Secretary Thompson said the grants will be used by states to run programs that provide critical support, including home and community-based services, to help families maintain their caregiver roles. It is the largest new support program under the Older Americans Act since 1972, when Congress established nutritional programs to serve the elderly.

"We must do all we can to ensure that our older residents can remain at home and receive care from loved ones for as long as possible," Secretary Thompson said. "This money will allow states to develop systems of support to ease the burden on hundreds of thousands of family caregivers nationwide."

In November 2000, Congress created the new caregiver program as part of the Older Americans Act Amendments of 2000. The principal component of the program consists of grants to states distributed through a congressionally mandated formula. Other components include innovative competitive grants and a new Native American caregiver support program. Information about these components will be announced in the near future.

In January, the department's Administration on Aging (AoA) issued comprehensive program guidance to states and has been providing technical assistance as states provide needed information for the grant program. AoA's Web site includes a description of the program and a list of frequently asked questions about the Older Americans Act and the new caregiver program (http://www.aoa.gov).

"States will work closely with their local area agencies on aging and other service providers in the community to put into place program services," said Norman L. Thompson, acting principal deputy assistant secretary for aging. "Among those services are information and assistance, training, counseling and support, and respite opportunities to allow caregivers to take short breaks from their often stressful daily caregiving responsibilities."

A list of state and territorial allocations under the grant program is below.

National Family Caregiver Support Program grant allocations

Alabama $1,739,242 Alaska 564,300 Arizona 1,956,318 Arkansas 1,125,177 California 11,359,851 Colorado 1,245,978 Connecticut 1,509,874 Delaware 564,300 District of Columbia 564,300 Florida 8,721,584 Georgia 2,305,333 Hawaii 564,300 Idaho 564,300 Illinois 4,732,281 Indiana 2,331,599 Iowa 1,391,731 Kansas 1,139,251 Kentucky 1,516,043 Louisiana 1,535,025 Maine 564,300 Maryland 1,843,229 Massachusetts 2,766,510 Michigan 3,848,418 Minnesota 1,875,522 Mississippi 1,031,878 Missouri 2,337,876 Montana 564,300 Nebraska 732,458 Nevada 603,803 New Hampshire 564,300 New Jersey 3,496,629 New Mexico 594,433 New York 7,612,334 North Carolina 2,916,628 North Dakota 564,300 Ohio 4,739,721 Oklahoma 1,388,901 Oregon 1,396,517 Pennsylvania 6,097,763 Rhode Island 564,300 South Carolina 1,421,896 South Dakota 564,300 Tennessee 2,083,754 Texas 6,147,379 Utah 573,563 Vermont 564,300 Virginia 2,354,500 Washington 2,083,944 West Virginia 854,259 Wisconsin 2,203,655 Wyoming 564,300 American Samoa 70,538 Guam 282,150 Northern Marianas 70,538 Puerto Rico 1,203,867 Virgin Islands 282,150