RICHMOND, Va., Sept. 26, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- For the 70 percent
of people older than 65 who the experts say will need long term
care at some point in their lives1, the costs just
notched up again.
According to the Genworth 2017 Cost of Care Survey released
today, the annual median cost of long term care services increased
an average of 4.5 percent from 2016 to 2017, the second-highest
year-over-year increase for nursing homes and home care since the
study began in 2004 and nearly three times the 1.7 percent U.S.
rate of inflation.
Although the national median cost of receiving care rose
considerably across all care options during the last 12 months, the
increase was most pronounced for home health aides:
- Home health aide services, up 6.17% to $21.50/hour
- Homemaker services, up 4.75% to $21/hour
- Adult day health care services, up 2.94% to $70/day
- Assisted living facilities, up 3.36% to $123/day or $3,750/month
- Semi-private room nursing home care, up 4.44% to $235/day or $7,148/month
- Private room nursing home care, up 5.50% to $267/day or $8,121/month.
"The purpose of the study is to raise awareness about the cost
of aging and help start the conversation about planning for long
term care," said David O'Leary,
president and CEO of Genworth's US Life Division. "We know that
most people prefer to begin receiving long term care in their homes
and the good news is that home care is still more affordable than
nursing home care."
Labor shortage, tighter Medicare rules contribute to rising
care costs
After remaining flat for some time, the cost of care at home has
been escalating over the past two to three years. "That's due
to an increase in labor costs, caused by a shortage of caregivers,
increases in minimum wages in some states, and new health insurance
and overtime requirements on the part of some providers," said
Noreen Guanci, CEO and co-founder of
Long Term Solutions, which provides care coordination services and
nurse assessments for Genworth long term care insurance
claimants.
Nursing home costs are increasing due to a combination of higher
labor costs and tightened Medicare rules, which have resulted in
shortened hospital stays and sicker patients being sent to rehab
nursing homes for shorter stays, where costs have risen to cover
those chronic medical conditions, she said.
Labor costs also figure into the rising cost of assisted living
facilities. Room and board also has increased to accommodate
residents who are sicker, but not sick enough to require nursing
home care, and the luxurious accommodations that private payers
demand, she said.
Most consumers assume government will pay for care
In a companion consumer sentiment survey conducted in
conjunction with the 2017 Cost of Care Survey2,
two-thirds of respondents said they expect government programs to
cover all or part of their long term care costs. But those
consumers may be surprised to learn the facts about these
government programs.
Medicaid, the largest payor of long term care costs, has strict
income and functionality requirements.3 Medicare will
pay for limited nursing home care following a three-day hospital
stay, but only if the patient has been formally admitted to a
Medicare-certified nursing facility as an in-patient and not for
observation, as is increasingly the case. Medicare also does
not pay for home care, if skilled nursing care is not needed.
"Our population is aging, living longer, and not prepared,"
O'Leary said. "At Genworth we are focused on this issue every day
and know first-hand how aging impacts families. Our hope is that
people will take the first step by checking out our Cost of Care
website or app to start the conversation about planning for their
own long term care needs."
Resources for Understanding Care Financing Options
As costs continue to rise and traditional sources of government
funding become more restrictive, consumers can take advantage of
the following resources to educate themselves about the cost of
care and alternative funding options:
- Download Genworth's Cost of Care App from iTunes.
- To explore long term care financing options, please visit
genworth.com/longtermcare
- Beyond traditional insurance products, an underwritten single
premium immediate need annuity can be purchased by older, less
healthy Americans or their families to provide a guaranteed
lifetime source of income that can be used for any purpose
including, to pay for care or other expenses. Learn more
here: www.genworth.com/products/immediate-need-annuity.html.
About Genworth's 2017 Cost of Care Survey
Genworth's annual Cost of Care Survey is one of the most
comprehensive studies of its kind, covering more than 47,000
long-term care providers nationwide who complete surveys for
nursing homes, assisted living facilities, adult day health
facilities and home care providers. The survey includes 440 regions
which include all Metropolitan Statistical Areas defined by the
2015 Office of Management and Budget. Genworth annually surveys the
cost of long term care across the U.S. to help Americans plan for
the potential cost associated with the various types of long term
care available in their preferred location and setting. The survey
also provides state-specific cost of care data for all 50
states and Washington, D.C., and
comparison to the national median. CareScout®, part of
the Genworth Financial family of companies, has conducted the
survey since 2004. Located in Waltham, Massachusetts,
CareScout has specialized in helping families find long term care
providers nationwide since 1997. Genworth's 2017 Cost of Care
Survey was conducted during May and June
2017.
About Genworth's Companion Long Term Care Consumer Sentiment
Study
Genworth's companion Long Term Care Consumer Sentiment Study was
conducted in collaboration with J&K Solutions, LLC. The data
from this omnibus study was collected from an online survey from
Sept. 1-4, 2017. A
demographically representative sample of 1,200 adults ages 18 and
older across the United States
were surveyed, providing a 95 percent confidence level plus or
minus 3%. The sample followed the framework of the U.S.
Census data for age, gender, and region.
About Genworth Financial
Genworth Financial, Inc. (NYSE: GNW) is a Fortune 500 insurance
holding company committed to helping families achieve the dream of
homeownership and address the financial challenges of aging through
its leadership positions in mortgage insurance and long term care
insurance. Headquartered in Richmond,
Virginia, Genworth traces its roots back to 1871 and became
a public company in 2004. For more information,
visit genworth.com.
From time to time, Genworth releases important information via
postings on its corporate website. Accordingly, investors and other
interested parties are encouraged to enroll to receive automatic
email alerts and Really Simple Syndication (RSS) feeds regarding
new postings. Enrollment information is found under the "Investors"
section of genworth.com. From time to time, Genworth's
publicly traded subsidiaries, Genworth MI Canada Inc. and Genworth
Mortgage Insurance Australia Limited, separately release financial
and other information about their operations. This information can
be found
at http://genworth.ca and http://www.genworth.com.au.
1 "Who Needs Care?" longtermcare.gov., U.S.
Department of Health & Human Services, Feb. 21, 2017.
2 Genworth Cost of Care Companion Study, conducted
Sept. 1-4, 2017.
3 "Medicare, Medicaid & More," longtermcare.gov,
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Feb. 21, 2017.
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SOURCE Genworth Financial, Inc.