The SCAN Foundation

Adult Foster Care (AFC) for those needing long-term services and supports can be cheaper than placing them in a nursing home, or another institutional facility, according to an April 2009 AARP report, Building Adult Foster Care: What States Can Do. For the individual, it can provide a welcome environment, said the report titled “Building Adult Foster Care: What States Can Do.”

The study pronounces that,

“States are currently facing major budget shortfalls given the current economic environment and are looking for viable options to provide services and supports to older adults and people with disabilities. Adult foster care may be a cost-effective alternative to institutional care. From the perspective of consumers, AFC can enhance their ability, regardless of age and income, to participate as fully as possible in all aspects of community living. It provides residents with a homelike and family like environment. Because AFCs are integrated into local communities, individuals can engage in social interactions as they get help with personal care, medications and health-related activities, money management, housekeeping and transportation to appointments.”

While care at home is desirable, whether in foster care on an individual’s own home, some state programs are falling victim to the severe economic slump now plaguing the county. A January 6, 2010 Kansas City Star article, states that,

“Some 550 elderly Kansans will lose a state-funded service that aims to keep them in their homes and out of a nursing home. The service paid for dental care, assistive technology like wheelchair ramps or metal bathroom bars and nighttime caregivers. The Kansas Department of Aging says it indefinitely closed the program to new recipients as of Jan. 1. Existing recipients will lose the help Jan. 15.”