Tax Breaks Help Reduce Eldercare Expenses

There are several tax breaks that may be available to help ease the financial burden of eldercare.

Home Renovation Tax Credit:
This is a temporary tax credit for renovation work performed or materials acquired before February 1, 2010.  You can claim a 15% credit on eligible renovation expenses exceeding $1,000, but not more than $10,000, to a maximum tax credit of $1,350.

Medical Expense Tax Credit:
You can claim the eligible medical expenses you paid on behalf of a dependent parent in excess of the lesser of $2,011 or 3% of your parent's net income, up to a maximum of $10,000 per dependent.  Renovation costs you incur to accommodate your parents qualify as an eligible medical expense, so they may generate tax savings under both the home renovation tax credit and medical expense tax credit.

Caregiver Tax Credit:
If you provide home care for a parent age 65 or older in 2009, you can claim the caregiver amount of $4,198, provided your parent's income is $14,336 or less.  Your claim is reduced when income exceeds this threshold, and is ineligible if your parent has income of $18,534 or more.

Attendant Care Expenses:
If your parent is eligible for the disability amount under the Income Tax Act, or a doctor has certified that your parent needs a full-time attendant, amounts that you pay for such an attendant will qualify for the medical expense tax credit.

Did You Know???

Did you know that 34 million adult Americas provide care to someone over the age of 50?  In addition to that, sixty percent of all family caregivers are working full or part time.  Caregivers selfishly dedicate themselves to caring for another and yet are often times overlooked.  This is a great time to celebrate the caregivers in your life and let them know how much you appreciate what they do.

November is National Family Caregiver Month

National Family Caregiver Month is organized annually by the National Family Caregivers Association as a time each year to thank, support, educate and empower family caregivers. "This year we are encouraging people to speak up during National Family Caregivers Month," said Suzanne Mintz, NFCA president and CEO. "One of the most important attributes of being an advocate for your loved one is the willingness and the ability to speak up and keep your eye on the ultimate goal, protecting not only the health and safety of your loved ones, but your own as well."


To learn more about the National Family Caregivers Association and their programs to help train and support family caregivers please visit them at http://www.nfcacares.org/.

Five Reasons Families Love In-Home Care

Is In-Home Care the right choice for your loved one?

Here are five facts to consider.

Independence
In-Home Care enables seniors to be as independent as possible and be cared for in the comfort of their own home.

Family Time
There are no visiting hours with In-Home Care, so family members can visit any time, without concerns about intruding on others.

Continuity of Care
Home care is often provided by the same nurse or team of nurses, so they always know what kind of care has been given or is needed.

Less Risk
One-on-one care reduces your loved one's exposure to infection or illness, and ensures that their needs are met quickly.

Lower Costs
In-Home Care gives you the flexibility of hiring someone for only the hours when your loved one needs help the most.

 

November Newsletter

November Newsletter

New Service Announcement

alleviaCARE is pleased to announce that we are now offering services in 2 hour time blocks. Our referral sources have asked us to provide both companionship and personal care for just a couple hours instead of a minimum of 4 hours. As of today, we are now offering services in 2 hour increments.

~ Please contact us for more details ~
952-303-4725

First supply of H1N1 vaccine is coming to Minnesota

Minnesota will soon receive its first supply of vaccine for the novel H1N1 influenza virus, according to an announcement yesterday from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). 

This initial shipment of the vaccine will be administered to health care and emergency medical workers.  These workers are targeted becasue they are at risk of being exposed to the virus, and they could expose medically vulnerable patients to the virus if they get sick.  In addition, there could be a significant impact on the heatlh care system if they get sick and have to miss work.

The H1N1 vaccine is expected to be available in the coming months and it is recommend by the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) that people get vaccinated to protect themselves against H1N1 novel influenza, especially those individuals that are at high risk for severe disease from H1N1 influenza.

To protect yourself and to help reduce the spread of influenza, the MDH recommends:

• Stay home from work or school - and generally avoid going out in public - if you are sick, remain home until 24 hours after your symptomss resolve without the aid of fever-reducing medications.
• If you are an employer, encouage your employees to stay home if they are sick.
• Limit your contact with others who may be ill.
• Cover your nose and mouth with your sleeve when you cough or sneeze.
• Clean your hands frequently and thoroughly - with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand rub solution.
• Clean your hands after shaking hands or having other close contact with people, before eathing or preparing food, or touching your eyes, nose or mouth.
• Make sure to take enough fluids while you're sick.
• If you develop possible flu symptoms and you want to consult your health care provider, call before going in for an office visit.  You may not need to go in, and if you do need to be seen, a time should be set up when you will not risk exposing others to influena in the waiting room.
• People at risk for sever flu or flu complications should contact their health care provider if they have flu symptoms or have been closely exposed ot people with flu symptoms.
• Get vaccinated for both seasonal and H1N1 novel influenza as soon as vaccine becomes available for you.

For more information about influenza, please visit http://www.mdhflu.com/ or contact your health care provider.

alleviaCARE is the Gold Sponsor at the 35th Annual Fall Aging Conference

We are the GOLD SPONSOR at this years conference. The conference goal is to provide individuals working in the field of aging an opportunity for education, resources, support and connectivity in relation to issues affecting seniors - ultimately improving services and advocacy for seniors in our community.

When:  Thursday, October 29, 2009
Where:  Earle Brown Heritage Center

Also, please visit our site at http://www.alleviacare.com/ for information about our company.

About

alleviaCARE is dedicated to providing seniors with the opportunity of remaining comfortably in their own homes while they receive care. We coordinate all services and care necessary to supply seniors with the healthcare they need while helping them maximize their level of independence and quality of life.
alleviaCARE’s value propositions:
“A Passion For Seniors
“We Help Keep You In Your Home
“ Our Employee’s Are Hired With You In Mind”
“Your Comfort is Our Job”
“Services Designed to Fit Your Needs

alleviaCARE will provide a plan of care that is designed specifically for each individual client. Many of the building blocks used to help create the foundation for these plans are listed below:
SERVICES
Grooming and hygiene
Assist with ambulation
Hospice client assistance
Incontinence care
Exercise assistance
Medicine reminders
Assist with transfers
Assistance with bathing
Dressing assistance
Meal planning and preparation
Schedule and remind of appointments
Coordination of ancillary services
Pick up medications from pharmacy
Change linens
Light housekeeping
Laundry and ironing
Grocery shopping
Escorts to appointments
http://www.alleviacare.com/

Welcome to alleviaCARE's blog site

Welcome to alleviaCARE’s blog site. I am Jenelle Boeckermann. I developed a true passion for caring for seniors during the years I spent working in various segments of the healthcare industry. After a time, I realized that more needed to be done to help seniors remain in their homes – where they would be more comfortable, where the outcome of the healthcare they received would be more positive.

The result of this realization was alleviaCARE, a Class A licensed Private Duty Home Healthcare company. We launched our first newsletter in June and are excited to post them on this site and receive your comments. We encourage your feedback and questions.