AALTCI: Most Home Care Recipients Are Older Women

By Trevor Thomas

March 30, 2010 at 08:00 PM

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Nearly 60% percent of those receiving privately paid long term care at home are women, according to the American Association for Long Term Care Insurance.

More than 80% of all people receiving home care for long term health problems, are age 75 or older, AALTCI reports.

AALTCI, Westlake Village, Calif., examined the use of home care services by 1,000 men and women during a 1-week period in March. It found that 89% of the women using LTC services at home are age 71 or older and that 81% of male home care users are in that age group.

AALTCI says 66% of the women use private in-home care for 3 or fewer days per week, and that 49% of the men receive care for 3 or fewer days per week. The other recipients get 4 or more days of home care per week.

Both men and women appear to pay for about the same number of hours of care per day, with 76% of the women and 73% of the men receiving care for 7 or fewer hours per day.

Home health care costs vary by the type of services and by location, AALTCI Executive Director Jesse Slome says.

"The average cost today is about $20 an hour," Slome says. "Someone needing care 3 days a week for 6 hours a day is looking at a cost of between $20,000 and $25,000 annually, which is why increasingly individuals purchase long term care insurance with a home care benefit."

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