LTC Options - Assisted Living

Assisted Living

Assisted living is designed for people who want to live in a community setting and who need or expect to need help functioning, but who do not need as much care as they would receive at a nursing home. Some assisted living facilities are quite small--with as few as 25 residents--while some can accommodate 120 or more units.

Residents often live in their own apartments or rooms, but enjoy the support services that a community setting makes possible, such as:

  • Up to three meals a day
  • Assistance with personal care
  • Help with medications, housekeeping and laundry
  • 24-hour security and onsite staff for emergencies
  • Social programs

There are numerous types of facility-based programs that provide a range of long-term care services. Some facilities provide only housing and related housekeeping, but many also include help managing medications, assistance with personal care, supervision and special programs for individuals with Alzheimer's disease, or 24-hour nursing care.

The services available in each facility are often regulated by the state in which the facility operates (for example, some states do not allow some types of facilities to include residents who are wheelchair bound or who cannot exit the facility on their own in an emergency). Facility-based care is known by a wide variety of names, including board and care, assisted living, adult foster care, Continuing Care Retirement Communities (CCRCs), and nursing homes.

2009 Average Assisted Living Costs:

$3,131 a month for a one-bedroom unit. That's $37,572 per year.

The cost of assisted living varies widely, depending in part upon the services needed by the resident and the amenities provided by the facility.

Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (www.longtermcare.gov)