Assisted Living

Assisted Living 

People approaching or at retirement age often wonder: What is assisted living? This refers to specific communities for seniors that can and want to live independently, but require some assistance with daily chores. This assistance may mean help with household chores, meal preparation, mobility, personal care aid, medication assistance and socialization needs. 

Most assisted living communities provide transportation and group activities as well. Each community is slightly different, and interested parties should contact the communities for information. They will be able to assess your or your family member's current assisted living level and needs. There is likely a perfect senior assisted living community nearby.

Some individuals wonder: Who is eligible for assisted living? Each community has their own guidelines for which patients would benefit from the services that they provide. In general, most assisted living communities cater to seniors that need some help to remain independent. 

Many communities offer three healthy and restaurant quality meals per day. Someone will change linens and perform some housekeeping as well. Some residents of these communities require some assistance with bathing or dressing and a staff member can assist with this, along with reminders to take medication. There are usually aides to help with mobility too.

The costs of assistant living communities vary according to location. Washington, DC has one the highest price rates at around $80,000 annually which comes to about $6,700 per month. States in the southeast are significantly cheaper. 

Most are about $42,000 to $49,000 annually and $3,330 to $4,500 per month. Florida, Louisiana, North Dakota and Alabama have the lowest rates generally, while Maryland, Maine, Massachusetts and New Jersey report the highest monthly rates. These estimated costs vary per community, and each community has differing rates for different services offered. It is wise to check into these assisted living options early to better plan for life after retirement.

The most common question that senior citizen assisted living communities get is: How do you pay for assisted living? Generally, government programs like SSI/SSD and medicaid do not pay for assisted living. The residents usually pay most of the costs. Some individuals have specific insurance or savings funds dedicated just for this reason. While these costs may seem steep to many, it needs to be broken down in costs. 

Most people have expenses per month and year that they pay for separately, like rent, mortgage and/or property taxes. Each month individuals usually pay for utilities, food, medicine, transportation costs, upkeep costs for property with additional clothing and incidental expenses.

To put assisted living costs in perspective, individuals should calculate all of their monthly and annual expenses together. Then they will grasp their yearly expenses. Assisted living communities cover much of these expenses in their monthly rate. Most individuals do have to pay for their medication. Each community usually has a one time payment required before moving in. This is usually between $500 to $1500. Assisted living can offer seniors many services and convenient location with additional amenities.