Assisted living facilities allow people to continue living independently. Residents have private quarters but receive on-site services like home health care, transportation, meals, and unit maintenance and repairs.
But because the facilities are mostly private pay, fewer low-income residents and people of color are able to access them, researchers noted in a 2021 national study in the Journal of Post-Acute and Long-Term Care Medicine.
In Connecticut, the median monthly cost to reside in an assisted living center is $5,129, according to the Genworth 2021 Cost of Care Survey. That’s higher than the U.S. median monthly cost of $4,500.
And of the 119 assisted living centers in Connecticut, 77% are located in towns with a higher median income than the state overall, while 68% are located in towns that are both wealthier and whiter than the state overall.
Read more: More people want to age outside nursing homes, but some have few options
