Maui Senator Roz Baker Recognized as AARP “Capitol Caregiver”

To honor her integral work supporting Hawai‘i’s family caregivers, AARP named Maui Senator Roz Baker as a 2018 “Capitol Caregiver.”

Photo courtesy AARP.

Baker is among a bipartisan group of 65 elected officials from 24 states. These leaders advanced policies that support family caregivers, who help their parents, spouses and other loved ones live independently at home and in the community—where they want to be.

“Sen. Roz Baker has been an outstanding champion funding for our kupuna. She has led the way to ensure that Hawaii’s innovative Kupuna Caregiver program to help working caregivers was sufficiently funded for the second year in a row and that home and community based services funding and preventive programs like Healthy Aging would have solid funding support,” said Barbara Kim Stanton, AARP Hawai‘i State Director. “Her leadership and compassion has helped to make it bit easier for our family caregivers.”

Baker received her award at the Kaunoa Senior Center in Paia Saturday during AARP Hawai‘i’s Finance Your Future conference on how to plan and pay for living to be 100. Baker’s efforts helped maintain and stabilize state funding that supports Kaunoa Senior Services. This is not Baker’s first Capitol Caregiver award. She also received the award in 2017. 2016 and 2014.

Across Hawai‘i, 154,000 people provide unpaid care for their older parents, spouses, children and adults with disabilities, and other loved ones— valued at about $2.1 billion annually. They help with bathing and dressing, meal preparation, managing finances, transportation, grocery shopping and more.

“Every day, family caregivers provide invaluable care to their loved ones,” Baker said. “It’s a tough job. Family caregivers help loved ones continue to live at home, where they want to be. We need to support them.”