Metlife Mature Market Institute® Survey Shows Notable Increases for Nursing Homes, Assisted Living Communities, Adult Day Services & Home Care
Price rollbacks throughout the U.S. economy during the past year did not apply to long-term care service providers, according to the 2009 MetLife Market Survey of Nursing Home, Assisted Living, Adult Day Services, and Home Care Costs.
Private room nursing home rates rose 3.3% to $219 per day or $79,935 per year, while assisted living also rose 3.3% on average to $3,131 per month. Home health care aides now cost an average of $21 per hour, a 5% increase; adult day services run $67 per day, a 4.7% increase.
2009 City/State Highs and Lows
For nursing homes, the highest costs for a private room were reported in Alaska ($584/day) while the lowest were in Louisiana, Rest of State ($132/day). Assisted Living costs were highest in Wilmington, Delaware ($5,219/month) and lowest in North Dakota ($2,041/month). The highest Home Health Care Aide rates were $30 per hour in the Rochester, Minnesota area, while the lowest were reported in the Shreveport, Louisiana area at $13 per hour. Adult Day Services were highest in Vermont at $150 per day and lowest in Montgomery, Alabama at $27 per day.
2009 Average National Rates
The study, which groups Assisted Living Communities into three categories—”basic” (five or fewer services), “standard” (six to nine services) and “inclusive” (10 or more services)—notes differences from 2008 in the number of communities in each category.
More are classified in the middle “standard” range and fewer in the “basic” category.
Communities in the “standard” category include more services in their base rates, but, on average, also have higher base rates. The study also found that those who enter an Assisted Living Community with Alzheimer’s disease, or those who develop Alzheimer’s later, can expect to pay more for that care, with an average monthly cost of $4,435.
“These across-the-board increases may be surprising to many given the economy over the past year,” said Sandra Timmermann, Ed.D, director of the MetLife Mature Market Institute. ”But, while the Consumer Price Index (CPI) decreased overall during the past year, costs for medical care are 3.3% higher, which parallels our findings on long-term care. The change in pricing methods at some assisted living communities may be another factor, a warning to consumers to carefully compare prices at all long-term care service facilities by considering both the base price and the add-ins for additional services.”
Additional Long-Term Care Facts
About three-quarters (73%) of the home health care agencies surveyed provide Alzheimer’s training to their employees, and almost all (98%) agencies surveyed do not charge an additional fee for patients with Alzheimer’s. About one-quarter (27%) of the home health care agencies surveyed have a 24-hour or live-in rate. The average capacity at adult day service centers is 44. The average client-to-staff ratio is 6:1 with a maximum of 20:1.
The 2009 MetLife Market Survey of Nursing Home, Assisted Living, Adult Day Services, and Home Care Costs can be downloaded from www.maturemarketinstitute.com under “What’s New.” It can also be ordered by e-mailing maturemarketinstitute@metlife.com, or by writing to: MetLife Mature Market Institute, 57 Greens Farms Road, Westport, CT 06880.
October is Long Term Care Planning Month. I wonder how many people are actually planning? I wonder how many of the people who are planning are factoring in the increasing costs of long term care over time (or considering those costs at all)?
Thanks for the post, Denise.
.-= April´s last blog ..Planning & Awareness: 2 Goals =-.