Assisted living facilities are slow to gain acceptance
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When 91-year-old Marie Holtzapfel arrived at RoseCrest Assisted Living Residence in July from another long-term care facility, she could hardly have been aware she was part of some rare vanguard in Pennsylvania.
For one thing, like all 15 initial residents in the homelike setting in Mars, Mrs. Holtzapfel has had dementia for years. For another, RoseCrest wasn't supposed to be the only licensed assisted-living center in southwestern Pennsylvania as of the end of October, and one of just 10 in the state.
State officials began using the new category of long-term care called assisted living in January as a middle ground between Pennsylvania's long-existing personal care home and nursing home industries. The Rendell administration, which oversaw development of the assisted-living regulations, had predicted there would be at least 150 centers licensed by now, aiming for a less institutional atmosphere than nursing homes but higher standards than what is mandated in personal care homes.
The new category is part of a trend in which state governments have tried to de-emphasize nursing home use because it is the most costly form of long-term care to help fund, in addition to being the least desired by the public.
But assisted living's growth depends on an upgrade to it among the more than 1,300 personal care homes in Pennsylvania. Thus far, they are reacting to it with all the eagerness of frail Aunt Hazel hearing it's time to move out of her longtime home into a group facility for her own good.
Ten months after implementing the new system, the state's Office of Long-Term Living had seven new staff devoted to overseeing the 10 licensed facilities -- nearly one regulator for each operator. Another 26 assisted-living wannabes were in the pipeline, awaiting approval to be licensed.
Representatives of long-term care providers said they anticipated such reluctance, especially after state officials backed off of a plan to infuse the field with funding that would cover care of low-to-moderate income residents. In addition to higher licensing fees for assisted living than personal care, facilities have to do more staff training and in many cases would need to renovate rooms to allow more living space and include in each a private shower and kitchen appliances.
First Published November 28, 2011 12:02 am
