Increasing numbers of older workers who have turned to assisted-living facilities for housing and care are unable to cover the huge costs and increasing “add on” fees the profit-hungry bosses impose on them.
This reflects the social and moral crisis of the capitalist system, where “health care” is based on how to make the most profit for the hospital, nursing home, insurance and pharmaceutical bosses. To the propertied rulers the lives of retired workers, especially those with disabilities, are no longer productive. The only remaining profits to be made from them is to drain their bank accounts before they die.
In the U.S. there are 31,000 assisted-living facilities — twice the number of skilled nursing homes — with some 850,000 residents today. Prices for a spot there are going through the roof. Residents pay about $5,000 a month or more just for rent. For much of everything else there are “add on” costs.
A Nov. 19 New York Times article described how this works. You’re charged $12 for a blood-pressure check, $50 per injection, $315 a month for daily help with an inhaler, and charges for getting “reminders” when it’s time to eat or take your medications, as well as for helping residents get to the shower, bathroom or dining room.
And if residents develop dementia or other serious illnesses, their monthly costs could be jacked up by several thousand dollars.
The median annual prices of assisted living has increased 31% faster than inflation, nearly doubling from 2004 to 2021 to $54,000, according to recent surveys of the industry. In some cases it goes over $100,000.
Many assisted-living facilities are owned by international real estate investment trusts, whose focus — surprise — is on maximizing profits. Health care is just a sideline. Ventas, for example, a real estate firm with investments in 576 senior housing centers, generated 24% in profits in the third quarter of this year.
Many workers who live in these centers, which are advertised as a cheerful environment for one’s “end of life” years, are actually being worn down by inadequate staffing and the frustration of a lack of timely assistance.
“We still receive many complaints about staffing shortages and services not being provided as promised,” Aisha Elmquist, a former state official dealing with long-term care in Minnesota, told the Times. “Some residents have reported to us they call 911 for things like getting in and out of bed.”
Jon Guckenberg, an 83-year-old retired pizza-parlor owner, ran through his life savings in just a year after moving into a single room assisted-living cottage in rural Minnesota. Like millions of others, he applied for Medicaid to cover his stay at this facility.
While the residential center there accepted Medicaid, it came at a price. Guckenberg was able to keep only about $200 of his $2,831 monthly retirement income, with the rest going to pay rent and paybacks to the government. Medicaid recipients are often required to turn over their homes and all their assets as part of the price for a roof over their head.
Most assisted-living facilities require residents whose savings have been drained and can no longer pay the exorbitant rents and other charges to move out. Federal law protects Medicaid beneficiaries in nursing homes from eviction, but not those in assisted living.
In fact, getting Medicaid for assisted-living facilities is difficult, putting it out of the reach of millions. Only 18% of residential care centers agree to take Medicaid payments, according to a federal survey. And those that accept Medicaid often limit coverage to a minority of their beds. In 37 states, retirees looking for a spot are stuck on waiting lists for months, even years, to qualify.
Growing numbers of “baby boomers,” those born after World War II to the 1950s, are now retiring and living longer, needing more long-term care than families can provide. Little is being done by the capitalist rulers to deal with this crisis. Throughout this decade, an average of 10,000 will turn 65 every day.
All this is another good reason for workers to organize to overturn the dog-eat-dog capitalist system and take political power into our own hands.