Your Finances
What It Costs You
The financial toll of dementia caregiving goes far beyond medical bills. It quietly reshapes your career, your savings, and your retirement — and the longer it goes on, the harder it becomes to recover.
$413.5B
Annual Value of Unpaid Care
11.9M caregivers providing 19.2B hours/year. This labor is invisible to GDP calculations.
Alzheimer's Association 202557%
Work Disruption
Of caregivers employed at any point: 57% went in late/left early/took time off.
NAC/AARP 2025Your Career
How It Changes Your Work Life
It usually starts small — a missed meeting, leaving early. But each step makes the next one more likely, and the financial damage builds quietly until it's hard to reverse.
Over the Years
How the Financial Pressure Builds
Diagnosis
Career disruption begins. Missed days, distraction, phone calls during work.
Hours Cut
Reduced to part-time. Benefits lost. Retirement contributions stop.
Career Exit
Full workforce withdrawal. Skills atrophy. Professional network dissolves.
Savings Depleted
Out-of-pocket costs consume retirement funds. Home equity leveraged.
Re-entry Barrier
Attempt to return to work meets age discrimination and skill gaps.
Poverty Risk
Reduced Social Security, no pension, depleted savings. Caregiver becomes care-dependent.
What Makes It Harder
The Factors That Compound the Strain
Duration of Care
Average caregiving duration is 4.3 years, but dementia caregiving often extends to 8\u201312 years. The longer the duration, the more severe and irreversible the economic damage becomes.
Pulled in Every Direction
Many dementia caregivers are also raising children or supporting other family members. When the demands come from every direction at once, the financial pressure compounds — and there's no break in sight.
Arizona Context
Arizona ranks among the fastest-growing states for Alzheimer's prevalence. Limited state support, Medicaid gaps, and high out-of-pocket costs create an environment where the economic cascade is particularly devastating.
This Shouldn't Fall on Families Alone
Family caregivers provide $413.5 billion in unpaid labor every year — sacrificing careers, savings, and retirements to fill a gap the healthcare system hasn't addressed.