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With the aging of the population and the growth in the number of elderly, the demand for long-term care will increase in the United States. States are planning for the growing numbers who will need long-term care, and considering how to best accommodate them. Most publicly financed long-term care is provided by nursing homes, but over the past decade many communities and states have experimented with and developed alternatives to nursing home care. This StateLine examines one option for long-term care: assisted living facilities. It describes the efforts of four states to develop assisted living facilities, particularly for low-income residents of rural areas. There is no standard definition of assisted living. Generally, however, assisted living facilities provide residents with care and supervision in a home-like setting. This long-term care option combines some elements of nursing home care with those of community-based care. Personal care and health-related services are available in a residential setting to meet scheduled and unscheduled needs of residents. The concept of assisted living is becoming more popular. It appeals to people who need some day-to-day help, but still want to preserve their independence. Long-term care providers recognize that consumers want choices. By making alternative forms of care available, they attract more people. This is particularly important in existing facilities that have low occupancy rates. From a financial perspective, assisted living is often viewed as a potential lower-cost alternative to nursing home care. The average annual cost of long-term individual care in a nursing home is $41,000,[i] compared to $22,000 annually in assisted living facilities.[ii], [iii] Since states pay a substantial share of publicly financed long-term care, there is much interest in examining alternatives to nursing home care.
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