nursing homes

What does a nursing home cost
in Alabama?

One survey says almost $68,000 per year...

Are you considering nursing home care for someone you love? If you're struggling with this difficult decision and you live in Alabama, plan on spending about $180 per day. That's the average cost in the state for a Semi-Private room, according to a survey published by the MetLife Mature Market Institute*. The projected yearly cost of $65,700 s based on an estimate of 365 days. (A private room has an average cost of $192 per day, or $70,080 a year.)

Fortunatly, there are options available to help with the costs.

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Alabama Care Costs

*The yearly costs are an average of private pay rates reported by a sampling of nursing homes in the state or metro area. Some nursings homes cost more than the average, and some cost less. 2012 data.

Of all the choices for long-term care, including assisted living, home health care, and adult day care, nursing homes provide the most comprehensive care.

The typical nursing home resident needs help with multiple activities of daily living, such as getting in and out of bed, eating, using the toilet (or incontinence), and bathing. Many nursing home residents also have major medical issues prior strokes or chronic diseases.

They may also have mental or cognitive disabilities. Alzheimer's or dementia can require nursing home care.

Alabama Semi-Private
Room
Private
Room
Daily Daily
Montgomery $201 $209
Birmingham $179 $191
Rest of State $173 $187
State Average $180 $192

 

 How will you pay for nursing home costs?

According to the Alabama Nursing Home Association about 70% of nursing home residents in Alabama had their care paid for by Medicaid. Medicaid provides medical coverage for citizens with limited incomes, and is financed by both state and federal governments. Medicare pays for only about 11% of Alabama nursing home care, a fact which is a surprise to many people.

While Medicare provides health coverage for seniors, it does not pay for the cost of nursing home on a long-term basis. Medicare usually pays for only short-term use of a nursing home, like when a person is recovering from surgery. Medicaid, on the other hand, is the agency that helps provide long term care in nursing homes.

For more about Alabama Medicaid, see Alabama Medicaid Agency

Some Americans need a nursing home for only a short time (recovering from hip-replacement surgery, for instance), but most people are there long term. That's because they need more care than they can get living at home, with family, or from an assisted living facility.

Most nursing homes provide room and meals, nursing (health) care, assistance with medications, and personal care assistance. Personal care assistance includes help with daily activities such as bathing, eating, toileting, and getting in or out of bed and chairs. Many nursing homes provide some sort of social programs also, with recreational activities, games, and entertainment.

The Price Depends on Where You Live in Alabama. Birmingham, Montgomery or elsewhere.
In Birmingham for example, the average cost of a semi-private room was $179 per day. In Montgomery it was $201. In the rest of the state, it was $173 daily.

The Highs and Lows of Costs in the State
The rates in our chart reflect average costs. There were many facilities that charged more or less than the average. A semi-private room in the state ranged from a low of $150 to a high of $220. That's a spread, for a year's cost, of $54,750 to $80,300.

The 2012 average was a little higher than the 2011 average of $176 per day for a semi-private room.

Number 42 out of 51 in this survey
Alabama ranked 42nd for the cost of a nursing home room in the United States, according to this survey. South Dakota ranked just above, and Texas just under. The United States average cost for a semi-private room was $222 per day. A private room was $248.

What will a nursing home cost you?

us mapNursing Home Prices
in the U.S.

Rates for all 50 states

Comparing Alabama To Nearby States
You can look up the costs for any state.

The data used in this article was compiled using hourly/daily cost averages as published in the MetLife Mature Market Institute Market Survey of Long-Term Care Costs. This survey information came from the MetLife Mature Market Institute. The full report is available at the Institute's website.
 

Explanatory note about the survey:

"MetLife provides a "State Average" for each type of long-term care service in each state -the average of all rates for all sampled services in the state. In the states where MetLife includes average rates for one or more cities or areas within a state, these averages are specific to those areas."

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