It can be demanding to provide care. It can take a lot of time and effort, and if you don’t find a way to occasionally take a break from it, you’ll burn out. That is why respite care is so crucial. Respite care enables primary caregivers to take a much-needed break from their caregiving duties.
Depending on the type, duration, location, and community of choice, respite care costs can vary. It typically costs between $150 and $300 per day for short-term respite care in assisted living facilities. Programs for caring for adults cost about $100.
Continue reading to find out more about respite care.
What is Respite Care?
Short-term stays in assisted living facilities that offer 24-hour care and support, enriching activities, and on-site medical care are referred to as respite care. Reprieve care, as opposed to assisted living, is typically the answer when current caregivers need a break or more assistance. They might do this if they have obligations outside of the state, if they have more medical requirements, or even just as a flexible option.
Although using respite care services has many advantages, the fear of being hit with a hefty bill overshadows these advantages. Continue reading to learn more about what respite care can do for you and how much a typical stay will cost.
Respite care comes in many different forms. You have the option of either having a professional come to your home to assist you with daily tasks or moving into an assisted living facility.
Families who merely need more assistance will benefit greatly from respite care provided in the family’s home. The respite care provider will come to your house and stay with your loved one while you are away. There will be varying degrees of support from various providers. For instance, home health aides might offer assistance with more tasks like cooking and housework. In either case, they make sure your loved one is secure during the day and engages in beneficial social interaction while you are away.
It is ideal for caregivers who will temporarily be unavailable or for people who need intensive medical support during a period of rehabilitation when respite care necessitates moving your loved one into an assisted living community. Communities for seniors in assisted living offer a variety of amenities, including wholesome meals, transportation, entertaining and exciting activities, and round-the-clock medical care. They are essentially apartment buildings with extra services for residents who need help with daily tasks. This choice is also a good way for people to get a taste of assisted living before deciding on a longer-term stay.
As an alternative, there are day programs that let your loved one keep living in the convenience of their own home with their family while still getting the advantages of upscale senior living facilities.
How Much Does Respite Care Cost?
Average Respite Care Cost
Because the term “respite care” doesn’t just mean one thing, families need to investigate specific going rates in their cities based on the services that are needed. Not all families require the same level of respite care, and different providers and agencies may charge varying fees.
For instance, some families might only require assistance with a few household chores and duties that family members are unable to complete, while others might require skilled nursing care for senior citizens who have serious medical conditions.
Nevertheless, even though each family’s circumstance is particular, we can use national data to get a sense of the broad contours of what to anticipate.
Respite Care Cost Per Day
The most reasonably priced services are those that are available on demand, such as adult day health care, which offers social activities, peer support, and recreation. Families can thus use them as needed rather than committing to a monthly or yearly service.
According to Genworth’s Cost of Care data, the average cost of adult day healthcare is $80, which typically includes one workday. Alabama has the lowest daily costs ($31), while Maine has the highest ($165).
The next most affordable option (for the average person, depending on their physical and medical needs) is an assisted living facility, though prices may differ when the services are for respite care. For short-term visits to assisted living facilities, some establishments may charge more, while others might give discounts in exchange for a longer stay.
However, knowing these costs can aid families in determining whether respite care through an assisted living facility is an option. The cost per day of an assisted living facility in the U.S. is $152, which is up only slightly from 2021 ($148). Again, prices for these facilities vary greatly from state to state, with a low of $103 in Missouri and a high of $230 in Delaware.
Home health care is frequently the most costly respite care option, depending on the needs of the individual, but resourceful families may be able to make the most of this paid assistance.
In-home care is a broad category that includes personal care services, some medical care, as well as homemaker services like grocery shopping and laundry. The cost of any kind of in-home care depends on the individual’s needs and how many hours they need care each day or week.
Due to the fact that families can choose to use professionals only when necessary or when hired help might be able to complete the task more effectively, in-home care has become a flexible option for many families.
Although in many states their hourly wages are roughly equal, home care aides typically earn less than home health aides. For the typical American, both are taken into consideration. family, in-home respite care costs about $26 per hour, or about $260 for 10 hours of care in a week.
Respite Care Cost Per Month
The cost of monthly respite care can be calculated by multiplying the number of days in the month by the daily cost of care, but it’s important to keep in mind that this type of care is not intended to be a long-term solution. Respite care is designed to last only a few hours or days at a time.
This means that for many senior citizens, making arrangements for one or two days per week could be necessary to give their caregivers a break. Bringing in homemaking assistance could lessen the burden on a family caregiver and cost the family about $1,000 per month.
However, the average cost of homemaker services for a full month, just the working days, is $4,486, the average cost of in-home healthcare is $4,590, the average cost of adult day care is $1,914, and the average cost of assisted living is $4,655.
Respite Care Cost Per Year
This analysis suggests that the costs may be surprisingly affordable for families who only occasionally require respite care. Hiring someone to take over these responsibilities three days per week would cost, on average, just over $16,000 per year. This is based on the assumption that a family caregiver spends, say, four hours per day during the workweek performing household chores and some personal care services.
Considering the alternatives, such as assisted living and nursing home care, in-home services may be a financially viable choice for most families even though few have $16,000 to spare. Adult day health care a few days a week would also be more affordable for senior citizens who don’t have as many needs, costing about $14,000 annually.
The costs might be surprisingly low for a family that only occasionally needs to use respite care. On average, it would cost just over $19,000 to hire housekeeping services and grant a family member or friend caregiver three days off per week.
Where to Find Respite Care?
Finding respite care need not be challenging. However, it may require some trial and error on your part to find the best respite care provider for your needs, so keep looking until you find what works for you. There are many organizations that provide caregivers, like Home Instead and Visiting Angels. These are national organizations, but there are numerous smaller organizations spread across the nation’s cities and towns. It’s possible that you’ll need to test out a few agencies if you decide to use one before finding the best fit.
Use our directory to get started. It contains information on more than 75,000 senior care facilities nationwide, including respite care. To locate the choice that most closely matches your requirements and criteria, use the search function.
If our comprehensive directory doesn’t contain what you’re looking for, you can contact the following organizations, who can help you find the best respite care provider for your needs.
- A national service locator is available from the ARCH National Respite Network and Resource Center to help you find services in your area.
- A free service provided by the United States is Eldercare Locator. Find eldercare services, such as respite care, with the assistance of the Administration on Aging.
- Local eldercare providers and resources for older people can be found with the assistance of the Area Agency on Aging.
- Through its Senior Companions program, volunteers (age 55 and up) are paired with elderly people in need of help.
- Respite care is offered in many communities by Interfaith Caregivers, a United Way-affiliated religious organization.
- Frequently, insurance companies and healthcare organizations can recommend respite care providers in your area.
Summary
Depending on the kind, how long you stay, where you live, and the community you choose, respite care costs will change. In assisted living facilities, short-term respite care typically costs $150 to $300 per day. Adult day programs cost about $100. For all forms of respite care, it’s important to be aware that there might be a minimum commitment period that will have a big impact on the estimated costs.
