About Continuing Care Retirement Communities

Continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) provide another option for meeting your long term care needs. This option may be very expensive and is only practical for those persons with higher than average incomes and significant assets to protect. CCRCs are residential communities that offer seniors a place to live that offer a variety of services and care, including long term care services. These communities provide not only housing but also organized social events, dining facilities, sports facilities, special interest clubs, outings and vacation opportunities. They also provide home care services, nursing facility services, adult home services and access to physician and other professional services for their residents.

Entrance Fees

Entrance fees for CCRCs may be substantial, and depending on the size and type of the dwelling chosen by the resident, can range in price from approximately $200,000 to $1 million. There is also an additional monthly fee that typically ranges from approximately $2,000 to $5,000.

Contracts

CCRCs in New York State offer three different types of life care contracts for their residents. One type is all-inclusive (Type A), another provides modified (Type B) services, and the third (Type C) is fee for service:

• Type A Contracts: Type A contracts provide housing, residential services, many amenities and unlimited, specific health-related services, including long term care services. If the resident’s health deteriorates to the point that they need long term care services or admission to the nursing home, all of the services covered under the contract are provided without an increase in the monthly fee (except for normal operating costs and inflation adjustments). The monthly fee also will not increase due to the amount of services the resident requires.
• Type B Contracts: Type B contracts provide housing, residential services and many amenities. This contract differs from the Type A contract in the amount of long term care services that will be provided before an adjustment is made in the amount of the monthly fee paid by the resident. For example, under this type of contract, the CCRC could allow residents a specified number of days in a nursing home without a change in the monthly fee. Once this limit is reached, the resident could be required to pay for continued nursing home services on a full per diem basis or a discounted per diem basis.
• Type C contracts: Type C contracts provide housing, residential services and amenities under the entrance fee and/or monthly fee in the same way as Type A and B contracts. This contract differs from the other two types of contracts in that all other health related services, including nursing home care, are paid for by the resident as they are needed on a fee-for-service basis. Under this type of agreement, the resident pays lower fees upon entry, but in turn accepts the risk of paying for the care needed.

Operational Continuing Care Retirement Communities