Nursing Homes Levels Of Care In-Home Care Information Independent Living Assisted Living Alzhemer's Care Hursing Homes Hospice Care ccrc continuous care retirement community

Nursing Homes can be a temporary facility during a recovering period or they can serve as permanent residences for people who are too sick or frail continue living at home. Most nursing homes have nursing aides and skilled nurses on hand 24 hours a day. Nursing homes fall in between hospice care and assisted living. Unlike a Hospice that deals with patients that have terminal health complications, most nursing homes are focused on maintaining or improving the health of the residents. In assisted living, the focus in on enjoying a stable life so there is no pressure to make a transition out of an assisted living facility.

In general, Medicare doesn't cover long-term stays (over 100 days) in a nursing home and they generally like to see patients discharged in 3 days. Medicare does cover some skilled nursing and rehabilitative care after a hospital stay under the skilled nursing facility benefits. Most seniors who need the long-term support of a nursing home pay for their nursing home care (room and board) using the following their own personal resources or long-term medical care insurance. Long Term care at a nursing home or similar facility is very expensive, ranging $3000 to $20,000 per month.

Selecting a nursing home is such a complex task that Medicare.gov offers a 68 page Guide to selecting a nursing home at: http://www.medicare.gov/publications/pubs/pdf/02174.pdf

Many of the best nursing homes pride themselves on their ability to rehabilitate and discharge patients. Since short term stays in a nursing home are typically covered by Medicare and/or Medicaid, this can be a double edged sword. The facilities work hard to help patients return to their normal life but many discharged patients still need help with daily activities. Once discharged, their Medicare coverage ends. This leaves many under-funded seniors at the mercy of friends, family and non-profit organizations (like a subsidized religious institution) until they are fully ready for self supported living.

We have created Nursing Home summary page for the following cities: