While the national annual median cost of long-term care services
increased across the board this year, costs in Michigan for
facility-related care services essentially stayed flat since 2020,
while increases in costs for home care services surpassed national
trends. Nationally, labor market shifts drove increased wages and
COVID-19 intensified providers’ existing challenges to meet the
increasing demand for long-term care services, according to
Genworth’s 2021 Cost of Care Survey.
National 2021 data shows a continuation of the upward trajectory
in long-term care costs, though this year presented unique
challenges as patients and providers adjusted to broader economic
shifts and the effects of COVID-19. This year’s Cost of Care Survey
shows national annual median costs increased across all provider
types and increased more substantially for certain settings –
assisted living facilities (4.65%), home health aides (12.5%),
homemaker services (10.64%), and skilled nursing facilities (1.96%
for a semi-private room and 2.41% for a private room).
While labor costs are likely to remain a significant driver of
future cost increases, providers indicated that elevated costs
associated with PPE and other COVID-19 protocols such as testing,
vaccination status tracking, and quarantining are likely to subside
as we make continued progress on reducing COVID-19 case
numbers.
The chart below shows how the cost of care in Michigan compares
with national trends and the previous year. To see how costs have
risen over a 5- or 10-year period, see the trend charts on
www.genworth.com/costofcare.
Annual Median Cost of Long-Term Care Support
Services for Michigan
Michigan
National
Care Category
2021 Annual Cost
Change Since 20206
State Rank (High/Low)7
2021 Annual Cost
Change Since 20206
Homemaker Services
$66,3522
21%
18th
$59,4882
10.64%
Home Health Aide
$66,3522
16%
20th
$61,7762
12.5%
Adult Day Health Care
$20,8003
-17%
29th
$20,2803
5.41%
Assisted Living Facilities1
$51,0004
1%
28th
$54,0004
4.65%
Nursing Home Semi-Private Room
$109,1355
1%
22nd
$94,9005
1.96%
Nursing Home Private Room
$118,2605
1%
22nd
$108,4055
2.41%
1-7 Genworth Cost of Care Survey,
conducted by CareScout®. Represents the year-over-year growth rate
based on Genworth Cost of Care Surveys conducted from 2020 to 2021.
The rate can be influenced by a number of factors such as random
variation in samples, different sample sizes and new surveyed
providers.
1-7 Additional Genworth Cost of Care
Survey supporting table footnotes located at the end of the
release.
“The Cost of Care Survey has once again underscored the
importance of planning ahead for long-term care costs and
highlighted the need to consider where and how a person wants to
receive care,” said Brian Haendiges, President and CEO, Genworth
U.S. Life Insurance. “Further, our Beyond Dollars research shows
that having a long-term care plan can help alleviate some of the
emotional, financial, and physical stress of finding care for a
loved one. Genworth is working to provide people with the products,
services, and solutions to help navigate the challenges of
aging—and our annual Cost of Care Survey and the accompanying
interactive website are incredibly useful tools to help families
assess care options as well as the costs associated with those
options. It is a great first step to making a plan in advance of
when you will need it.”
Why Costs Are on the Rise
Since Genworth started tracking the cost of care in 2004, the
cost for long-term care services has been on the rise driven by
supply and demand. Every day until 2030, 10,000 Baby Boomers will
turn 658 and seven out of ten of them will require long-term care
services and support at some point9. The level of care needed by
this rapidly aging population has itself increased over the
years10. The high turnover rate and insufficient supply of
professionals to meet this growing demand pre-date the COVID-19
pandemic11, but are now amplified as those providing care on the
frontline must consider their own risk of exposure against
increasing opportunities for competitive salaries, training, and
advancement in alternative lines of work.
“Even more than in prior years, the increased demand for labor
and the current national labor shortage have made it more difficult
to hire and retain long-term care professionals,” said Brian
Haendiges, President and CEO, Genworth U.S. Life Insurance. “Those
challenges are coupled with the broader trend of growing wages and
increases in the cost of doing business associated with regulatory,
employee certification, and equipment costs, which have all been
exacerbated by the pandemic.”
“There is fierce competition for a limited number of care
professionals, and many are leaving the industry in pursuit of
higher paying jobs or because of concerns about potential exposure
to COVID-19 while on the job. The costs of recruiting, retaining,
and training new care professionals is likely to remain high as we
approach 2023,” Haendiges said.
While labor costs are likely to remain high, conversations with
care services providers indicate that elevated costs associated
with PPE and other COVID-19 protocols such as testing, vaccination
status tracking, and quarantining may subside as we make continued
progress on reducing COVID-19 case numbers. However, it is likely
that wide variability in care costs for markets across the U.S.
will continue due to state and local regulations, demographics, and
population shifts.
Genworth’s Cost of Care Planning Resources
Genworth is committed to helping people learn about, understand
the challenges, and appropriately plan for the cost of long-term
care services. The following are resources that can help with the
planning process:
- Cost of Care Survey tool to help calculate the median cost of
long-term care services in your area, as well as trend charts and
tables ranking states from the highest to lowest cost in each care
category.
- Beyond Dollars research, which highlights how caregiving
impacts families, communities, and society.
- Guides to understanding Medicare and Medicaid.
- Conversation starters to help begin the discussion with your
loved ones about potential long-term care needs and issues with
aging.
- In-person and online simulations and videos to help people
understand the potential physical effects of aging.
- Information about paying for long-term care services for
yourself or a loved one.
- Stories from real families about their experiences with long
term care.
About Genworth’s 18th Annual Cost of Care Survey
Genworth’s annual Cost of Care Survey, one of the most
comprehensive studies of its kind, contacted more than 67,000 long
term care providers nationwide to complete almost 15,000 surveys
for nursing homes, assisted living facilities, adult day health
facilities and home care providers from June to November 2021. The
survey includes 437 regions based on the Metropolitan Statistical
Areas, defined by the Office of Management and Budget as a core
area containing a substantial population nucleus, together with
adjacent communities having a high degree of economic and social
integration with that core. However, due to statistical variance
actual costs for long-term care services may differ from the
projected cost based on ZIP Code or location. 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.
About Genworth Financial
Genworth Financial, Inc. (NYSE: GNW) is a Fortune 500 provider
of products, services and solutions that help families address the
financial challenges of aging. Headquartered in Richmond, Virginia,
we apply our nearly 150 years of experience each day to helping
people navigate caregiving options and fund their long term care
needs. Genworth is also the parent company of publicly traded Enact
Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: ACT), a leading U.S. mortgage insurance
provider. For more information on Genworth, please visit
https://www.genworth.com/. From time to time Enact separately
releases financial and other information about its operations. This
information can be found at https://ir.enactmi.com/.
Footnotes:
1 Referred to as Residential Care facilities in California. 2
Based on 44 hours per week by 52 weeks. 3 Based on 5 days per week
by 52 weeks. 4 Based on 12 months of care, private, one bedroom. 5
Based on 365 days of care. 6 Based on 2020 and 2021 Annual
Percentage Change. 7Ranking based on the highest to lowest cost per
state for each care category. 8 “2020 Census Will Help Policymakers
Prepare for the Incoming Wave of Aging Boomers”
(https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2019/12/by-2030-all-baby-boomers-will-be-age-65-or-older.html),
site accessed 1/25/22. 9 2021 U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services
(https://acl.gov/ltc/basic-needs/how-much-care-will-you-need), site
accessed 1/25/22. 10 Genworth Beyond Dollars 2021
(https://pro.genworth.com/riiproweb/productinfo/pdf/682801BRO.pdf),
site accessed 1/25/22. 11 2020 “The Ballooning Costs of Long Term
Care,” American Action Forum,
(https://www.americanactionforum.org/research/the-ballooning-costs-of-long-term-care/),
site accessed 1/25/22.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220216005184/en/
Media: Danielle Bolt Danielle.bolt@genworth.com
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