10 states that may be wasting nursing home beds

Some people getting the most expensive, most budget-busting form of long-term care (LTC) don't actually need that level of care.

See also: LTC costs: Don't kid yourself

Analysts at UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE:UNH) have included an indicator for that LTC cost and quality problem — a high percentage of nursing home occupants who seem as if they should be getting a lower level of care — in the America's Health Rankings Senior Report.

The analysts gave state-by state data, from Brown University researchers, on the percentage of people in nursing homes who could get in and out of bed, get into a wheelchair, use the toilet and eat without assistance. The Brown researchers described these people as people who could handle four late-loss activities of daily living (ADLs) without physical assistance.

Some of those people might be suffering from dementia, and they might need protection against wandering, and professional caregivers trained to handle people with dementia. But the Brown researchers and UnitedHealth team analysts say that many of these people could likely live in some other setting with appropriate support.

The researchers estimated about 12 percent of people in nursing homes in 2010 were candidates for living in another cheaper, less restrictive setting.

Only about 1 percent of Maine nursing home bed residents and 5 percent of Hawaii nursing home residents appeared to be low-cost residents.

One challenge: Brown has not had funding to update the low-care nursing home resident figures since 2010. The UnitedHealth analysts had to use 5-year-old data.

To see the low-care resident percentages for the 10 states that came in at the bottom of the ranking for this indicator, read on.