How To Receive Long Term Care in Tennessee

Just like other U.S. states, the cost of Tennessee long term care is increasing at a speedy rate so you should speed up your long term care (LTC) plan, as well, lest you risk losing your assets to pricey nursing home care or home-based care.

Although the state offers a wide array of LTC services, residents feel that they are not given enough choices, at least in terms of the financial aspect, as the rate of every LTC setting seems to be a threat to their finances.

Let’s start off with in-home care as this is, after all, the most in-demand LTC setting in Tennessee. For an in-home care recipient to receive assistance with her activities of daily living (ADL) from a home health aide she has to pay an hourly rate of $21.

Some elderly people in Tennessee can afford to receive only three or five hours of care from a home health aide but those without relatives living with them naturally require longer hours. So if one were to receive eight hours of assistance with her ADLs such as eating, bathing, dressing, and transferring among others her total expenses for the day would be $168, which translates to $3,360 a month or $40,320 annually.

Apart from assistance with their ADLs other in-home care recipients require additional services which could range from cooking and meal preparation to housecleaning and laundry washing. In this case, their home health care agencies would provide them with personal care assistants who are responsible for providing hands-off care.

In Tennessee a personal care assistant charges $20 per hour regardless of the number of chores performed. This amount translates into $38,400 yearly.

Affordable Tennessee Long Term Care

If you think home-based care in Tennessee is too expensive, wait till you find out how much a day in a nursing home’s private room would cost.

Families with loved ones in nursing homes are spending roughly $186 a day for a private room and this rate is inclusive of medical and custodial care already. However, barely is there anyone who receives LTC in a nursing home just for a day. Most elderly residents in nursing homes stay an average of three years but those with severe conditions such as Alzheimer’s stay longer such as 10 years.

Although these rates are discouraging, try looking at them from a positive angle and you will feel the urge to plan your future health care needs. If you will just dwell on the negative aspect of the subject you will never get around to planning your long term care so try your best to veer from pessimism.

Besides, there is no reason you can’t avail a long term care insurance (LTCI) coverage because insurance companies in Tennessee have partnered with various state agencies four years ago to create the Partnership LTCI Program. It was primarily made to serve as a cheaper alte
ative to standard policies.

Tennessee long term care costs are expected to go higher in the succeeding years so while you are young and in a lucrative job start planning your future. Don’t wait to retire before doing it lest you see the fruits of your hard work go to waste.