A new report reveals the cost of long-term in-home care is unaffordable for many California seniors who need it. The study from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research offers a county-by-county breakdown.
The report shows in San Diego County, the annual cost of 16 hours a week of in-home care is nearly $19,000. When you add living expenses on top of that, the total costs are more than twice the average income of a disabled senior living alone.
UCLA public health professor Steven Wallace wrote the study.
"If you're not poor enough to qualify for Medi-Cal, and you're not solidly middle class enough to afford to pay for your own services, you're really sort of left in the lurch," says Wallace.
Wallace says Medi-Cal only picks up the tab for the poorest of seniors. Governor Schwarzenegger wants to eliminate that support to help balance the budget.
