What We Will and Won't Say

The Care Letter writes for one person: a working professional in their 40s or 50s whose mother (or father, or grandfather, or aunt) just got the phone call, fall, ER visit, or diagnosis. We try to be the friend who's been through it before and is texting you back at 11pm with what to do next.

Most caregiver media doesn't sound that way. It sounds like AARP (helpful, but written for the 65+ reader). Or it sounds like a referral marketplace's blog (warm copy designed to capture your contact info). Or it sounds like a grief zine (sincere, but mostly emotional). We're trying to be different. These are the rules we hold ourselves to so we stay that way.

Six things we always do

1. We publish information, not advice. "Here's how Medicaid look-back works" is information. "Here's what you should do about your mom" is advice. We do the first; we send you to a qualified attorney for the second.
2. We tell you what something costs. In dollars. Memory care isn't "expensive" — it's $5,000 to $10,000 a month, more for memory care in major metros. Vague is unkind.
3. We name the gotcha. Every form, every benefit, every decision has the thing most people miss. We tell you the thing.
4. We always exit to a professional. Every issue and every guide ends with the kind of professional you should actually talk to before you act. Elder law attorney. Medicare broker. Licensed clinician. CPA. We are not a substitute for any of them.
5. We cite primary sources. When we say something about Medicaid look-back, we link to CMS or the state Medicaid agency. When we say something about caregiver tax deductions, we link to the IRS publication. Trust compounds; we want yours.
6. We disclose our money. Affiliate links, sponsorships, sponsored guides, directory listings — all labeled, always before you click, never after.

Six things we never do

1. We never tell you what to do in your specific situation. Your situation has details we don't have. A qualified professional should know those details before anyone recommends a course of action.
2. We never recommend specific Medicare plans by name. Federal rules on Medicare Advantage marketing are strict and exist for good reasons. We explain how Medicare works generally, and send "I need to pick a plan" readers to broker partners who handle CMS compliance on their side.
3. We never accept lead-generation percentages. Some directories charge providers a cut of every customer they send. We don't. Our directory listings are a flat annual fee. That's why we can be honest about why a provider appears in our directory: because they paid the same flat fee everyone else paid AND passed our editorial vetting. Not because we get a kickback on their business.
4. We never recommend a provider we wouldn't recommend to our own family. This is the Wirecutter standard, and it's the one we operate to.
5. We never use the phrase "loved one." It's a sentimentalized euphemism. The person we're talking about is your mom, your dad, your aunt, your grandfather. We use the actual word.
6. We never write "you should." If we're tempted, we rewrite the sentence as "here's how it works" or "here's what people typically consider" instead. The distinction matters, both editorially and legally.

On how we use AI

We use modern editorial tools, including AI assistance, to research overnight news, identify which stories matter most to working caregivers, and produce first drafts. Every issue is reviewed and approved by Jordan before send. The recommendations, the editorial judgments, the things we decide to include or leave out — those are Jordan's. The cost-efficient research and drafting that makes a twice-weekly cadence economically viable for an independent publication — that's the AI.

We disclose this because we think you deserve to know how the work gets done. We don't lead with it in our marketing because what we're selling is editorial trust, and the trust is in the review, not the production method.

When we get it wrong

We will get things wrong. The data will change before we update a page. We'll miss a state Medicaid rule revision. We'll publish a take that turns out to be incomplete. When that happens:

• Tell us. Reply to any issue or email jordan@thecareletter.com.
• We'll update the published page. Hub pages have a visible "last updated" date for exactly this reason.
• We'll note the correction. If the error is meaningful, we'll write a correction note in the next issue.

We'd rather get told we're wrong by a reader than get told we're wrong by a reader's lawyer.

The Care Letter publishes general educational information. It is not legal, medical, financial, or tax advice. Consult a qualified professional for guidance on your specific situation.