Conn. Nursing Homes Are Third Most Costly In US

GREENWICH –– Nursing homes in Connecticut are the third most expensive in the United States, according to a recent survey reported Friday by the Greenwich Time.

Residents in Connecticut pay an average $97,400 a year for nursing care, about two-thirds more than the average $57,700 in the United States, according to a survey released earlier this month by General Electric Financial’s Long Term Care Insurance Division.

Alaska was the most expensive, followed by New York City, the newspaper reported.

Nursing home care in Louisiana is, on average, the least expensive, at $35,900 a year.

Average nursing home costs increased by about seven percent nationwide and by nine percent in Connecticut since last year’s annual survey, said Carl Dombek, a spokesman for Richmond, Va.-based GE.

The survey illustrates the importance of long-term care planning, said Sam Deibler, director of the Greenwich Commission on Aging.

Such insurance often is ignored by young people who do not know if they will ever need nursing care. Young people also do not consider long-term care insurance when their premiums would be lower, he said.

“Part of the problem is that long-term insurance is a tough sell for people who can afford it and it’s a tough payment schedule for people who realize later on in life they need it,’’ he said.

A 2002 study showed 44 percent of those 65 and older will spend time in a nursing facility, according to The Connecticut Partnership for Long Term Care, an alliance of state government and private insurers.

Of those who are admitted to a nursing home, 53 percent stay for at least one year. The average stay in a Connecticut nursing home is 2½ years, according to the organization.

More than 2,200 nursing homes in 50 states were surveyed by GE in May. The prices did not consider costs of therapy, rehabilitation, or medication.