Assisted living is a residence for the elderly or infirm who require help in performing some of the routine activities of daily living.

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) in California

Enhanced or Special Monthly Pension Aid and Attendance or Housebound

Table of Contents
What Is Assisted Living? Understanding Assisted Living
Paying for Assisted Living
Options for Assisted Living
Activities of Daily Living (ADLs)
Assisted living is a residence for older people or people with disabilities who require help with some of the routines of daily living as well as access to medical care when needed. While the majority of care facility admissions will be for the short term (less than a year), about a fifth will stay longer than five years.
Being able to perform ADLs while aging is directly linked to independent living, as physicians and adult care social workers use ADLs to determine if a person needs assisted living or to be placed in a nursing home. There are thousands of assisted living facilities in the U.S., many of them offering specialized services, so prospective residents have options depending on their circumstances and preferences.
Assisted living facilities generally provide meals, housekeeping, transportation, security, physical therapy, and activities for residents. Assisted living generally allows more independence and costs less than nursing home care, but is more expensive than an independent living facility.

Assisted Living

Custodial care is non-medical care recommended by a medical professional that helps individuals with their daily basic care, such as eating and bathing. 

Key Message and Tips for Providers: Adult Day Care

Custodial care is non-medical care that helps individuals with their activities of daily living (ADL), such as eating and bathing. Custodial care at home is typically covered only under long-term care (LTC) insurance, not by Medicaid, even though home care is cheaper than a nursing facility. Medicare will only offer coverage if two basic requirements are met: (1) The care is considered medically necessary and prescribed by a licensed physician or authorized medical personnel; and (2) the care is conducted by a healthcare provider who participates in Medicare. Custodial care for an individual is generally recommended by authorized medical personnel, but providers of custodial care are not required to be medical professionals. Medicare typically only pays for skilled care in a nursing facility that has a Medicare license and will only cover 100 days of nursing care.

Custodial Care

Eldercare refers to services older people often need for physical or mental impairment. Here's what it covers and costs, and how insurance can help.

Economic Impacts of Programs to Support Caregivers: Final Report

Eldercare is an umbrella term for a wide array of services intended to help older people live as comfortably and independently as possible. A comprehensive long-term care insurance policy, for example, may cover both skilled nursing care and custodial care in a home setting as well as in an assisted living facility or nursing home, up to certain limits. Genworth, a company that sells long-term care insurance, says that the national median hourly rate for homemaker services is $23.50, the daily rate for adult day health care is $74, and nursing home care daily rates are $255. People in need of eldercare may receive it in their own home or in a more formal institutional setting, such as an assisted living facility, a memory-care facility, or a full-service nursing home. For example, Medicaid will cover home health services and services in a skilled nursing facility.

Eldercare

Entrance fee can refer to a cost for continuing-care retirement communities; instead of buying a unit, residents pay an up-front fee and make monthly payments

The term "entrance fee" is commonly used in reference to an up-front cost for continuing-care retirement communities (CCRCs). Declining scale refunds, also known as amortizing entrance fees, specify a period during which the entrance fee can be refundable to the resident on a declining basis. The entrance fee amount varies widely, depending on the senior's need for care at the time of entry, the specific type of housing chosen, and other factors. Rather than purchasing a CCRC unit, residents typically pay a high entrance fee followed by regular monthly payments. Monthly charges can range from $3,000 to $5,000 but may increase as needs change.﻿﻿ These fees are dependent on a variety of factors, including the health of your loved one(s), the type of housing they choose, whether they rent or buy, the number of residents living in the facility, and the type of service contract.

Entrance Fee

Financial elder abuse involves taking advantage of older people, unfairly benefiting from their monetary resources, and exploiting their trust.

Under the Radar: New York State Elder Abuse Prevalence Study

Elder Abuse Facts: What are the effects of elder abuse?

Broken Trust: Elders, Family and Finances

CFPB Bulk Publications: Money Smart for Older Adults Resource Guide

Financial elder abuse involves taking advantage of older people and unfairly benefiting from their monetary resources. Warning signs of financial elder abuse include rapid account drawdowns or other unusual financial behavior, as well as new close friends who seem to know a lot about an older adult's personal and financial life. Individuals at risk for financial elder abuse include older adults who depend on personal care from others, those who recently lost a spouse who handled the finances, and those living in long-term care facilities. For example, family members who withhold needed care for an older relative or warn they’ll send that person to a nursing home unless they sign over financial assets are engaging in elder abuse. Tactics involved in financial elder abuse include the unauthorized use of an older person’s assets, gaining power of attorney by way of trickery, or engaging in fraud.

Financial Elder Abuse

Group home care is care provided to a group of people with similar needs or disabilities within a residence or a home-like facility. 

Group-home care is a type of care given to a group of people with similar disabilities within a residence. The term “group home care” is sometimes also used to refer to a facility or home-like location that is used to care for youths in foster care or who have special needs. Group-home care is often more affordable than in-home one-on-one care and may be subsidized in part by Medicare, Medicaid, or long-term care insurance policies. Group-home care can include both custodial care and care that is provided by skilled and medically trained professionals. Group-home care is a type of care given to a group of people with similar disabilities within a residence.

Group-Home Care

A nursing home resident trust fund is an account that is held on behalf of residents and is used to help them cover extra expenses.

Find and Compare Nursing Homes, Hospitals, and Other Providers Near You

A nursing home resident trust fund is an account that is held by a long-term care facility or senior care center on behalf of its residents and is used to help them cover any extra expenses they incur. A nursing home resident trust fund is an account that is held by a long-term care facility or senior care center on behalf of its residents and is used to help them cover any extra expenses they incur. Nursing home resident trust funds are intended to allow their residents some control over their own finances and access to petty cash, even if they are mentally or physically incapacitated. If the resident leaves the home or dies, any unspent funds must be returned to the resident or the resident’s estate within 30 days. Nursing homes are required to offer residents trust funds, but they cannot require residents to deposit money in them.

Senior Care

More in Personal Finance

Terms in Senior Care