Assisted Living in Massachusetts

Study finds Massachusetts lagging in assisted-living options.

The Boston Globe (1/5, Lazar) reports that a recent study from Harvard Medical School has determined that assisted-living programs are "far less available" in Massachusetts than in the majority of the rest of the nation. The state was determined to have "about half as many assisted living slots per resident 65 or older as the national average." The study, appearing in today's journal Health Affairs, also found that assisted-living facilities "are disproportionately located in more upscale areas." The Globe notes that the assisted-living boom "has been fueled by private dollars, because Medicaid typically does not pay for such care," and theorizes that this "means developers have built where the money is."