This story first appeared in How We Care, a weekly newsletter by Spotlight PA featuring original reporting and perspectives on how we care for one another at all stages of life. Sign up for free here.
All 13 million Pennsylvanians have depended on caregivers. We all start life as infants, after all. But caregivers are vital long after childhood, including during periods of crisis and sickness. Some of us have disabilities. And for those who are lucky enough to live long lives, we need help as we age.
Many Pennsylvanians provide this care, whether in the workplace, at home or in our communities. Sometimes caregiving is a vocation, as is the case for workers such as some nursing home aides and physicians. But it can also be a long-term responsibility like caring for family members, including aging parents or partners with medical complications. Or it can be a temporary role such as driving an older adult to appointments or babysitting a friend’s kids.
Some people inhabit all these roles at once.
To give a picture of caregiving’s broad reach, How We Care looked at information from the U.S. Census Bureau, CDC and other sources to compile data on the different populations within Pennsylvania who rely on and provide care to others. This is not a complete account of care in the commonwealth, but it sheds light on how ubiquitous and essential this work is. These data also show some of the pay, gender and health inequities in caregiving that influence the quality of care.
Number of children under age 18: 2,664,562
Number of children under age 5: 688,571
Median family income: $97,376, annually
Average cost of center-based child care for one toddler: $11,346
Federal poverty level for a family of four: $31,200, annually
Number of children in poverty: 393,542
Households with one or more people under 18: 1,399,779
Single female-led households with children: 235,549
Single male-led households with children: 60,710
Number of grandparents living with grandchildren under 18 years: 210,083
Number of grandparents responsible for grandchildren under 18 years: 65,256
Number of children in foster care in 2022: 11,945
Number of people over age 64: 2,539,054
Number of people over age 64 in poverty: 247,704
Number of people over age 64 with Alzheimer’s disease: 282,100
Number of caregivers caring for people with Alzheimer’s disease: 465,000
Number of nursing homes in Pennsylvania: 669
Annual cost of a nursing home with a semi-private room: $129,210
Annual cost of a home health aide, based on 44 hours a week: $69,784
Number of home health and personal care aides: 213,020
Annual mean wage for home health and personal care aides: $30,580
Number of adults with a disability: 2,952,335
Percentage of adults living with depression: 15%
Percentage of adults who have a disability and are living with depression: 44%
Note: All numbers are Pennsylvania-specific unless otherwise noted. Data come from a variety of sources; therefore some stats may not line up perfectly.
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