With the aging baby boomer population in the United States approaching 80 million, long term care is becoming an increasingly important issue in this country. As Americans continue to live longer, millions will face the prospect of needing or providing long term care at some point in their lives.
Long term care covers a broad spectrum from nursing home care for those with complex needs, to adult day health care and assisted living facilities, to home care.
While the costs associated with each type of care vary greatly, they can add up quickly. In just a few short years, families can deplete their savings as they pay for a loved one’s increasingly expensive care out of their own pockets.
12 million: Number of Americans expected to need long term care by 2020.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, “National Clearinghouse for Long-Term Care Information,” updated October 200878 percent: Percentage of Americans who prefer to receive long term care in the home. 18 percent choose assisted living, and 2 percent choose a nursing home.
America Talks: Protecting Our Families’ Financial Futures, an online survey of 2,939 U.S. consumers, conducted between January 12-15, 2010, by Age Wave/Harris Interactive, and sponsored by the Genworth Financial companies.$87,345: The California median cost of one year in a private nursing home room.* Based on the average length of stay in a nursing home of 2.8 years,** a person needing care today would need $210,532 for a private nursing home room.
* Genworth 2010 Cost of Care Survey, conducted by CareScout® ** Genworth claims49 percent: The national median cost of one year in a private nursing home room ($75,190)* is 49 percent more than the median household income in the United States ($50,303).**
* Genworth 2010 Cost of Care Survey, conducted by CareScout® ** U.S. Census 2008$19: The national median hourly rate for a licensed home health aide in the U.S. Based on a 44-hour work week, the cost per year for a home health aide is $43,472.*
* Genworth 2010 Cost of Care Survey, conducted by CareScout®
83 million: Estimated population of Americans who qualify for long term care insurance.* More than 76 million** have yet to purchase a stand-alone long term care insurance product.
* U.S. Census 2006 and internal Genworth sources ** LIMRA 2008 Estimate