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With aging, there may come a time when you need to explore the costs of in-home care. Many seniors want to stay at home for as long as possible. When assistance is needed, the solution can be hiring a service to visit. Find out if you can afford this option.

Cost of Home Care Services

To determine whether you can afford in-home care, you'll need to look at the full costs carefully.

First, figure out what assistance is needed and how many hours it will take for someone to provide this assistance. For example, if you'll need someone to come in and provide medical care, this could involve about 12 hours of weekly care. If you need general assistance to cover a variety of personal care activities, this might reach up to 100 hours a week. Receiving general monitoring could involve roughly 55 hours per week. Adding these three services together would total 167 hours a week.

Next, you'll need to figure out who will provide the care needed. Some of this type of care can be provided by family, friends and respite care, so no costs would be involved. Other care would be provided by professionals who you'd need to pay. Subtract the unpaid hours from your total to leave just the paid hours.

Contact several service providers to get estimates for pricing for the services and hours you need. The Paying for Senior Care website estimates that paying to have a home care aide come into your home averages $19 per hour nationally, but it may be different in your area.

Those with Medicare A or B may have some benefits that cover in-home care. Skilled nursing and therapy services may be covered as long as you're under a doctor's care and you have a plan of care that a physician has created. Your doctor also needs to certify that you need intermittent skilled nursing care or therapy and you are home-bound, explains the Medicare.gov website. These benefits will likely cover up to a specific number of hours per week.

Home Care Regulations

The federal government imposes home care regulations on agencies. These agencies have to comply with regulations regarding payment, safety, licensing and how an agency grows. Facilities need to follow safety mandates, licensing of employees, how new employees are added, how employees are paid, how employees can sleep while working and how agencies charge clients.

Assisted Living Costs

Assisted living costs are generally straight-forward, involving the fees for living at a facility and choosing services needed. The costs depend on the geographic area and the type of services needed, but average monthly costs are about $3,600, according to the Paying for Senior Care website.

A senior with Alzheimer's Disease or dementia will have a higher cost per month due to the extra care needed. This type of care might reach up to just over $7,000 in some areas.

Questions to Ask

As you explore in-home care, ask these questions to vet service providers.

Find out about licensing, and verify licensing. Ask about certification by Medicare also.
Ask how employees are screened and trained. Ask to see references.
Inquire how the agency trains and monitors care providers. Are employees insured? Is continuing education provided?
Meet caregivers who would be providing the care if possible.
Find out about fees and billing. Get a full quote with a breakdown of all costs and fees.
Ask about services covered by health insurance or Medicare. Is financial assistance available?