Siena Poll for LeadingAge New York Shows Need to Educate New Yorkers About Long-Term Care Issues By Ami Schnauber
The recently completed Siena College poll of New York voters 50 and older , conducted on behalf of LeadingAge New York , shows that 70 percent are concerned that they will need help with their everyday needs as they grow older , and 70 percent are also concerned about their ability to afford that care .
In fact , a strong majority of 57 percent of New Yorkers 50 and older are concerned about both needing help with every day needs and affordability of care , while only 18 percent are not concerned about either needing or being able to afford care .
These are just two of the questions in this wide-ranging survey that will help LeadingAge New York and our members understand the views of older and soon-to-be older New Yorkers . Full results of the survey can be found here www . leadingageny . org .
Among other key findings :
• Only 28 percent of New Yorkers 50 and older have purchased long term care insurance , compared to 68 percent who have not ;
• A bare majority ( 52-47 percent ) have a plan to address their needs ( housing , transportation , meals , daily personal needs ) as they get older ;
• These New Yorkers have some misconceptions about the sources of funding for how their long-term care needs will be paid :
• 89 percent say their savings , pension and monthly Social Security check is what they will rely on ;
• 82 percent say they will rely on Medicare ;
• 61 percent say they will rely on “ other benefits ” from Social Security ;
Unfortunately , as we know , Medicare and other Social Security benefits either do not exist at all , or do would not cover the vast majority of long term care costs ;
• By a 51-25 percent margin , these New Yorkers would prefer a “ campus-like setting at which various levels of care are available on a progressive basis ,” rather that a “ standalone facility located in a mixed-use neighborhood that specializes in one level of care ” if they reach a point where they can no longer live independently ;
• There is strong preference – 56-18 percent – for living in a non-profit senior living facility , rather than a for-profit facility ;
• One-quarter would prefer to live in a long-term care facility affiliated with their religion ;
• Where do New Yorkers 50 and older go for information about long-term care services ?
• 25 percent – Google
• 21 percent – family and friends
• 13 percent – State agency website
• 12 percent – doctor or nurse
What does all of this mean for LeadingAge New York membership ? It means we have a lot of work to do to help educate and inform older and middle aged New Yorkers about long term care – the services available , how services are paid for and which resources are available to help fund those services .
While we ’ ve long known that aging New Yorkers are concerned about the care they will receive as they get older , we now also know that too many of these future potential clients appear to be burying their heads in the sand when it comes to being informed consumers . LeadingAge NY will be working with members in the coming months to implement an education strategy – including through the successful “ Young at Heart ” campaign – to ensure that New Yorkers have access to the long term care they need .
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