Nearly three-fourths of middle-aged Californian voters say they could not afford three months in a nursing home, and nearly half say they couldn’t afford even a single month, according to a new poll released Thursday by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research.
The poll, conducted by Lake Research Partners and Chesapeake Beach Consulting, surveyed 1,667 registered California voters age 40 and older in English and Spanish. The poll was funded by The SCAN Foundation.
Concern about paying for long-term care is widespread and cross ideological and economic lines, the survey found.
Sixty-seven percent of Democrats, 61 percent of independents and 63 percent of Republicans said they are worried about paying for long-term care. More than half of those earning more than $75,000 a year said they share that worry.
The concerns run even deeper among Latinos.
According to a report issued with the poll:
• Ninety-one percent of Latino voters could not afford more than three months of nursing home care, and 86 percent could not afford more than three months of part-time in-home care.
• Seventy-eight percent of Latinos said they worry about making ends meet, compared with 53 percent of whites.
• Nearly one in four Latinos (23 percent) had medical debt, compared with 15 percent of whites.
• Nearly one in three Latinos (31 percent) inaccurately believe Medicare covers long-term nursing home care — more than twice as many as white respondents (12 percent).
• Six in 10 Latino voters (60 percent) anticipate a close family member needing paid long-term care in the next five years, compared to 46 percent of white respondents.
To see the full survey results, go here.
Note: The SCAN Foundation is a sponsor of calhealthreport.org.