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What Does Assisted Living Really Cost? Locate Texas Assisted Living Facilities

Assisted living facilities provide help with activities of daily living, such as bathing, dressing, using the bathroom, taking medicine, and getting to appointments. Residents often live in their own room or apartment within a building or group of buildings and have some or all of their meals together. Social and recreational activities are usually provided. Some assisted living facilities have on-site health services.

Costs for assisted living facilities in Texas vary widely depending on the size of the living areas, services provided, type of help needed, and where the facility is located.

Typically, Medicare and Medicaid do not cover assisted living. Residents usually pay monthly rent as well as additional fees for services. The typical cost of living in an assisted living facility ranges from $900 to $3,000 per month. Costs are often higher in urban areas or in upscale facilities.

The cost of living in a particular area, the facilities onsite amenities, and extent of services provided help dictate costs as you would expect. In addition, the base monthly rent also depends on whether the accommodations are semi-private or private rooms, suites sharing bathrooms, studios with or without kitchens and one, two, or three bedroom apartments.

The monthly rent is actually considered as room and board with daily meals provided, in addition to housekeeping, laundry and transportation services. Be sure to know whether 1, 2 or 3 meals are served, whether every day or just certain days of week and if snacks are offered. Actual square footage, room location i.e.distance from dining room, and desirable views may be cause for further price variation within each facility.

Once the base rent has been determined, don’t be fooled in to believing this is your total monthly expenditure. Most Assisted Living Facilities have some structure for levels of care established with a corresponding fee schedule. They might include a certain amount of care in this base rent limited to about 30 minutes/daily. The levels of care might be described as minimal, moderate, and maximal or as care assist and care enhanced.

A facility might use a numeric system from 1 to 3 or 1 to 5 based on a the number of Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) a person needs assistance with such as bathing, grooming, dressing, and medication monitoring. There have bee some who ascribe to a point system where the nurse assessing the resident subtracts points for his or her care deficiencies.

Regardless of the facility’s practice, it’s important to understand this ala-carte method of assigning levels of care with fee increments of $300-$400 for each level can add up to $2000 additional monthly costs. Most facilities to be very forthcoming in explaining their fee structures thoroughly so there will be no surprises later. It is in their best interest as well as the potential resident to understand what is included in the monthly rent and what is considered additional. Most facilities have additional charges for medications, personal hygiene and medical supplies.

Keep in mind that the monthly rent for most facilities includes utilities except for phone and perhaps cable TV. Remember you will no longer have the financial burden of homeowner’s insurance, property taxes, home maintenance and repairs.

What level of assistance do you need?

There are three kinds of assisted livng facilities — Type A, B, and C. Which type of facility you would reside in depends on how much assistance you would need in the event of an emergency. When you visit the facility, the staff should let you know if you meet the qualifications for their level of care.

• Type A facilities may only accept residents who are able to evacuate the premises unassisted, are able to follow directions under emergency conditions, and do not require routine attendance during nighttime sleeping hours.

• Type B facilities may accept residents who do not qualify for a Type A facility but only if these residents are not permanently bedfast.

• Type C facilities are four-bed facilities that meet the minimum standards and rules for enrollment in the Adult Foster Care program.

Disclosure statements

All assisted living facilities in Texas must provide each prospective client with a disclosure statement that includes the following information.

• The basic service-package cost and what's included, such as room, board, supervision, amenities, and personal care.
• The availability of additional resident services (skilled nursing care or therapy), who will provide those services, and their cost.
• The circumstances under which costs may increase, such as when your care needs increase.
• How the facility monitors resident health care needs, including requirements for regular health examinations, and how the facility coordinates with your physician.
• The qualifications of the staff who provide personal care, medications, and health services.
• Discharge criteria, such as when you may be required to leave the facility because your health or supervision needs have change, and procedures for resident notification and relocation.
• Grievance procedures, including your right to challenge care decisions.

Locate Texas Assisted Living Facilities