I am the assigned agent to my father’s Health Care Directive. My sibling holds Power of Attorney. I happily oversee all caregiving duties. We have a private agency that provides 24/7 in-home care. Quite often we are left with caretakers that don’t come to their shifts. Each time I drop everything and fill in. (He is post-stroke and cannot be left alone.) Unfortunately, this is becoming a regular thing where I am left caretaking one or two days each week.
I asked the POA if I could be paid $15/hour for the days the caretakers don’t show and am needed to fill in. This is WELL below the hourly rate for our area.
He said absolutely not. He will not pay family for caregiving.
In a nut shell, even though I have the Health Care Directive and can legally make my dad’s caregiving plan, my sibling holds the POA and says he has the right to refuse payment of services he does not agree with.
Do I have any options for getting payment? It seems he’s overstepping his authority as I know my dad would happily pay me especially since it is half of what the agency charges. It’s so depressing.
If he gets even one dime from his duties, you should get paid too. The caregiving is a much harder job, you deserve to get paid. If he won't agree, he can go over do it for free.