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Of a certain age Wednesday, September 16, 2020 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Housing options for seniors in Central Oregon
By Sue Stafford
Correspondent
For those of us of a cer-
tain age, we may be address-
ing questions like: Should I
downsize or can I stay in my
current home? Where am I
going to live if I move? If I
become incapacitated or need
help with some activities of
daily living, who will help?
How do I find help and how
will I pay for it?
There are numer-
ous resources out there to
help make these decisions.
Educate yourself about
what9s available before
you need it. Some housing
choices may require getting
yourself on a waiting list or
paying a deposit. Familiarize
yourself with the websites
that are full of valuable infor-
mation and resources to help
you.
ADRC, Aging and
Disability Resource
Connection of Oregon, is
a treasure trove of infor-
mation to aid in accessing
information, tools, and guid-
ance to help plan for future
needs before they arise, or
to explore options to meet
current needs. Find them
online or call 1-855-673-
2372 where professional
options counselors will speak
with you. Their services are
free and available to every-
one. The website has direct
links to everything from
housing options and long-
term care services to infor-
mation about Oregon Project
Independence and commu-
nity-based services.
If you elect to stay in
your current living situation,
be sure you can afford to do
that. Do you have enough
money to cover the rent or
a mortgage, property taxes
and insurance, and mainte-
nance of the property AND
deal with any potential major
medical costs? Is your house
manageable for you as you
age 3 are there stairs, for
instance?
If you can afford it, modi-
fications can be made to a
home to make it more elder
friendly and safe. Possible
changes might include add-
ing grab bars, ramps, replac-
ing twist water faucets with
levers, changing to linear
door handles instead of round
knobs, widening hallways,
and converting a downstairs
room to a bedroom.
Vi s i t t h e c o n s u m e r
help section of the Oregon
Construction Contractors
Board website or contact
Central Oregon Builders
Association for informa-
tion on hiring a contractor to
make those changes.
Available online is the
free AARP Home Fit Guide,
which contains information
and tips for a comfortable,
safe, and livable home. It
also provides guidelines for
hiring a contractor.
Another possibility would
be to consider selling your
home if you own it, and
moving to a smaller house, a
condo, a retirement commu-
nity, an apartment, or move
in with family or friends.
If you plan to age in place,
start making small modifi-
cations to your home so it
won9t require a great deal
of work if or when you need
adapted surroundings.
As the ability to live inde-
pendently begins to decline, it
may be time to find some in-
home help. Friends and fam-
ily may be available to assist
or you can hire a professional
home care worker or contract
with a licensed agency that
will provide their workers to
be of assistance.
Should you decide to pri-
vately hire your caregiver,
one source is the Oregon
Home Care Commission
that maintains a statewide
registry of potential home
care workers and a guide for
hiring and working with the
care provider (www.or-hcc.
org). You can also utilize
their Homecare Choice pro-
gram, which takes care of
paying the workers (with the
client9s money), withholding
and reporting payroll taxes,
and providing workers9 com-
pensation coverage for their
caregivers. To learn more,
call toll-free 1-844-494-4227
and speak with a Homecare
Choice Specialist.
When hiring a home
care worker through a local
in-home care agency, the
caregiver(s) is assigned by
the agency that also sched-
ules visits and is responsible
for employer taxes. Services
vary depending on a person9s
needs and abilities and can
be short-term while recover-
ing from an injury or illness
or long-term over months
or years. The service can be
as simple as regular welfare
checks to much more in-
depth services like bathing,
dressing, preparing meals,
shopping and transportation.
Most in-home care is paid
for by the client, although
some long-term care insur-
ance plans cover these ser-
vices. The client pays the
agency, not the caregiver.
Oregon
Project
Independence (OPI) serves
seniors and people with phys-
ical disabilities by providing
services while they are liv-
ing in their own homes. OPI
traditionally serves those
who are 60 years of age or
older or who have been diag-
nosed with Alzheimer9s or
a related disorder and meet
the requirement of Oregon9s
long-term care services pri-
ority rule dealing with level
of impairment. They cannot
be on Medicaid but can be
receiving food stamps and
supplemental Medicare ben-
eficiary benefits. A majority
of OPI recipients are 125 per-
cent of the Federal poverty
level.
Variety of housing options to suit needs, lifestyle of Sisters-area seniors
" Independent senior liv-
ing apartments are suitable
for seniors who are in good
health and can go about
their daily activities with-
out assistance from others.
Residents enjoy a carefree
lifestyle enhanced with a
selection of amenities and
helpful services. Apartments
are available from studios
to two-bedroom, two-bath-
room units. Residents can fix
meals in their apartments or
visit several dining facilities
within the complex.
The Alexander in Bend is
a newly-opened senior inde-
pendent living apartment
facility that offers an indoor
pool and hydro spa, massage
room, concierge services,
movie theater, salon and
barber shop, fitness center,
fenced pet-friendly areas,
game room, yoga studio,
and Seven Dimensions of
Wellness program.
If living independently
is not feasible or desired,
there are many facility-based
options that provide different
levels of support, services,
and amenities.
" Adult foster/care homes
are licensed single-family
settings with care for up to
five people. Adult foster
home settings serve a range
of needs in a home set-
ting and are rated 1, 2,or 3
depending on the care they
are able to provide. Not cov-
ered by Medicare.
" Assisted living and
residential care facilities are
licensed settings providing
housing and care services
to six or more people. A
registered nurse is on staff
or under contract but does
not have to be there 24/7.
Caregivers do not need to be
certified, but they are trained
in providing care services.
Not covered by Medicare.
The Lodge in Sisters offers
independent apartments,
assisted living, and respite
care.
" Continuum of care facil-
ities build in future changes
in the resident9s need from
the outset. Transitions are
possible from independent
living to assisted living, pro-
viding help with activities of
daily living (ADLs). If medi-
cal conditions arise, some
facilities are able to provide
skilled nursing visits. Still
later, memory care might be
added. The facility is able to
provide updates to the level
of care for life. Touchmark at
Mt. Bachelor is such a facil-
ity in Bend.
" Nursing facilities give
licensed 24-hour super-
vised nursing care and their
caregivers must be certi-
fied as nursing assistants.
The State Board of Nursing
must approve their training.
Nurses and certified nurse
aides provide personal, ther-
apeutic, and nutritional care.
Certain number of days cov-
ered by Medicare.
" Memory care com-
munities are environments
where staff cares for people
with dementia who have
needs that require a more
secure setting. Each setting
is licensed by the state as a
residential care, assisted liv-
ing, or nursing facility. The
state also requires memory
care facilities to train staff
to care for residents with
dementia and provide spe-
cialized services. Not cov-
ered by Medicare.
Long-term care insurance
plans cover all these options
except the independent
senior living apartments;
how much and for how long
depends on the provisions of
the policy. If you have lim-
ited income and resources,
there may be state programs
that help cover some of your
costs in some long-term care
choices. Call your Medicaid
office for more information.
ARDC and private
placement agencies are
among the organizations that
can answer questions and
give you resources to locate
the facility that is right to
meet your care needs. Make
visits, ask questions, and get
references before making
your decision.
Some information from
the ARDC website.