The out-of-pocket cost of caring for an aging parent or spouse averages $5,531 a year, according to the nation's first in-depth study of such expenses, a sum that is more than double previous estimates and more than the average American household spends each year on health care and entertainment combined.

Family members responsible for ailing loved ones provide not only "hands on" care, but reach often into their own pockets to pay for many other expenses of care recipients, including groceries and household goods, drugs and medical co-payments and transportation, which nudges the average cost of long-distance caregiving to $8,728 a year.

These caregivers, spending on average 10 percent of their household income, manage the financial burden by taking out loans,skipping vacations, dipping into savings or ignoring their own health care.

These findings, and others, come from a telephone survey of 1,000 adults currently caring for someone over the age of 50 who needs help with activities like bathing, preparing meals, shopping or managing finances. It is the first systematic look at out-of-pocket spending among the estimated 34 million Americans providing care for an older (50-plus) family members or friends, and it builds on a landmark 2004 study.

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A long article...
I find it hard to believe that this is the first in-depth study that has been made...?