Most people want their kids/elders to have better lives than the state could provide, but the option is always there. Nursing homes and foster care are both key

Most people want their kids/elders to have better lives than the state could provide, but the option is always there. Nursing homes and foster care are both key parts of the social safety net, and they get activated every day. Giving up your kids is pretty unambiguously seen as a serious personal failure, but having your parents in a nursing home paid by Medicare isn't even that unusual.