Care for the caregiver: social policies to ease their burden.

The majority of caregivers are women, and a vast number of the households are single-parent, female-headed households. Public policies reward institutionalization of the elderly and penalize "sandwich generation" caregivers. Current state governments support the traditional ideal of the family. This incorrect vision promotes the creation of social policies that do not fit the real picture of a single, female-headed family with elderly parents needing care. "Sandwich generation" caregivers place themselves in jeopardy of poverty in their future years because of their caregiving activities for their elderly parents during their young-old years.