Ohio's high cost of assisted living

Ohio seniors looking to move into assisted living facilities have to pay big bucks.

State of play: Ohio is one of the more expensive states in terms of assisted living costs, research from the company Seniorly shows, with an average monthly rent of $4,432.

• That puts us 14th in the country.

Perspective: That is about the same as the estimated monthly payment of owning this six-bedroom, 5,400-square-foot Columbus home.

Why it matters: There are more senior citizens in America than ever before with the baby boomer generation reaching retirement age.

• In Ohio, nearly one-fifth of all residents are 65 years or older — more than 2 million people in total.

The big picture: The facilities are seeing increased demand from an aging population compared to pandemic lows of 2020.

• The Ohio Department of Aging notes assisted living is a cheaper and less restrictive alternative to nursing homes.
• There are 720 assisted living facilities in the state, per the Ohio Department of Health, including 77 in Franklin County.

Yes, but: They remain very costly, with limited financial help available.

• Residents have to foot the bill for room and board, which Medicaid does not cover.

By the numbers: Seniorly used Census data to calculate how long someone earning the median annual household income in Ohio would need to work to save for one year of assisted living costs —12.5 years.