Nursing Homes

Latest articles in nursing homes

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  Assisted LivingFinancial Planning

  Defining Low Income for Seniors in California

  "Low income" means different things to different California programs. Housing uses 80% of area median income; Medi-Cal and CalFresh use the federal poverty level; SSI uses its own payment standard. Here is the threshold each one actually applies, and which number to check for what you need.

  September 19, 2023

Common questions about nursing homes

What's the CMS 5-star rating and is it reliable?

Medicare's quality rating for every nursing home, based on health inspections, staffing levels, and resident outcome measures. It's directional but not perfect - the underlying data (staffing hours per resident-day, deficiency citations) is more useful than the headline star count for serious evaluation.

Does Medicare pay for nursing home care?

Medicare covers short-term skilled nursing care (up to 100 days) after a qualifying three-day hospital stay, with cost-sharing after day 20. It does not cover long-term custodial care. Medicaid covers long-term nursing-home care for eligible residents after they've spent down assets.

What's the difference between a nursing home and a memory care facility?

Nursing homes provide skilled medical care; memory care provides specialized residential care for dementia. Some nursing homes have dementia units, and some memory-care communities include nursing services - but they're licensed differently and the regulatory standards differ.

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