Washington state family caregivers provide $25 billion in unpaid care annually
This article was was published March 27, 2026 in “NonStop Local Tri-Cities/Yakima”:
WASHINGTON STATE — Family caregivers across the state provide an estimated $25 billion worth of unpaid care each year, according to a new report from AARP.
The report, called “Valuing the Invaluable,” found about 1.2 million people in Washington state care for an aging loved one, assisting with everything from car rides to appointments to complex medical tasks like injections.
Cathleen MacCaul, the Advocacy Director at AARP Washington, calls family caregivers the unsung heroes of the state’s long-term care system.
“Without family caregivers, our long-term care system falls apart,” MacCaul said. “And AARP is really trying to capture that with data to paint a picture of how critical family caregivers are to our overall long-term care system.”
MacCaul says that without caregivers, many more Washington residents would be forced to rely on paid in-home care or costly institutional care, increasing expenses for families, taxpayers and public programs.
While there is room for improvement, MacCaul says Washington has done more than other states to support family caregivers. She points to WA Cares, the nation’s first publicly funded long-term care insurance program, that is launching in July.
People who pay into the program will be able to access things like in-home care, home modifications and meals. But she says, especially with a rapidly aging population, the need for family caregivers is not going away anytime soon.
“There is really no way that the state would ever be able to pay for the services that these family caregivers provide,” MacCaul said.
