Urbana, IL . . . Margaret, age 71, and longtime Champaign resident found herself trapped living in a nursing home for over 6 months. She had gone there to recuperate from a broken arm but after her recovery, she didn’t know where to go. Her finances were limited, and she didn’t have any family to help. So, she stayed . . . and stayed . . . and stayed.
Margaret no longer needed the 24-hour nursing care that the nursing home provided, but in a nursing home Medicaid helped pay the bills. She couldn’t afford to move to a private-pay assisted living facility, and she was not able to
live safely or comfortably on her own. So, Margaret was stuck in a senior housing “Catch 22.”
The housing dilemma that Margaret experienced is, unfortunately, not unique. An estimated 25% of seniors living in nursing homes could live more comfortably and economically in what is called a Supportive Living setting. These people inappropriately choose nursing homes because that’s where their Medicaid benefits will help cover costs. They are simply unaware of the state’s innovative Supportive Living option that provides high quality and affordable accommodations and support to seniors and has been available in Illinois since 1999.
“Supportive Living is one of Illinois’ ‘best kept secrets,’” says Wayne Smallwood, Executive Director of the Affordable Assisted Living Coalition, an Illinois not-for-profit organization dedicated to shaping the future of affordable senior housing.
“Illinois’ Supportive Living program is one of the most sensible and comprehensive affordable senior living programs in the nation,” says Smallwood. “Unfortunately, people who need these services don’t necessarily know that they exist, and furthermore, they have a hard time comparing their options with more traditional forms of senior care.”
So, Supportive Living providers and residents are taking the week of April 28- May 2, 2008—dubbed Supportive Living Week—to tout the success of this affordable alternative to nursing home care that makes assisted living services, which have traditionally been a more exclusive proposition, an “all-income” opportunity. Supportive Living provides the “missing piece” of affordability to the senior housing puzzle.
Administered through the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services, the Supportive Living program combines apartment-style housing—typically studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments that residents can furnish and decorate according to their own personal taste—with personal care and other health services.
Supportive Living residents have access to services including three meals a day, housekeeping, social, educational and wellness activities, help with bathing and dressing, medication management and scheduled transportation. In addition, Supportive Living residents who qualify are offered a Medicaid-funded financial assistance program that makes the cost of these assisted living-type services more affordable to those with moderate to modest means.
Beyond these tangible benefits, Supportive Living offers residents an opportunity to preserve their autonomy as much as possible, meaning residents play an active role in their own care and day-to-day decision-making. In addition, Supportive Living residents benefit from a sense of community and feeling of camaraderie that living among peers and having the option to socialize on a regular basis offers. Supportive Living also offers residents and their loved ones the peace of mind that comes with knowing that a helping hand is available should they need it.
Margaret, eventually found a housing solution at Prairie Winds of Urbana, a brand new Supportive Living community in southeast Urbana. She and approximately 5,000 other people throughout our state are now living comfortably—and affordably—in 91 supportive living communities located in towns throughout the state (see enclosed listing). Each has his or her own remarkable history and story as to how supportive living has helped improve his or her life. For more information or to schedule a visit Prairie Winds, please call Margaret Seggebruch at 217-344-6400