Dependency (Ages <18 or >64) in South Dakota

South Dakota

Parents often report that children bring them happiness or meaning; however, parenting can also bring both emotional and financial stress. A 2017 study found that raising a child from birth to age 17 cost a family an average of $233,610 (in 2015 dollars); since then, new analyses that account for higher inflation rates estimate the cost has risen sharply to $310,605 (in 2022 dollars). 

Similarly, caring for an aging parent can be emotionally and financially draining. Providing unpaid care for a parent is becoming more common. In 2025, there were an estimated 63 million caregivers in the United States, about half of whom were caring for a parent or a parent-in-law. Approximately 2.5 million adults are caring for both a child and an aging parent, known as the sandwich generation.

Female-headed households with no spouse present make up a significantly larger proportion of households with children compared with male-headed households with no spouse present. Additionally, women make up more than 60% of all caregivers.

Government programs such as food assistance, housing subsidies and working-family tax credits can help low-income parents provide necessities for their children. Keeping low-income families above the poverty line has been shown to help children succeed later in life. The Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) can help cover medical expenses for children whose parents cannot afford health insurance. 

Financial assistance programs also exist for elders — Medicare and Medicaid are the most well-known, but there are many others. The U.S. Administration on Aging’s Eldercare Locator is a resource for local services.

Other financial assistance options for families caring for children or older adults include the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), public housing, housing choice vouchers, the Section 504 Home Repair Program and the Weatherization Assistance Program.

AARP and National Alliance for Caregiving. Caregiving in the US 2025. Washington, DC: AARP Public Policy Institute, July 24, 2025. https://doi.org/10.26419/ppi.00373.001.

Hansen, Thomas. “Parenthood and Happiness: A Review of Folk Theories Versus Empirical Evidence.” Social Indicators Research 108, no. 1 (August 1, 2012): 29–64. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-011-9865-y.

Lei, Lianlian, Amanda N. Leggett, and Donovan T. Maust. “A National Profile of Sandwich Generation Caregivers Providing Care to Both Older Adults and Children.” Journal of the American Geriatrics Society 71, no. 3 (March 2023): 799–809. https://doi.org/10.1111/jgs.18138.

Lino, Mark, Kevin Kuczynski, Nestor Rodriguez, and TusaRebecca Schap. Expenditures on Children by Families, 2015. Miscellaneous Report No. 1528-2015. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion, January 2017. https://fns-prod.azureedge.us/sites/default/files/resource-files/crc2015-march2017.pdf.

Reinhard, Susan C., Selena Caldera, Ari Houser, and Rita B. Choula. Valuing the Invaluable: 2023 Update. Insight on the Issues. Washington, D.C.: AARP Public Policy Institute, March 8, 2023. https://doi.org/10.26419/ppi.00082.006.

Sherman, Arloc, and Tazra Mitchell. Economic Security Programs Help Low-Income Children Succeed over Long Term, Many Studies Find. Washington, D.C.: Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, July 17, 2017. https://www.cbpp.org/research/poverty-and-inequality/economic-security-programs-help-low-income-children-succeed-over.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Parents Under Pressure: The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory on the Mental Health & Well-Being of Parents. Publications and Reports of the Surgeon General. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Surgeon General, 2024.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK606667/.