Every day across New Jersey, family members step up to help their loved ones—managing medications, arranging doctors’ appointments, cooking meals, or simply being there for someone who can no longer care for themselves. This work is done quietly, with love and largely without pay. But as new AARP data show, it takes more than love to care for a loved one. It takes time, money, and support that too many caregivers simply don’t have.

It also takes the right policies—job protection, financial relief, and community support—to ensure caregivers aren’t doing it alone. According to Caregiving in the U.S. 2025: Caring Across States, 26% of adults in New Jersey—over 1.8 million people—are family caregivers. That’s one in four adults providing care to an older parent, spouse, or loved one with health needs or disabilities.

Family caregivers provide more than $17.6 billion in unpaid care each year in New Jersey. These caregivers are the invisible backbone of our state’s long-term care system. They help loved ones remain at home and in their communities—where they want to be—and save the state billions of dollars in taxpayer-funded nursing home costs each year.

Behind those numbers are real people making real sacrifices.

Nearly 40% of caregivers in New Jersey have experienced at least one negative financial impact because of caregiving—such as using up savings, taking on debt, or cutting back on basic needs such as food and medication. One in six caregivers lives in a household with an income under $50,000. And nationally, 80% of family caregivers pay out of their own pockets to help meet their loved ones’ needs, spending an average of more than $7,200 a year—roughly a quarter of their income.

For many, caregiving is a second full-time job. The report found that 21% of caregivers provide 40 hours a week or more of care, often in addition to their regular jobs. Three-quarters of caregivers are employed, and most (75%) are full-time workers. Yet 41% are hourly wage earners, meaning any time off—planned or unexpected—can result in lost pay or even job loss.

The AARP report also highlights the intensity of caregiving in New Jersey:

• Seven in 10 caregivers assist with personal care tasks like bathing, feeding, and dressing.
• More than half (54%) perform complex medical or nursing tasks, most with little training.
• Nearly half have been providing care for three years or longer.
• One-third are “high-intensity” caregivers, providing extensive hours of care and managing multiple health and household responsibilities.

Despite these demands, only 8% of caregivers report receiving any training to manage these tasks, and most do not receive respite care or outside help.

It’s a huge emotional and financial burden.  But without workplace protections or financial support, many caregivers are forced to make impossible choices between their job and their family.

A Growing Challenge for the State

New Jersey’s 1.8 million caregivers represent a vital, yet vulnerable, part of the state’s care system. The financial and workforce implications are profound. More caregivers mean more people facing burnout, financial strain, and career disruption—but also underscore the critical economic value of unpaid care.

If family caregivers could no longer provide this support, the state would face skyrocketing costs for Medicaid-funded long-term services and supports. Supporting caregivers isn’t just the compassionate choice—it’s the fiscally responsible one.

A Call for Action

With a new governor preparing to take office, AARP New Jersey is urging the incoming administration and legislature to make family caregiving a top priority in 2026.

First, lawmakers must pass the Family Leave Job Protection Bill (A3451/S2950)—a commonsense measure ensuring workers who take family leave to care for a loved one don’t lose their jobs. Currently, only employees at businesses with 30 or more workers have job protection. This bill would extend that protection to employees at smaller businesses with five or more workers.

AARP New Jersey is also calling for a caregiver tax credit—similar to the Caregiver’s Assistance Act (A1581/S2303)—to provide up to a $675 refundable credit for family caregivers who spend their own money helping an aging parent or loved one. For caregivers already juggling tight budgets, even modest financial relief can make a meaningful difference.

In the longer term, AARP urges policymakers to explore ways to compensate family caregivers who provide intensive, unpaid care, recognizing their work as an essential part of New Jersey’s health and long-term care system.

It’s Time for the State to Step Up

Beyond job protection and tax relief, AARP New Jersey is pushing for expanded home and community-based services, greater financial transparency in nursing homes, and better pay and training for direct care workers—a sector facing severe shortages statewide.

But the most immediate focus must be protecting family caregivers in the workforce. We can’t build a strong long-term care system without supporting the people who hold it up—our family caregivers.

This November, during National Family Caregivers Month, AARP New Jersey invites residents to recognize and support the caregivers in their lives and to take action for real change.

Visit  https://action.aarp.org/secure/protect-family-caregivers-now to read the full Caregiving in the U.S. 2025: Caring Across States – New Jersey report and tell your lawmakers it’s time to act on behalf of New Jersey’s caregivers.