One of the great challenges facing today’s caregivers for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities is balancing the responsibility of meeting their loved one’s present needs with establishing a plan to ensure their continued care and supports in the future.

In order to fully understand the many issues faced by caregivers across the country, The Arc of the United States and the University of Minnesota conducted the Family and Individual Needs for Disability Supports (FINDS) survey. More than 3,000 individual caregivers completed the survey, the results of which reveal a national community of family members and friends who are already stretched thin by current caregiving duties and who have little to no plans for how to support their loved one in the future.