A study by SonderCare, a home hospital bed provider, looked into the states offering the best elder care. Using the number of nursing homes and respite facilities per 100,000 citizens, occupancy rates in the last year, private and semi-private nursing home monthly costs, and the percent of nursing homes with 0 deficiencies, all 50 states were compared.

Iowa was named the best state in the country for elder care, scoring 70 out of 100, with one of the higher amounts of both nursing homes and respite facilities available, while also having one of the lower occupancy rates at 71%. The average monthly cost for a semi-private room in a nursing home in Iowa is over $6,500, making it one of the cheaper options in the United States, with the same being true for the nearly $7,500 price per month for a private room. Iowa did, however, have a higher percentage of nursing homes with deficiencies — in this case being problems within nursing homes that can have a negative impact on patient’s health and safety — than the national average, with 10% instead of the country’s 6%. Meanwhile California barely scraping together an 18 out of 100.

Nebraska was solidly 10th on the list with a 53 out of 100. The study found 185 nursing homes per 100,000 Nebraskans, which was at the lower end of the country. They also had only 33 respite facilities per 100,000, which had them in the bottom 10 states in the country. This corresponds to an article by Deborah Van Fleet of the Nebraska News Connection, who pointed out that in the last three years the state has lost 29 assisted living facilities and nursing homes. Nursing homes here are found to have an occupancy rate of 69%, making them one of the lower averages in the country. We are considered to still be on the cheaper end with roughly $7,400 a month for a semi-private room on average, or $8,000 for a private room. And we manage to just meet the national average of nursing homes with deficiencies at 6%.

Kyle Sobko, the CEO of SonderCare, shared his comments: “Providing the best care for the elderly population is more important than ever, given that a growing proportion of Americans are living further into old age than they did previously. In fact, the percentage of the US population over the age of 65 has grown by more than 4% in the past 12 years 13.1% in 2010 compared to 17.3% in 2022. This data provides a clear insight into which states currently offer the best access to elderly care and outlines the factors contributing to this.”

This study is timely, as the Unicameral has entered two bills for vote that would increase funding for Nebraska elder assistance. LB 941 increases daily reimbursement rates for assisted living residents through the Medicaid Waiver program, while LB 942 would do the same for nursing homes.

In Van Fleet’s article, she spoke with Jalene Carpenter, the Nebraska Health Care Association CEO. Carpenter pointed out that "in Nebraska, 15 counties do not have a nursing home or an assisted-living [facility], and we are really starting to see a 'care desert' be created. And that causes significant issues for Nebraska seniors.”

If you would like to learn more about SonderCare, you can go to their website at sondercare.com. For the article by Deborah Van Fleet, titled “NE Legislature to hear bills that bolster struggling long-term care industry”, you can go to Nebraska News Connection at newsservice.org/station.php.