What is the Cost of Care?
Who Really Pays?
The cost of long-term care varies according to where you receive that care and by the type of care needed. Regardless, it will likely far exceed any other major lifetime expense you have experienced and force a reallocation of both your income and assets. This creates problems as none of that money was earmarked to pay for long-term care, meaning that using it will disrupt every plan you created to secure financial viability during retirement.
It is a common misperception among Americans that Medicare, health insurance or Medicaid will cover long-term care costs. Medicare and traditional health insurance are designed to pay for doctor and hospital bills, not the custodial care associated with long-term care. To be eligible under Medicaid, guidelines require that you must first become impoverished – paying for care out of pocket and spending down assets. As a result, relying on Medicare, Medicaid or other government programs will either not be an option or fall short of expectations.
To learn more about the cost of care and the funding options available, click the link below to read “Straight Talk About Common Misperceptions: Money Matters”.
The national average costs for extended care in the United States (in 2021).3
Assisted living facility
$4,500
per month (for a one-bedroom unit)
Nursing Home
$7,800
per month (semi-private room)
Nursing Home
$8,910
per month (private room)
3 Cost of Care Trends and Insights, Genworth, 2022
4 Assumes $27.00 per hour, four hours per day, 3 days per week
5 Assumes $78 per day, five days a week
6 Diane Omdahl, Forbes,“Warning: Medicare Does Not Pay for Long-Term Care”, January 2023
