At its 573rd plenary session (held on 26 and 27 October 2022) the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) adopted opinion SOC/730: “The role of family members caring for people with disabilities and older persons: the explosion of the phenomenon during the pandemic.” The EESC expressed its concern at the living conditions of people who provide long-term care for relatives with disabilities, as well as chronic and degenerative diseases, whilst also noting that the situation had worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic, making structural measures in social policies and services vital. In addition, the opinion noted that the majority of informal carers are women, who who are not reimbursed for their work and who are are more vulnerable to falling into poverty. Furthermore, the EESC emphasisesd the need to establish a common definition of the role and the situation of a family member providing long-term care for a relative with a disability, whilst also calling for public policies to do more to provide support for caregivers. The full opinion of the EESC is available at: https://ec.europa.eu/newsroom/sante/items/758726/en
