Are you reaching retirement? Then, perhaps, you’ve already looked into the affordability of long-term care, and – well – it’s not as affordable as you thought. If you’re looking to get the most out of your retirement budget, then you may want to stray away from these 15 most expensive states for long-term care, as of 2017.

This article is brought to you by Think Advisor, and it was written by Marlene Y. Satter. You can read the full article here.


Genworth’s annual study on the cost of care nationwide, which includes home care, assisted living facilities, etc., is not reassuring

The price of long-term care insurance is high—for everyone involved. Not just the patient but also the caregivers pay in more than money to make sure that the person in need of care is given the best care they can manage.

In this year’s version of Genworth Financial’s annual study on the cost of care nationwide—not just in nursing homes, which are less and less on the forefront, but also care provided at home, adult day care and assisted living facilities—the news is not reassuring. Costs have risen steadily, with those for licensed homemakers—those who provide what the study calls “hands-on personal care” for patients still in their homes—rising the fastest, increasing 6.17% just since last year.

And of course since people would prefer to stay in their homes, that’s going to hit a lot of people hard.

Less-skilled “homemaker care,” such as cooking, cleaning and running errands (not included in the breakdown that follows) has risen pretty quickly as well, increasing by 4.75% since last year. But both versions of homemaker assistance are at the low end on the price scale, coming in at $21 for homemaker care and $22 for licensed homemaker care. The big bucks are elsewhere.

They may not have risen as quickly percentage-wise as the two already mentioned, but adult day care increased by 2.94% since last year to a national median rate of $70 per day. Assisted living facilities now average a median monthly rate of $3,750, an increase of 3.36% from last year, while nursing homes, at an increase of 5.50% for a private room, now run a median daily rate of $267. No matter how you look at it, that’s a lot of money.

And caregivers often sacrifice their own financial well-being to care for their family members, forking over an average of $10,000 out of their own pockets for expenses that range from household expenses, personal items, or transportation services to payment of informal caregivers or LTC facilities.

A whopping 62% are paying for these expenses out of their own retirement funds; 45% have seen those costs cut their basic quality of living; and 38% have cut the amount they devote to savings and retirement to meet the costs of care.

And another sad side effect of all this stress is that 27% say it’s had a negative impact on their relationship with the person they’re caring for.

The penalty for all this devotion is that absences, reduced hours and chronic tardiness can end up cutting a caregiver’s pay. About a half of caregivers estimate that they lost approximately a third of their income.

Check out the 15 most expensive states for LTC.

Seven Foot Knoll Lighthouse at the Inner Harbor in Baltimore.

15. Maryland

Average Annual LTC Cost: $60,305

  • Adult day care: $2,150
  • Licensed home care: $52,281
  • Assisted living: $49,800
  • Nursing home (private room): $118,990

Prospect Terrace Park in Providence.

14. Rhode Island

Average Annual LTC Cost: $60,789

  • Adult day care: $19,500
  • Licensed home care: $57,772
  • Assisted living: $61,860
  • Nursing home (private room): $104,025

Hollywood Blvd in Los Angeles.

13. California

Average Annual LTC Cost: $61,239

  • Adult day care: $20,020
  • Licensed home care: $57,200
  • Assisted living: $51,300
  • Nursing home (private room): $116,435

Seattle Sea Seahawks Fans (Photo: AP)

12. Washington

Average Annual LTC Cost: $61,704

  • Adult day care: $16,900
  • Licensed home care: $60,632
  • Assisted living: $55,920
  • Nursing home (private room): $113,362

Skier on the slopes at a Killington Resort. (Photo: AP)

11. Vermont

Average Annual LTC Cost: $63,139

  • Adult day care: $34,320
  • Licensed home care: $57,200
  • Assisted living: $49,527
  • Nursing home (private room): $111,508

State Capitol in Bismarck. (Photo: AP)

10. North Dakota

Average Annual LTC Cost: $64,010

  • Adult day care: $25,480
  • Licensed home care: $63,972
  • Assisted living: $36,219
  • Nursing home (private room): $130,367

Lobster boats in Portland.

9. Maine

Average Annual LTC Cost: $64,423

  • Adult day care: $28,080
  • Licensed home care: $53,768
  • Assisted living: $58,680
  • Nursing home (private room): $117,165

Times Square, New York City.

8. New York

Average Annual LTC Cost: $65,852

  • Adult day care: $20,800
  • Licensed home care: $54,340
  • Assisted living: $47,850
  • Nursing home (private room): $140,416

The Corbin Covered Bridge in Newport, New Hampshire. (Photo: AP)

7. New Hampshire

Average Annual LTC Cost: $66,044

  • Adult day care: $18,720
  • Licensed home care: $60,357
  • Assisted living: $58,260
  • Nursing home (private room): $126,838

Old Capitol building in Dover.

6. Delaware

Average Annual LTC Cost: $68,472

  • Adult day care: $18,850
  • Licensed home care: $50,908
  • Assisted living: $72,180
  • Nursing home (private room): $131,948

Atlantic City Beach.

5. New Jersey

Average Annual LTC Cost: $68,833

  • Adult day care: $23,400
  • Licensed home care: $52,624
  • Assisted living: $69,732
  • Nursing home (private room): $129,575

Waikiki shoreline in Honolulu.

4. Hawaii

Average Annual LTC Cost: $71,820

  • Adult day care: $18,200
  • Licensed home care: $59,488
  • Assisted living: $51,000
  • Nursing home (private room): $158,593

A statue of the Spirit of Victory in Bushnell Park in Hartford. (Photo: AP)

3. Connecticut

Average Annual LTC Cost: $72,671

  • Adult day care: $20,800
  • Licensed home care: $52,624
  • Assisted living: $55,200
  • Nursing home (private room): $162,060

Beacon Hill in Boston.

2. Massachusetts

Average Annual LTC Cost: $73,307

  • Adult day care: $16,900
  • Licensed home care: $59,488
  • Assisted living: $67,188
  • Nursing home (private room): $149,650

Crabbers on the fishing grounds in southeast Alaska. (Photo: AP)

1. Alaska

Average Annual LTC Cost: $117,800

  • Adult day care: $43,709
  • Licensed home care: $63,492
  • Assisted living: $72,000
  • Nursing home (private room): $292,000

You can read the full article here.

Source:

Satter M. (2 October 2017). “15 Most Expensive States for Long-Term Care: 2017” [Web Blog Post]. Retrieved from address https://www.thinkadvisor.com/2017/10/02/15-most-expensive-states-for-long-term-care-2017