Thursday, May 31, 2007 at 1:01am
'No nursing home for me'
Column: Spiritual Psychology
We are in the midst of an incredible longevity revolution. Since the beginning of the last century (1900) we have added 50 percent to life expectancy from birth. By 2050, a growing number of Americans can expect to live to age 90, and many even longer. That's the good news. The bad news is that with extended lives often come disabilities, and eventually the need for support and assistance. Virtually no one wants to wind up in a nursing home, which many perceive as warehousing while waiting to die. For a dignified old age, the preferred choice is to remain in one's own home, apartment or an assisted living facility, where it's possible to preserve a large degree of independence.
That vision, though, is increasingly fading for those with limited incomes who can't afford to sustain their familiar lifestyles. With cutbacks in entitlement programs, the ever narrowing of eligibility requirements for home care, and diminishing funds for assisted living for poor and low-income older adults, some seniors end up in nursing homes, even though they are capable of independent living for far less than the cost of placement in institutional settings.
The average price of nursing home care is $70,080 per year — almost $200 per day — according to the Met Life Market Survey. The range is from $36,135 per year ($99 per day) in Shreveport, La., to the highest rate, a whopping $204,765 per year ($561 per day), in Alaska.
Home healthcare can also be costly, depending on how much help is needed. The price for home healthcare aides averages $18 per hour, with a range of $13 per hour in Louisiana and Mississippi to as much as $28 per hour in Connecticut.
The popular choice of assisted living is out of reach for many seniors, especially as the cost outpaces inflation with recent 15 percent annual increases. While a studio apartment in an assisted living facility can be as low as $20,000 a year, larger apartments in high-rent district locations with additional services can go for as much as $70,000 per year.
The issue of living with dignity and choices in later life will only intensify as the huge generation of baby boomers — 77 million strong — start crossing over into the senior world (the oldest boomers turned 60 last year). This generation of independent-minded, high-expectation boomers will not take lightly to a squeeze on their dignity and personal preferences. They may forge new solutions, like the man whose story I'm about to tell. He discovered a cost-effective but considerably more upscale lifestyle, which he enthusiastically elects as his alternative to a nursing home.
It's a story that I've seen floating around the Internet for quite a while but don't know its origin. Although it's gone through several takes and modifications of details, the basic narrative remains the same. If you know the original source, please let me know so that it can be attributed.
"No nursing home for me" is not only maverick and amusing, but it also unveils the absurdity of the high cost of nursing home care. This solution is cheaper than a nursing home and, even better, it enables you to literally sail off into the sunset for the golden years. Here's his story:
"About two years ago my wife and I were on a cruise through the western Mediterranean. At dinner we noticed an elderly lady sitting alone along the rail of the grand stairway in the main dining room. I also noticed that all the staff, ships officers, waiters, busboys, etc., all seemed very familiar with this lady. I asked our waiter who the lady was, expecting to be told that she owned the line, but he said he only knew that she had been on board for the last four cruises, back-to-back.
"As we left the dining room one evening, I caught her eye and stopped to say hello. We chatted and I said, 'I understand you've been on this ship for the last four cruises.' She replied, 'Yes, that's true.' I stated, 'I don't understand' and she replied, without a pause, 'It's cheaper than a nursing home.'
"So, there will be no nursing home in my future. When I get old and feeble, I am going to get on a cruise ship. The average cost for a nursing home is $200 per day. I have checked on reservations on a popular cruise line, and I can get a long-term discount and senior discount price of $135 per day. That leaves $65 a day for:
1. Gratuities, which will only be $10 per day.
2. I will have as many as 10 meals a day if I can waddle to the restaurant, or I can have room service — which means I can have breakfast in bed every day of the week.
3. The ship has as many as three swimming pools, a workout room, free washers and dryers, and shows every night.
4. They have free toothpaste and razors, and free soap and shampoo.
5. They will even treat you like a customer, not a patient. An extra $5 worth of tips will have the entire staff scrambling to help you.
6. I will get to meet new people every seven or 14 days.
7. TV broken? Light bulb needs changing? Need to have the mattress replaced? No problem! They will fix everything and apologize for your inconvenience.
8. Clean sheets and towels every day, and you don't even have to ask for them.
9. If you fall in the nursing home and break a hip, you are on Medicare and Medicaid and may lose your bed in the nursing home when you are transferred to a hospital and then rehab; if you fall and break a hip on a cruise ship, they will upgrade you to a suite."
Nursing home care, assisted living facilities and home care are running away with cost increases. But now we can add to the mix of choices the much more attractive, and comparatively affordable, cruise care. I checked on a number of "deals" for cruises. Indeed, there are many available for under $200 a day.
A seven-day Royal Caribbean International cruise to Alaska is as low as $100 a day — far below the cost of a nursing home in Alaska.
If you prefer warmer waters and tropical scenery, you can cruise the Hawaiian Islands for 15 days on the Princess Line, also for as little as $100 a day —much cheaper than a nursing home, and no contest on the amenities and perks.
For a super bargain, check out the Carnival Cruise Line offer of a seven-night Caribbean Island Cruise for as little as $379 — that's less than 55 bucks a day, about 25 percent of the low-end cost of a nursing home. These are just a few of similar cruises that are available from many cruise lines.
So the story has plausibility.
If you are healthy enough and can afford it, "cruise care" may be the newest, most unusual and best alternative for eldercare. Unfortunately, it doesn't address the needs of the corps of seniors who don't have resources or choices; they are at the mercy of "the bureaucracy."
What a sad commentary on our healthcare and eldercare systems. Clearly, we are not a caring, just or moral society when it comes to valuing human dignity. Yet we are the most religious nation in the industrialized world, with the commandment: "Honor they father and thy mother." Go figure that one out.
Next week I'll surprise you with another innovative solution to the wrenching dilemma of eldercare — one that can actually turn a profit.
— — —
Bernard Starr, Ph.D., formerly professor of developmental and educational psychology at the City University of New York, now teaches psychology and leads the Spiritual Forum at Marymount Manhattan College. In addition to his work in radio, he is a longtime contributor of commentary and opinion articles to numerous major publications. He is also the main United Nations representative for the Institute of Global Education that founded the Mucherla Global School in Mucherla, India. His book, "Escape Your Own Prison: Why We Need Spirituality and Psychology to be Truly Free," will be published by Rowman and Littlefield in October 2007. His email address is {email OmniCns@aol.com}OmniCns@aol.com{/email}. © copyright 2007 by Bernard Starr.
That vision, though, is increasingly fading for those with limited incomes who can't afford to sustain their familiar lifestyles. With cutbacks in entitlement programs, the ever narrowing of eligibility requirements for home care, and diminishing funds for assisted living for poor and low-income older adults, some seniors end up in nursing homes, even though they are capable of independent living for far less than the cost of placement in institutional settings.
The average price of nursing home care is $70,080 per year — almost $200 per day — according to the Met Life Market Survey. The range is from $36,135 per year ($99 per day) in Shreveport, La., to the highest rate, a whopping $204,765 per year ($561 per day), in Alaska.
Home healthcare can also be costly, depending on how much help is needed. The price for home healthcare aides averages $18 per hour, with a range of $13 per hour in Louisiana and Mississippi to as much as $28 per hour in Connecticut.
The popular choice of assisted living is out of reach for many seniors, especially as the cost outpaces inflation with recent 15 percent annual increases. While a studio apartment in an assisted living facility can be as low as $20,000 a year, larger apartments in high-rent district locations with additional services can go for as much as $70,000 per year.
The issue of living with dignity and choices in later life will only intensify as the huge generation of baby boomers — 77 million strong — start crossing over into the senior world (the oldest boomers turned 60 last year). This generation of independent-minded, high-expectation boomers will not take lightly to a squeeze on their dignity and personal preferences. They may forge new solutions, like the man whose story I'm about to tell. He discovered a cost-effective but considerably more upscale lifestyle, which he enthusiastically elects as his alternative to a nursing home.
It's a story that I've seen floating around the Internet for quite a while but don't know its origin. Although it's gone through several takes and modifications of details, the basic narrative remains the same. If you know the original source, please let me know so that it can be attributed.
"No nursing home for me" is not only maverick and amusing, but it also unveils the absurdity of the high cost of nursing home care. This solution is cheaper than a nursing home and, even better, it enables you to literally sail off into the sunset for the golden years. Here's his story:
"About two years ago my wife and I were on a cruise through the western Mediterranean. At dinner we noticed an elderly lady sitting alone along the rail of the grand stairway in the main dining room. I also noticed that all the staff, ships officers, waiters, busboys, etc., all seemed very familiar with this lady. I asked our waiter who the lady was, expecting to be told that she owned the line, but he said he only knew that she had been on board for the last four cruises, back-to-back.
"As we left the dining room one evening, I caught her eye and stopped to say hello. We chatted and I said, 'I understand you've been on this ship for the last four cruises.' She replied, 'Yes, that's true.' I stated, 'I don't understand' and she replied, without a pause, 'It's cheaper than a nursing home.'
"So, there will be no nursing home in my future. When I get old and feeble, I am going to get on a cruise ship. The average cost for a nursing home is $200 per day. I have checked on reservations on a popular cruise line, and I can get a long-term discount and senior discount price of $135 per day. That leaves $65 a day for:
1. Gratuities, which will only be $10 per day.
2. I will have as many as 10 meals a day if I can waddle to the restaurant, or I can have room service — which means I can have breakfast in bed every day of the week.
3. The ship has as many as three swimming pools, a workout room, free washers and dryers, and shows every night.
4. They have free toothpaste and razors, and free soap and shampoo.
5. They will even treat you like a customer, not a patient. An extra $5 worth of tips will have the entire staff scrambling to help you.
6. I will get to meet new people every seven or 14 days.
7. TV broken? Light bulb needs changing? Need to have the mattress replaced? No problem! They will fix everything and apologize for your inconvenience.
8. Clean sheets and towels every day, and you don't even have to ask for them.
9. If you fall in the nursing home and break a hip, you are on Medicare and Medicaid and may lose your bed in the nursing home when you are transferred to a hospital and then rehab; if you fall and break a hip on a cruise ship, they will upgrade you to a suite."
Nursing home care, assisted living facilities and home care are running away with cost increases. But now we can add to the mix of choices the much more attractive, and comparatively affordable, cruise care. I checked on a number of "deals" for cruises. Indeed, there are many available for under $200 a day.
A seven-day Royal Caribbean International cruise to Alaska is as low as $100 a day — far below the cost of a nursing home in Alaska.
If you prefer warmer waters and tropical scenery, you can cruise the Hawaiian Islands for 15 days on the Princess Line, also for as little as $100 a day —much cheaper than a nursing home, and no contest on the amenities and perks.
For a super bargain, check out the Carnival Cruise Line offer of a seven-night Caribbean Island Cruise for as little as $379 — that's less than 55 bucks a day, about 25 percent of the low-end cost of a nursing home. These are just a few of similar cruises that are available from many cruise lines.
So the story has plausibility.
If you are healthy enough and can afford it, "cruise care" may be the newest, most unusual and best alternative for eldercare. Unfortunately, it doesn't address the needs of the corps of seniors who don't have resources or choices; they are at the mercy of "the bureaucracy."
What a sad commentary on our healthcare and eldercare systems. Clearly, we are not a caring, just or moral society when it comes to valuing human dignity. Yet we are the most religious nation in the industrialized world, with the commandment: "Honor they father and thy mother." Go figure that one out.
Next week I'll surprise you with another innovative solution to the wrenching dilemma of eldercare — one that can actually turn a profit.
— — —
Bernard Starr, Ph.D., formerly professor of developmental and educational psychology at the City University of New York, now teaches psychology and leads the Spiritual Forum at Marymount Manhattan College. In addition to his work in radio, he is a longtime contributor of commentary and opinion articles to numerous major publications. He is also the main United Nations representative for the Institute of Global Education that founded the Mucherla Global School in Mucherla, India. His book, "Escape Your Own Prison: Why We Need Spirituality and Psychology to be Truly Free," will be published by Rowman and Littlefield in October 2007. His email address is {email OmniCns@aol.com}OmniCns@aol.com{/email}. © copyright 2007 by Bernard Starr.