What Assisted Living Is

What Assisted Living Is

Assisted living is a special combination of housing, personalized supportive services and health care, according to the California Assisted Living Association, the professional organization that represents this industry. As people’s needs for help changes while they age, assisted living can fill the gap between a person’s own home and a medical facility. Staff is available to respond to residents’ need for assistance with activities of daily living (ADLS) and they are on site 24 hours a day to meet schedule and unscheduled needs. Assisted living communities promote maximum independence and dignity for each resident and encourage family involvement.

States set forth the requirements for assisted living licensure, but in California regulations about how this level of care is offered are broad. There is no single blueprint so assisted living communities range from converted single-family homes, to high-rise complexes, to multi-acre campuses. And, within the regulatory framework, developers/managers are free to determine a range of choices about community size, pricing and availability of amenities, services, activities and such special programs as dementia care. The variety and flexibility of assisted living has helped make it a popular care option with consumers.

The services offered in assisted living communities are supportive in nature and based on a social, rather than medical, model of care. Typically services include building and grounds maintenance and security, housekeeping and laundry, meal planning and preparation, transportation, recreational activities and entertainment, monitoring of resident’s health and well being and assistance with such ADLs as grooming, dressing, eating, bathing, medications management, mobility and using the restroom.

Assisted Living Resident Profile

• The average age of residents in assisted living facilities in 2006 was 85 years. [AL Overview]
• More than three-quarters of assisted living residents are female; 24 percent are male. [AL Overview]
• On average, assisted living residents need help with two ADLs. The chart below shows the various ADLs and the percentage of residents needing help with them. [AL Overview]
  Activities of Daily Living % of Residents Needing Help
  Bathing                                                   68%
  Dressing                                                47%
  Toileting                                                34%
  Transferring                                         25%
  (from a bed or chair)
  Eating                                                     22%

• A full 91 percent of assisted living residents need help with housework, while 86 percent need help managing their medications. [AL Overview]
• Residents come to assisted living facilities from a variety of settings as follows:
  60 percent moved from a private home or apartment
  12 percent moved from a retirement or independent living community
  10 percent moved from a family residence (such as living with adult children)
  9 percent came from another assisted living residence or group home
  8 percent came from a nursing facility     [AL Overview]
• The average length of stay in an assisted living residence is about 27 months. Thirty-four percent of residents will move into a nursing facility. Thirty percent will pass away. The remaining will move home or to another location. [AL Overview]

California Demographics

• America’s largest elderly population lives in California. California is home to nearly 4 million people age 65 and over, who comprise 10.6% of its total population. (CDA)
• California is projected to be one of the fastest growing States in the nation in total population. By 2020, the state is expected to have 14 percent of the nation’s population (an increase of 15.7 million people since 1990). By 2040, this population is expected to reach 12.5 million, an increase of 232 percent from 1990. [CDA]
• The fastest growing segment of the population in California is age 85 and over. Today, approximately 1 in 77 Californians are more than 85 years old. By 2040, that number is expected to grow to 1 in 34. The influence of this age group on California will emerge most strongly between the years 2030 to 2040 once the baby boomers reach their 80s. [CDA]
• In California, the current life expectancy is 78.8 years. By 2050, life expectancy is projected to reach 84.2 years. [CPRC]
• In 2000, over half a million California seniors had functional limitations. Today 42.2% of California’s elderly population suffers from a disability. [CaCommission]
• Among California seniors living in housing communities, about 17% need help with two or more activities of daily living. [CaCommission]
• The percentage of California seniors who cannot use public transit due to impairment increases from 7% for people ages 69 to 74 to 35% for people age 85 and over. [CaCommission]

Assisted Living in California

• There are more than 6,300 licensed assisted living facilities in California. [CaHHS]
• California’s assisted living communities care for over 150,000 residents. [CaDSS]
• In California, assisted living communities are licensed and regulated by the Department of Social Services. Their official designation is Residential Care Facilities for the Elderly (RCFEs). [CALA]
• Inspections by state officials are required for initial and on-going licensure. [CALA]
• Californians pay an average monthly base rate for assisted living of $2,338. [MetLife]

SOURCES

AL Overview = “2006 Overview of Assisted Living,” compiled by the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging, American Seniors Housing Association, Assisted Living Federation of America, National Center for Assisted Living, and National Investment Center for the Seniors Housing & Care Industry

CaCommission = California Commission on Aging, Senior Related Housing and Transportation Issues, April 2003

CALA = California Assisted Living Association

CDA = California Department on Aging

CaDSS = California Department of Social Services

CaHHS = California Health and Human Services Agency

CPRC = California Policy Research Center, “The Growth and Aging of California’s Population: Demographic and Fiscal Projections, Characteristics and Service Needs”

Claritas = Claritas, Inc., a demographics firm that is part of the Nielsen Group

MetLife = MetLife Mature Market Institute

National Academy = National Academy for State Health Policy, State Assisted Living Policy 2002, November 2002

NIA = National Institute on Aging

Senior Housing 2006 = “The State of Seniors Housing 2006,” compiled from 2005 data by the American Seniors Housing Association (ASHA), the National Investment Center for the Seniors Housing & Care Industry (NIC), PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP (PwC) and the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (AAHSA); released September