50 Must-Know Statistics About Long-Term Care

Note: We're refeaturing this article as part of Morningstar's October 2014 5 Keys to Retirement Investing special report. This article originally appeared July 27, 2014. 

Perhaps you've bitten the bullet and purchased long-term care insurance, or decided to pay out of pocket for long-term care. Or, if you're like many people, what to do about long-term care is just a nervous thought that flits through your head from time to time--triggered when you hear about a relative being diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease or a friend shouldering the care of an elderly parent.

There's no right answer for everyone. But as you determine your long-term care strategy, it's best to do so fully armed with the facts: the likelihood that you'll need long-term care and what it might cost, the costs and benefits of long-term care insurance, and exactly what the government covers for you (and, mostly, what it does not).

Armed with some data about long-term care costs and insurance, you can weigh these facts against the many intangibles related to long-term care: the burden that caregiving could place on your loved ones, the opportunity cost of paying for long-term care insurance that you might never need, and the peace of mind that can accompany having the insurance.

I provided a lot of data about long-term care a few years back; but the landscape has changed since then, so it's time for an update. Each statistic includes a link to its source material; wherever possible I aimed to use the most current possible information available from objective sources. (Note to anyone researching long-term care: Insurers crank out a lot of information about the cost and usage of long-term care, but never forget that they have a vested interest in making you believe that the insurance is a must-have for everyone.) All statistics are based on U.S. data.

Demographics
40.2 million: Number of Americans age 65 or older in 2010.

88.5 million: Projected number of Americans age 65 or older in 2050.

67%: Percentage of Americans age 65 or older who will need some form of long-term care in their lifetimes.

6.3 million: Projected number of Americans age 85 or older in 2015.

17.9 million: Projected number of Americans age 85 or older in 2050.

Usage
15 million: Number of people in the U.S. using nursing facilities, alternative residential care, or home-care services for long-term care needs, 2000.

27 million: Projected number of people in the U.S. using nursing facilities, alternative residential care, or home-care services for long-term care needs by the year 2050.

29.5%: Percentage of nursing home residents who were under age 75 in 2011.

27.5%: Percentage of nursing home residents who were between the ages of 75 and 84 in 2011.

35.3%: Percentage of nursing home residents who were between the ages of 85 and 95 in 2011.

7.6%: Percentage of nursing home residents who were over age 95 in 2011.

67%: Percentage of nursing home care residents who were female, 2011-2012. 

72%: Percentage of residential care community residents who were female, 2011-2012.

14%: Percentage of people age 71 or older who suffered from Alzheimer's disease or other types of dementia, 2007. 

49%: Percentage of nursing home residents who suffered from Alzheimer's or other types of dementia, 2011-2012.

4.5 years: Average length of time someone lives after being diagnosed with dementia.

12%: Percentage of adults age 65 or older who suffered from depression, 2008.

49%: Percentage of nursing home residents who suffered from depression, 2011-2012.

2.8 years: Average length of nursing home stay.

5 months: Average length of nursing home stay for patients who eventually died in the nursing home.

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Cost of Care
$87,600: Median annual cost for nursing home care, private room, nationally, 2014.

4.35%: Increase in cost of private room in nursing home between 2013 and 2014, nationally.

$58,765: Median annual cost for nursing home care, private room, Louisiana, 2014.

$164,250: Median annual cost for nursing home care, private room, Manhattan, 2014.

$42,000: Median annual cost for assisted-living facility, nationally, 2014.

$19: Average hourly rate for home health aides, nationally, 2014.

1.59%: Increase in hourly rate for home health aides between 2013 and 2014.

34%: Percentage of seniors who had incomes that were less than 200% of the poverty threshold in 2013 ($20,916 for individuals and $26,388 for couples).

Unpaid Caregivers
80%: Percentage of long-term care provided by unpaid caregivers at home.

67%: Approximate percentage of unpaid caregivers who are female.

14%: Percentage of unpaid caregivers who are age 65 or older.

20%: Percentage of unpaid caregivers who provide more than 40 hours of care per week.

10%: Percentage of unpaid caregivers who go from full-time to part-time work because of their caregiving responsibilities.

67%: Percentage of people who plan to have a loved one provide care but haven't asked.

State and Federal Funding
$143 billion: Amount of long-term care services and supports financed by Medicaid, 2011.

40%: Percentage of all long-term care costs financed by Medicaid.

$117,240: Maximum amount of assets that a healthy spouse can retain for the other spouse to be eligible for long-term care benefits provided by Medicaid. (Actual amounts vary by state.)

100 days: Amount of care in a skilled nursing facility covered in full or in part by Medicare following a qualifying hospital stay.

Insurance
24.7%: Percentage of people who apply for long-term care insurance between the ages of 45 and 54.

54%: Percentage of people who apply for long-term care insurance between the ages of 55 and 64.

57: Average age of long-term care insurance applicants.

92.3%: Percentage of long-term care policies with an elimination period of 90-100 days.

63.7%: Percentage of new long-term care claims that were opened by people over age 80, 2012.

$2,466: Average annual cost for long-term care insurance for a 55-year-old couple, 2012; daily benefit of $150 with 3% inflation option and three-year benefit period.

$3,381: Average annual cost for long-term care insurance for a 60-year-old couple, 2012; daily benefit of $150 with 3% inflation option and three-year benefit period.

$6.6 billion: Amount of long-term care claims paid in 2011.

45.9%: Average premium increase requested for approval by John Hancock for 8,600 long-term care policies in force in Connecticut, 2014.

1%: Estimated lapse rates for long-term care insurance policies.

102: Number of companies selling long-term care insurance policies in 2002.

12: Estimated number of companies selling long-term care insurance policies at the end of 2009.

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