Thousands of home-health-care aides who make it possible for sick or frail patients to remain at home began a three-day strike yesterday, demanding a "living wage" of at least $10 an hour. Workers say they can barely live on the $7 hourly wage and are seeking $10 an hour plus health benefits. The 23,000 aides are employed by 26 New York City agencies. Union leaders asserted that the strike was highly effective, saying that 12,000 home care aides - nearly all black and Hispanic women - demonstrated yesterday at a Midtown rally in which Senator Charles E. Schumer and Howard Dean, the former Vermont governor and Democratic presidential candidate, took part.[more] and [more]