Average Cost of Private Nursing Home Room Tops $100,000 a Year

The median cost of a private room in a skilled nursing home in the United States is $102,200 a year ($280 a day), according to the 2019 Genworth Cost of Care Analysis. According to Genworth, this is an increase of approximately 3% over the last year and an increase of approximately 15% since 2014, when the median daily rate was $87,600 a year ($240 a day). The highest rates for a private room were found in Alaska, where the median cost is $362,628 a year ($994 a day). Oklahoma has the lowest rates with a median cost of $67,525 per year ($185 a day).
In California, the median cost of a private room in a skilled nursing home is $127,385 a year ($349 a day), which represents over a 4% increase over the last year. In the Los Angeles area, the median cost is $109,135 per year ($299 a day), which represents only a 1% increase over the last year. The median cost for a semi-private “shared” room in the Los Angeles area is $94,900 a year ($260 a day). The study also found that the median cost of an “in-home care aide” in the Los Angeles area was $27.50 per hour. It is conservatively anticipated that all of these rates will continue to increase at a rate of approximately 3% per year.
These numbers are concerning! This is especially true since the US Health and Human Services has estimated that 7 out of 10 seniors will require long term care assistance in their lifetime.
That being said, there is hope!
With proper planning there a relatively simple steps you can take to prepare for the potential costs of long term care. In California, the Medi-Cal program (our version of the Medicaid program) is available for qualified couples or individuals to help defray the high costs of skilled nursing care. Unfortunately, many people are misinformed about the eligibility criteria Medi-Cal uses to determine eligibility. Despite what you might have heard, you do not have to be destitute in order to qualify for Medi-Cal benefits. With the foundation of proper estate planning (i.e. the inclusion of specific “Medi-Cal Planning Language” in your Revocable Trust and Durable Power of Attorney documents), and with the guidance of a knowledgeable elder law attorney, it is legal to implement various planning techniques in order to qualify for Medi-Cal benefits and to minimize potential Medi-Cal recovery against the Medi-Cal beneficiary’s estate.
For more information please contact the Law Office of Sean D. Ethington at (661)295-4604 or visit our website at www.ElderLawSite.com.