Innovative Building and Remodeling Solutions
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A brand new University of Illinois (UI) residence facility named Nugent Hall is marking a milestone for a college that is already a leader in disability services.

In a recent article by Jodi S. Cohen for the Chicago Tribune, this state-of-the-art dormitory is highlighted, as are the special needs students for whom the facility was created.

Cohen interviews Kelsey Rozema, who has needed her parents’ help with most daily tasks like getting out of bed, showering, putting on a coat, and even opening a water bottle-because she has very limited use of her arms and legs.

In 18 years, they’ve been apart for only six nights, so moving into a college dorm this week and being away from the reliance on her family is even more of a milestone for Rozema than for most of the thousands of other wide-eyed freshmen arriving this week at UI.

It helped that she moved into UI’s first new residence hall in 44 years and the most user-friendly dorm in the country for students with severe physical disabilities. Cohen described that as Rozema wheeled into her single room for the first time, a disability advocate showed off some of the dorm’s advanced features like: a wireless pager that will call for help 24 hours a day and a remote-controlled ceiling lift system to transport her from her bed to the in-room bathroom.

Although UI is already recognized as a front-runner in disability services for students, Nugent Hall will allow students with even the most severe disabilities (all use motorized wheelchairs or scooters) to get the personalized care they need while being integrated with typical students.

The students with disabilities will live on the first floor, with about 150 other students on the floors above them. That number that will expand to 500 when the dorm is completed in the next two years.

Down the hall from Rozema lives Ben Fultz, a 21-year-old transfer student who has cerebral palsy. His mother, Ellen, was overwhelmed by the features-remarking how even the window blinds can be closed with a button. “It is truly better than what we have at home,” she said.

In addition, the sinks, thermostats, and light switches are at an accessible height.

Other accessible aspects include:

• Dorm room doors open by waving a wireless card.
• Faucets are sensor-activated.
• The roll-in showers come with chairs.

But according to Cohen, perhaps the most unique aspects of the building are the dorm’s personal assistants (PAs)-most are UI students who live in the building to help the students with disabilities shower, use the bathroom, and even hook backpacks on their wheelchairs before leaving for class. After the Rozemas accidentally hit a pager while putting away books, a PA arrived in under two minutes and asked, “Did you buzz?” Residents will also learn how to hire, schedule, and manage their PAs-and students get five hours of PA help a day and can schedule the hours around their classes and social lives.

In all, 17 students with severe physical disabilities will live this year on the first floor of the new hall, named for Tim Nugent, who in 1948 founded UI’s division of disability services-the first higher education program of its kind in the world.

“It is a remarkable statement about the commitment of this campus to ensure that those who are most marginalized in their access, if they have the desire and the capacity and the willingness to pursue a degree-Illinois is committed to making that a reality,” said Brad Hedrick, director of UI’s disability services. The opening of the dorm continues UI’s legacy of making college accessible. In fact, UI was the first college to introduce curb cuts, offer bus routes equipped with wheelchair lifts, and have a wheelchair sports program.

Rozema said she will rotate between about a half-dozen personal assistants who she scheduled to help with bathroom breaks, showering, and getting in and out of bed. The eventual goal is for students to learn independent living skills and transition to more mainstream housing, whether on a higher floor, in a different dorm, or to an apartment.

After focusing all morning on arranging Rozema’s books, clothes, makeup, and room posters, her mother unexpectedly became overwhelmed with emotion as she looked to her daughter and said, “This is what I always dreamed of, for you to one day go to college. I am so proud of you.”

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A recent article by Tom Kelly describes how rising long-term care costs are fueling the demand for aging-in-place home modifications. According to Kelly, even though builders are doing an admirable job of incorporating universal design features in new homes, baby boomers still continue to be slow in accepting the need for them.

Such slow acceptance is also similar to people’s responses to environmentally friendly homes. For example, only 12% of respondents to a MetLife survey said they would pay more for a green home. But, the same people surveyed are willing to pay an average one-time amount of nearly $7,000 if it would save $1,000 annually in utility costs. While another 23% of respondents said they are concerned about the environment, it does not drive their decision to invest in sustainability.

Kelly believes that the key to modifying people’s ideas and behaviors is through education and the dissemination of proper and appropriate information, in this case by the aging-in-place experts. “The educational push by builders, architects, and designers is to remove the ‘old’ association from universal design (UD).”

UD and aging-in-place construction can also increase an individual’s feelings of independence while simultaneously adding aesthetic beauty and enhancing their home’s resale value. Kelly explains, “Builders are striving to create UD applications that make it easier for someone to carry out daily activities such as preparing meals, climbing stairs, and bathing, as well as changing the physical structure of a home to improve its overall safety and condition.”

According to Kelly, the necessary tools required for homeowners to stay in their homes longer and age-in-place were brought to the forefront of the building community through information attained from a cost survey conducted by MetLife on nursing homes, assisted-living communities, home care agencies, and adult day services in all 50 states.

The survey data consistently showed that the national average rates for private and semi-private rooms in nursing homes, assisted-living base rates, average hourly rates for home health aides and homemaker/companions, as well as adult day services average daily rates have all increased and continue to rise.

CAPS certified remodelers like Home Evolutions can help you choose more affordable aging-in-place and universal design options that can allow you to remain living comfortably, safely, and independently in your own house.

Read more about this story in the next and upcoming issue of The Forever Home.

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One of the best resources on the Internet about aging-in-place is the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). As you know, our company is a member of the National Association of Home Builders and I hold a special and highly recognized designation as a Certified Aging-in-Place Specialist (CAPS).

But they are also a great resource for consumers too. Their Web site is chock full of information on living in one’s home independently regardless of age or ability.

A new fact sheet on their Web site includes some of the interesting facts, statistics, and information they’ve assembled for consumers just like you.

How big is Aging in Place?

• 89% of people 50+ wish to remain in their own homes indefinitely (AARP).
• 75% of remodelers have seen an increase in requests for aging in place work (NAHB).
• 60% of remodelers already perform aging in place work (NAHB).
• Over half of all 55+ households rate their current home a 9 or 10 out of 10 (American Housing Survey).
• The aging population is the number two issue to affect the remodeling industry over the next five years, only behind the availability of skilled labor (NAHB).

What is NAHB doing to help the aging population?

NAHB, in partnership with AARP and the NAHB Research Center, developed the CAPS program, the leading national educational designation designed to teach professionals how to modify homes for aging in place. Since 2002 more than 2,200 have completed CAPS, making it one of the fastest-growing education programs at NAHB.

What should my home contain if I want to age in place?

• A master bedroom and bath on the first floor.
• A low or no-threshold entrance to the home with an overhang.
• Lever-style door handles.
• No change in levels on the main floor.
• Bright lighting in all areas, especially places like stairways.
• A low-maintenance exterior.
• Non-slip flooring at the main entryway.
• An open floor plan, especially in the kitchen/dining area.
• Handrails at all steps.

What are some techniques CAPS-trained professionals use?

• Lighting from multiple directions – reduces glare and shadows.
• Light sockets with more than one bulb – redundancy in case one bulb burns out.
• Stacking closets for a future elevator shaft.
• Contrasting colors for depth perception – use a different color counter (or edging around the counter) than the floor, staining the edge of the stairs a darker color than the rest of the steps.
• Convenience shelf at an entry way to place your grocery bag while getting your keys.

NAHB Remodelers provides more information for consumers online at: www.nahb.org/aginginplace.

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A recent article in the Pasadena Independent describes some of this year’s design trends to look out for in 2010. Prominent on its list was universal design.

According to the piece, since the real estate market remains uncertain, more Baby Boomers are making the decision to stay in their homes and spend their golden years right where they are.

They will continue to be more focused on the concept of aging in place, the author notes. “This means modifying the home so that they can spend their golden years comfortably, no matter what kind of physical restrictions they might have in the future,” she writers. “New designs, from touch faucets to better designed bathtub handlebars, are making aging in lace solutions better looking and easier to install.”

The Canadian Press also made mention in a recent piece, that aging-in-place is a trend to watch in 2010. With one in four Americans, turning age 55 or older, many designers and manufacturers are employing universal design principles, developed by engineers, architects and designers at North Carolina State University to make spaces and products user-friendly for everyone.

“For homeowners who don’t want to give up style for safety, think touchless faucets; trim kitchen drawers instead of cupboards; pullouts; task lighting and sensor cooktops. In bathrooms, look for non-slip floors, shower seats and grab bars with a sleek and stylish, not clinical, look,” the author writes.

2010 is gearing up to be another groundbreaking year for the aging-in-place movement as more and more seniors and people with disabilities choose to continue living safely, comfortably, and independently at home. CAPS designated companies like Home Evolutions can help you and your loved ones implement some of these upcoming trends and incorporate them into your aging-in-place home remodeling projects.

Are you following us on Twitter? — Home Evolutions will give you real-time updates when our latest blogs are posted as well as timely information on Aging-in-Place news from around the country.

So what will 2010 bring in terms of Aging-in-Place? Laurie Orlov, founder of Aging in Place Technology Watch, recently listed her top ten aging-in-place trends for 2010 that we’d like to share with you.

1.    Location-aware tech enables more info, greater safety. GPS became even more useful in 2009. Verizon replaced its Chaperone service with Family Locator, The Alzheimer’s Association introduced its ComfortZone (powered by OmniLink), several other tracking technology vendors launched.

2.    Home automation technology vendors see possibilities. Just as home remodelers see possibilities in aging-in-place retrofits (70% of NAHB builders in 2009), in a bad economy, home automation vendors also saw possibilities in the market.

3.    Mobile health app possibilities grow. Mobile web usage during 2009 got a growth spurt from boomers and seniors — and spawned new apps like LiveNurse from Jitterbug. According to Gartner, mobile health applications (along with location-based apps) are in the top 10 application growth areas for consumers.

4.    Virtual doctors’ visits and other health innovations. Orlov says that a quiet revolution is happening in health care delivery, from shared doctor visits, the video doctor ‘virtual visit’, and health care without the doctor — tracking and transmission of self-test results — like blood coagulation levels.

5.    Touch screens and eReaders. Touch screens became ubiquitous during 2009 for product demonstration computers used to demo software — like the Asus EEE, for example. And eReaders – particularly well-suited to the boomer/senior population saw the impressive Sony with touch screen as alternative to the Kindle.

6.    Big companies invest in monitoring and telehealth technologies. GE acquisition of QuietCare, Intel and its $250 million partnership with GE, and Bosch (VitelNet), all added to Philips as big firms intent on roles in the aging/health monitoring arena — limited impact in 2009, but validation of market importance in 2010.

7.    Broadband access and Internet use among seniors grows. According to Forrester’s research, 63% of 64-73-year-olds are online at least monthly. And Nielsen noted that 6 million more seniors are online today than five years ago — most likely because their broadband adoption has grown from 19% to 30% in the past year.

8.    Caregiver portals and tools blossom. 2009 saw the merger of Caring.com and Gilbert Guide, forging the market’s first million-views-per-month usage profile.

9.    Personal emergency response systems get a makeover. In 2009, we saw the emergence of Halo Monitoring’s fall detection chest strap and belt clip, mobile PERS entrant, Medical Mobile Monitoring, and then reflect on Jitterbug’s acquisition in the Mobile PERS arena.

10.    VCs show interest in aging in place technology. During 2009, there were several VC investments in the aging in place tech arena, including a $7.5 million investment in WellAWARE Systems from Valhalla Partners and .406 Ventures; Menlo Ventures made an investment in Wellcore; Shasta Ventures invested $10 million in Caring.com; Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Kleiner Perkins, and Physic Ventures are all examining the health, boomer markets.

Read more at Aging in Place Technology Watch.

Are you following us on Twitter? — Home Evolutions will give you real-time updates when our latest blogs are posted as well as timely information on Aging-in-Place news from around the country.

In a recent article by U.S. News & World Report, the author discusses attractive design solutions for aging-in-place projects.

“Making such modifications not only helps current occupants but may broaden the market for future buyers when the home is placed on the market,” he writes.

Illustrating this trend, about 3,000 home remodeling and repair contractors have taken the three-day Certified Aging-in-Place Specialists (CAPS) training course.

Therese Ford Crahan, executive director of National Association of Home Builder’s (NAHB) Remodelers Council, describes the sensitivity training that contractors must take as part of the program. “The remodelers are required to put a tennis ball in their non-writing hand, put that hand in a sock, and then try and write a check,” she says, simulating challenges that many people with arthritis face.

“Next, we put them in a wheelchair and they have to maneuver around and then, we put sunglasses on them and cover the lenses with Vaseline and then make them try to get around. It’s just an eye-opener for remodelers,” she says. “They just don’t understand until they’ve been there.”

According to Cynthia Leibrock, an expert on aging who has turned her Colorado home into a showplace of aging-in-place modifications, if you “really want to stay in your home, you’ve got to get serious about it.”

Leibrock says that emphasizing the positive aspects of such changes, particularly added safety and comfort, helps overcome resistance. Kitchens and bathrooms are ground zero for many aging-in-place home improvements.

She breaks down improvements into groups, beginning with those that can be done easily and quickly and moving on to more expensive and time-consuming projects that are best done as part of more extensive remodeling efforts:

Do it now:

1. Tape down rugs.
2. Add handrails with extensions to both sides of the stairs.
3. Add grab bars to your shower.
4. Reorganize your kitchen around the tasks you perform.
5. Add offset pivot hinges to narrow doors.
6. Replace your shower head with a hand-held shower on a vertical grab bar.
7. Do an energy audit. (We generally need higher ambient temperatures as we age.)
8. Add task lighting to improve visual acuity.
9. Be proactive about your health—reorganize your house to encourage you to make it fun to exercise and to cook healthy meals. Try steam cooking; a portable steamer costs less than $100. Keep your house cleaner with a place to remove shoes upon entering.
10. Remodel the inside of your cabinets. Add pop-up shelves, lazy susans, pull-out racks, and lighter colors, for example.
11. Add warning systems: Smoke detectors, CO2 detectors, and driveway alerts.
12. Replace difficult controls with door levers and cabinet “C” grips, not knobs; use pressure switches, touch controls, and rocker switches on lamps. To test what works, try to use all controls with a closed fist. Then try to use all of them with one hand.
13. Replace your cookware for safety. Look for stay-cool handles and nondrip edges, for example.
14. You may need a new phone. If you have trouble hearing on your phone, replace it with one that amplifies high frequencies, not one that just increases the volume. If you frequently dial wrong numbers, find a phone with a large, lighted touchpad.
15. Use your house to reduce stress. Add a small fountain that produces the relaxing sound of running water. Keep relaxing music playing at all times. Add speakers which don’t require wiring.
16. Buy a comfortable chair that is easy to access and exit, with arms well forward and space to put your feet back so you can lean forward and push off.
17. Increase your security. Add deadbolts to all doors. Block sliding-glass doors when not in use. Consider the many options in security systems.

Do it later: adaptable solutions
1. Install the wall reinforcements, not the grab bars.
2. Install the track and wiring, not the $10,000 stair lift.
3. Add that study or den now and use it later for a live-in caregiver.
4. Install wiring for an automatic door opener in a tight hallway, and add the opener later.
5. Wall-mount cabinets so they can be lowered or raised later.
6. If the laundry is downstairs, wire and vent a closet on an upper floor so you can add a small washer-dryer at a later date.
7. Stack closets on multiple floors to form a shaft for an elevator at a future time.

Do it as you remodel
1. If you are putting in a wood floor, recess that area rug.
2. Use a nonslip finish on the wood floor.
3. Use a drop-down door bottom instead of a threshold (which is a tripping hazard).
4. Plan 4-foot hallways, 5-foot turnaround spaces in each room, and clear floor space for walkers, wheelchairs, strollers, and scooters. Use anthropometric measures to evaluate the route by walking through your house with elbows out to a 3-foot width.
5. Add more windows and skylights with low-E thermal glass. This will increase ambient light levels. We may need a fivefold increase in ambient light as we age.
6. Replace your cooktop with a safe and fast induction model.
7. Build a seat into your shower.
8. Replace your oven with a safe, side-hinged model. Add a pull-out shelf below.
9. Replace your washer and dryer with elevated, front-opening models.

Independent living, aging-in-place, and handicap accessible are not always combined with the words spacious, luxurious, and exquisite when describing a home. But those are all the exact adjectives one could use after visiting Karen Roche’s home in Chillicothe, Illinois.

A recent article by Jennifer Davis for Journal Star takes readers on a guided tour of Roche’s universally designed house and pays close attention to how its design is intended to allow its residents to remain living comfortably, safely, and independently at home.

According to Davis, Roche designed this sprawling brick Chillicothe home after she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and her husband, Ed, was diagnosed with cancer. The couple was still living in Las Vegas, where they had retired, but they decided to move back to Illinois to be close to her family.

Although Ed unfortunately passed away two months after the couple moved in, their home’s design allowed them to be together in shared comfort and care. Today, Roche resides in the home with her three dogs:  Lizzie, Pepper, and Sammy.

Roche’s home is a perfect example of universal design, which is also known as barrier-free design, accessible design, and even assistive technology. Universal design can encompass anything from wide hallways to accommodate wheelchairs or scooters, to easy-open doors with lever handles, to counters with varying heights.

In Roche’s case, her sprawling ranch in Sycamore Hills (one of Chillicothe’s newer subdivisions), has additional examples of universal design including:

• Custom cabinets with pull-out shelves;
• Ramps to the garage and main patios
• Tile and laminate instead of carpet (which is easier to clean and use a wheelchair on);
• Automatic windows that open with the push of a button;
• A whole-house intercom system;
• Computerized lights;
• An automatic doggie door.

The lighting is also programmed so that Roche can push one button and light entire sections of the house. “You can turn off all the lights in the house from the bed,” said Roche, adding that she can also turn on all the lights from her special keychain as she drives into the subdivision.

But the Chillicothe house is much more than a fine example of universal design that is ideal for aging-in-place. It was designed based on the previous home the Roches had in Las Vegas and they spared no expense in creating this second dream retirement home.

Some of Roche’s aesthetically and comfortably personalized aspects of this house include:

• Special jet-powered shower from Canada;
• Dressing table with black granite and bits of mirror imbedded in it;
• Imported Italian tile in a warm golden hue matches the house’s walls;
• Plush, pale yellow brocade sofa;
• Large, brick fireplace which is open to the sunroom.

The tiled sunroom itself faces west and has three walls of oversized windows with entrances to Roche’s two private gardens. The bigger, sunken brick patio for family and guests includes a corner waterfall and the smaller patio is just off the master bedroom suite. “If I have the windows open, I can hear the waterfall. That’s my most favorite thing,” said Roche. The sunroom also includes a massive therapeutic spa, which is outfitted with special jets to get every part of your body—even your feet and neck.

Roche’s gourmet kitchen has custom maple cabinets that blend in with her overall neutral color scheme. The granite island includes a cooktop steamer, grill, and griddle with an exhaust fan that rises up from the countertop with the push of a button. Everything is built-in—the double ovens, microwave, warming drawer, oversized stainless steel refrigerator, and dishwashers. This gives the kitchen a sleek look.

Although the Chillicothe home is 3,000-square-feet, it only has two bedrooms. The master suite has French doors that open to a private patio, as well as a walk-in closet that is as large as a small office. The bathroom off the master suite has a deep “bubble” tub big enough for two that includes special lights you can change to fit your mood, as well as a shower that doubles as a steam room.

Certified Aging-in-Place Specialist (CAPS) designated remodelers like Home Evolutions can help seniors and people with disabilities plan for their aging-in-place needs and incorporate aesthetically pleasing and universally designed home modifications.

Are you following us on Twitter? — Home Evolutions will give you real-time updates when our latest blogs are posted as well as timely information on Aging-in-Place news from around the country.

The latest edition of The Forever Home is now available online. For those of you who are new to our blog, our quarterly e-newsletter provides you with insightful information, valuable advice, and helpful tips to assist you to age-in-place comfortably and independently.

In this issue, you’ll read about the recent AARP’s Aging-in-Place videos which we participated in to help raise awareness on how to make your home safer as you age. The 3-part series of short video clips showcases Ross and Anna, a couple in their 70s who are making changes to their home so they can age in place. AARP invited us to visit the home of this couple to make some simple kitchen, bathroom, and home interior/exterior fixes at low-to-no cost.

According to the online health care Web site, HealthCommentary.org, our current health care system is not well equipped to address the immediate demands of a rapidly aging population. In our article, Technology Continues to Advance Home-Centered Health Care, you’ll read why experts are recommending that we place a stronger emphasis on prevention and wellness.

We’ll also take you behind the scenes of a nursing home. One medical student documented her time inside a nursing home to better understand what it’s like for an aging person who is living in one. The theory behind the program is that if future doctors can better understand how seniors live and what they go through on a daily basis, then those doctors can better treat and care for older patients because they have truly walked in their shoes. As an added bonus, the program hopes to inspire and steer medical students to choose geriatric care as their focus. This specialization is in near desperate need of new doctors.

Finally, our country’s general awareness of green practices is growing at an almost fever-pitched rate. This is a result of the now more accepted reality of the dangers and undeniable negative effects that global warming can have on our future. In addition, there has been an expansion of political and social pressures on us to modify our overall consumption behaviors.

We hope that you enjoy this issue. Please feel free to forward our newsletter to your friends and families. We invite you to email us at hburns@homeevolutions.com with your comments, suggestions, and any story ideas that would help The Forever Home better meet your specific needs.

Business Week recently published a special report on how today’s innovative technology is helping seniors and people with disabilities age in place, and how it’s also saving billions in health care costs.

The report discusses technology like the Intel Health Guide, a device that let doctors monitor his health remotely.

According to the report, which features Ronald Lang, a 63-year-old patient who suffers from congestive heart failure and multiple sclerosis, who was pilot-testing the Intel Health Guide, a device that let doctors monitor his health remotely:

“Each day after he woke up, he’d step on a scale and strap on a blood-pressure cuff that were attached to the Health Guide. The device collected his vitals and zapped them to his doctor’s office. From there, nurse Marie DiCola scoured the data, and if she noticed anything amiss, she dialed up Lang and chatted with him over Health Guide’s videophone.”

Aging-in-place equipment like this is placed in a person’s home, monitors symptoms on the spot, and sends reports to doctors and family members in real time. This device can drastically cut the rate of medical complications that force seniors into hospitals and other intensive-care facilities. “That, in turn, could shave millions of dollars a year from U.S. health-care bills—a tantalizing proposition at a time when health reform is at the top of the political agenda.”

This past spring, both Intel and General Electric announced they would spend $250 million over the next five years to co-develop products that will help seniors manage chronic conditions from home. The overall market for technology to assist older patients is expected to grow to $20 billion by 2020, according to consultancy Aging in Place Technology Watch.

Besides Intel, the aging-in-place market has attracted the likes of General Electric, Philips Electronics, Honeywell, Bosch, and dozens of technology startups are also leading the way by developing technology that can watch over senior homeowners, spot signs of trouble, alert doctors, and even teleconference physicians into the living room when there is a problem.

Read more about some of these exciting new technologies that will allow you to age in place, such as beds that can monitor patients’ vital signs as they sleep, stoves that can turn themselves off when their owners forget, and video games that can detect early signs of dementia.

Let us know what you think about some of these new devices in place to help you age in place.

Are you following us on Twitter? — Home Evolutions will give you real-time updates when our latest blogs are posted as well as timely information on Aging-in-Place news from around the country.

A recent article by Helen W. Brown discusses some very interesting results of a survey conducted by AARP about female Baby Boomers and their long-term care (LTC) planning.

According to Brown, past research has consistently shown that it is challenging to make people proactive about LTC plans. It is also generally thought that this is especially true of Baby Boomers because this group has historically resisted traditional aging perceptions. Brown explained, “A common belief is that they will live in a society in which prevailing attitudes, demography, economics, and medical advances have made the prospect of growing old in America one that contains previously un-dreamt-of choices of managing chronic illnesses and remaining active and involved in life. This mindset could lead Boomers to believe that they will never have a need for LTC.”

The question was raised whether this was equally true for both male and female Baby Boomers, or if attitudes about LTC planning significantly varied along gender lines. In late September 2008, AARP commissioned an online survey with a nationally representative panel of Boomer women.

These were some of the key findings of that study:

•    More than half of the Boomer women (53%) have not had any experience with caregiving.

•    Over one-third (36%) had provided care or are currently providing care for an aging relative.

•    Those who have been caregivers are twice as likely to have some kind of LTC plan (16%) as those who have not (8%).

•    More than half of respondents (56%) indicated that they did not have any type of LTC plan.

•    Most often, the trusted source of information that Boomer women turn to when making plans for their future health needs or financial security, falls into the category of family and friends (83%).

•    When asked to rank the factors that would most influence them to make and implement an LTC plan, the number one factor was observing the LTC experience of a friend or family member—followed by understanding clearly the available options and then fear of what will happen if no action is taken.

•    More than two-thirds of respondents (65%) indicated they cannot afford the cost associated with LTC planning.

Additionally, a significant number of Boomer women were unaware that Medicare does not cover LTC. In fact, over a quarter of respondents (29%) said they are counting on Medicare to pay for their LTC service needs.

AARP contracted Knowledge Networks, Inc. to conduct this survey during September 3-16, 2008. With a nationally representative panel of 2,898 women aged 50-62, the survey also included over-samples of African American and Hispanic women.

It is never too early to start thinking about and planning for your LTC. Remodeling companies like Home Evolutions can help Baby Boomers and others prepare themselves for their future aging-in-place needs. This can allow you to remain living comfortably, safely, and independently at home for as long as possible. Contact us today for an assessment.

Are you following us on Twitter? — Home Evolutions will give you real-time updates when our latest blogs are posted as well as timely information on Aging-in-Place news from around the country.