"At age 43, Dawnita Brown made a life-changing pivot. She took leave from her secure government job, winnowed down her possessions, resolved her financial responsibilities, and in 2016, signed up for the Peace Corps. Volunteering in Eswatini was "amazing," she says, so much so that she planned to extend her time abroad in a paid position with the Peace Corps after her service ended."
"A huge number of today's 65-year-olds — more than two-thirds — will likely need some kind of long-term care as they age, whether it's in-home care, assisted living or a nursing home. Those services can easily cost more each year than what the average American makes. And health insurers — both government and private — may not provide the necessary coverage. That leaves many people to rely on unpaid family caregivers whose care AARP valued at $600 billion in 2021."
Dawnita Brown left a stable government job at 43, prepared financially, and joined the Peace Corps in 2016, serving in Eswatini and planning to continue abroad. In 2018, her mother suffered a brain-stem stroke and required extensive rehabilitation and nursing care, prompting Brown to return home and become her mother's primary caregiver. Many Americans over 65 will need long-term care, which often exceeds average annual incomes and may not be covered by insurers. Families commonly fill this gap with unpaid caregiving, valued at hundreds of billions of dollars, while caregivers frequently sacrifice steady income and retirement contributions.
Read at www.npr.org
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