Assisted living facilities are a boon to people with aged family members. These become even more important to people who can’t spare enough time for the care of their family members due to their job commitments.
Though there are lots of assisted living facilities to choose from, it is important to assess their suitability to meet requirements of the family members.
Here are 4 things to consider when choosing an assisted living facility.
- Cost
People with tight budgets need to consider the cost of the facility very carefully. According to the National Center for Assisted Living (NCAL), the national median monthly rates for assisted living are $4,000. The costs vary with the kind of services made available by the facility and the state where the facility is located.
Obviously, people requiring no specialized care would pay less than people who require such care. Assisted living facilities factor the kind of care that is provided to each person. The costs would be higher for more services and higher level of care. Typically, assisted living facilities provide a price chart commensurate with services provided.
Since the costs are known, it is prudent for people to consider the affordability diligently. People should also consider the future cost of providing the care.
2. Financing methods
The second aspect to consider is the means of financing the costs associated with assisted living. There are several ways that can help people to find funding that include the following
- Long-term care insurance
- Life insurance
- Medicaid
- Annuities
- Veteran benefits
- Other benefits from past commitments
Unfortunately, the benefits of the above are based on past payments. Typically, these may not suffice and therefore people will have to look for additional sources which could include
- Family support
- Monetizing assets such as real estate (reverse mortgage and renting)
- Loans
Thus, there are various sources available for people to explore.
- Services
As mentioned earlier, the costs vary with the services offered. Once people have zeroed in on the affordability, they can assess the services offered by various facilities. These could include typical services such as support for medication management, physical activity programs, housekeeping services and meal services. Facilities could also offer specialized services for the care of dementia, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, depression and heart patients.
Apart from the above, assisted living facilities can offer programs that can enhance the quality of life of their family members. These could include outings, music lessons, and pet therapy and computer classes. Another factor to be considered would be the possibility of upgrading to higher care as the family members age relentlessly and would require higher care. Thus, people can locate a facility that matches the requirements of their family members.
A final consideration is the safety record of the facility. It’s important to do some research online to assess whether the facility has had any legal cases brought against it for poor care or abuse. Sadly, these sorts of situations are not uncommon, advices attorney Jonathan Rosenfeld, who specializes in assisted living abuse cases.
- Size and location
These are very import for people to consider. Both family members and members requiring assisted living need to be close enough so that visits can be made easily. Meeting family members and fraternizing with them are important for the welfare of the family members placed in the assisted living facility. Thus, choosing a location which is nearby for all concerned would be a prudent move.
There are pros and cons of small size versus large size assisted living facilities. The size of the facility is also important that needs to be matched with the requirements of the family members and the affordability.
Thus, people can consider the above 4 aspects and arrive at a suitable assisted living facility for their family members.
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