Assisted Living comprises about 750,000 residents in the US and is the step before nursing homes for some seniors. Most states do not regulate assisted living facilities (while they do nursing homes) and these facilities are perfect for residents that need custodial care (help with bathing, dressing, and etc.). The US Dept. of Health & Human Services did a thorough review of assisted living communities and published the results in 2012 and here are the highlights:

• The typical resident is a 87 year old female who needs assisting getting bathed and dressed and has two or three chronic diseases (is. high blood pressure, dementia, heart disease, depression, arthritis, osteoporosis, diabetes, COPD, cancer or stroke). 
• 70% of these patients come from a private home or apartment
• 59% of these patients will move to a nursing home while 33% will pass away and the rest will usually move to another assisted living community.
• The average length of stay in an assisted living facility is 22 months.

What does an Assisted Living Facility provide and cost

• The residence will provide three meals a day in a cafeteria / restaurant type and meals can be delivered to their rooms, but can’t become routine. 
• Almost all facilities provide transportation, recreation, housekeeping and laundry, and custodial services (bathing and dressing)
• Assisted Living Centers cost anywhere from $3,000 to $4,500 per month but you need to read fine print and get all costs written down upfront. Some communities charge a monthly fee with many services included and some do it “ala carte” style.

Golden Nugget: Difference between Assisted Living & Nursing Home – Assisted Living Patients usually need help bathing and sometimes dressing themselves, but normally can make it to the cafeteria for meals. When the resident becomes “room bound” or needs help most nights to get to the cafeteria, then it may be time to move to a nursing home.