and
 
8    WHEREAS, Almost 3/4 of older people living in Illinois who
9received personal assistance relied exclusively on unpaid
10caregivers for help; and
 
11    WHEREAS, Almost all older adults who need assistance with
12activities of daily living want to remain in their homes and
13communities; and
 
14    WHEREAS, Providing services and supports to older adults in
15their homes and communities is generally much less expensive
16than nursing home care; and
 
17    WHEREAS, Older adults who receive cost-effective services
18in their homes are much less likely to need public assistance;
19and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, An estimated 2,430,000 adults in the State provide
2care to adult relatives or friends, which equates to an
3estimated 1.59 billion hours a year and an estimated value of
4$18.8 billion each year; and
 
5    WHEREAS, To successfully address the surging population of
6older adults who have significant needs for long-term services
7and supports, the State must develop methods to both encourage
8and support families to support their aging relatives and
9develop ways to recruit and retain a qualified, responsive
10in-home care workforce; therefore, be it
 
11    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
12NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
13we support the dedicated work of family caregivers throughout
14the State and will continue to seek additional ways to support
15these individuals through information, education, training,
16and relief care; and be it further
 
17    RESOLVED, That we recognize caregiving for older adults as
18a vital and needed profession today and in the future; and be
19it further
 
20    RESOLVED, That we urge the Department on Aging to create a
21special workgroup that focuses on recruiting, retaining, and
22supporting family and paid caregivers and strongly encourage

 

 

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1the Department to create additional innovative and creative
2means to support family caregivers to continue to provide
3needed in-home support for older adults; and be it further
 
4    RESOLVED, That the members of this body pledge to review
5State policies and support current State programs that address
6the needs of older adults and their caregivers; and be it
7further
 
8    RESOLVED, That we urge the Department on Aging to continue
9providing additional information and education on supporting
10older adults in their homes through both family caregivers and
11paid professional caregivers; and be it further
 
12    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
13delivered to the Department on Aging.