ASSISTED LIVING - POLICY IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING

Imagine that you are an 82-year-old widow with one child who lives in another state. You have been healthy and managing fairly well until th e last two years when your arthritis has made it difficult for you to do heavy household chores and adequate shopping. You will readily admi t that although you enjoy eating, you no longer want to bother cooking very much. At the same time, all the paperwork and hassles involved i n owing a house are becoming overwhelming for you. Your choices seem, to you, somewhat limited. You cannot afford a continuing care retireme nt community and you are not in need of a nursing home. In the middle of the night, when your worries about the future keep you awake, you a dmit that you would rather be homeless than move in with your son. The only alternative seems to be an apartment. However, although an apart ment would relieve you of homeowner responsibilities, it would not hel p with the problems of cleaning, cooking, and shopping. A housekeeper and personal shopper would be nice, but are impossible financially. So where does that leave you? Well, you decide you'll have to muddle alo ng a while longer with some help from friends and neighbors until some thing better comes along.