The Senate Special Committee on Aging is looking into quality and cost issues in Assisted Living Facilities, reports Jordan Rau for KFF Health News. But, the federal government does not regulate these facilities, even though it pays for them in some cases for people with Medicaid. It’s not likely that Congress will enact legislation to regulate them.
More than 800,000 Americans live in an Assisted Living Facility (ALF) today. ALF residents include people who can’t bathe themselves or feed themselves. People with dementia. People unable to walk unassisted.
The cost of living in an ALF is prohibitive for most Americans, typically around $4,500 a month, way more than the typical Social Security check. In cases where residents need substantial amounts of care, the cost can be $10,000 a month. Some facilities impose additional charges for basic services. One ALF charges $93 a month simply to order medications for its residents.
Medicare does not cover ALFs. And, only 20 percent of ALFs accept Medicaid patients. But, one argument for federal oversight of ALFs is that the federal government spends more than $10 billion dollars on these ALF residents.
What services do people get for their money in an ALF? They should get assistance with activities of daily living. However, staffing levels in ALFs are too often low and workers can be poorly trained.
Today, it’s up to each state to regulate ALFs. Given that few states have the will, the skill, the power and the resources to oversee these facilities, many patients in these facilities are not getting quality care.
Monitoring of ALFs is inconsistent across states. And, data is hard to secure if you want to understand how different ALFs operate. Federal oversight is needed to protect ALF residents across the US.
Richard Molloy, who runs the Long Term Care Community Coalition, explains that “too many [long term care facilities] take in or retain residents for whom they are unable to provide safe care and dignified living conditions. Too many residents and families are at risk for financial exploitation and even fraud.”
Here’s more from Just Care:
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