Senior Services in Oregon (Portland, Eugene: credit, attorney, apartment complex)

[RockyMtnr]

I have seen reference to this onsite but not answers. We are moving to southern Oregon very soon (hopefully). Dear Mother-in-law is also moving to Oregon but not sure of her locale yet. We will probably be small town - she may prefer more urban scenarios.
Question: How are senior-services in Oregon -especially compared to other states?
We see many senior-complexes for renting in all income brackets and in all areas and also many demographics that show seniors to be a large part of the population but do the services change by locale? M-I-L is fixed-income and slightly more comfortable than some, income-wise.
Looking for general answers as well as specifics. Thank you.

[Waterlily]

Yes I believe senior services are different in each area. Some have housing for seniors. I'd guess you'd need a certain population to have these things.
Here in the Coos Bay/North Bend area there's some complexes for seniors. Some are for those that need help everyday and some not.
There's a senior group/club type of building. I'm not sure what they do there. They also have senior volunteer group for seniors who want to be active and do things.

[RockyMtnr]

Thank you Ms. Lil (again). I was doing some reading on our possible destination town and they have a Senior club/center also. They also have a ride-service but not much explanation on the site I visited. She will probably end up closer to or in Eugene after the settling-in period. I think my concern is; services are fairly lame where we are now, medical isn't grand at all but I don't think it's from lack of funds, just the way they're managed. I expect that Oregon, supposedly being a progressive state (but apparently with it's own funding problems) would be at least a step up regardless. Just trying to answer M-I-L's concerns and needs and shucks, I'm approaching 2nd-degree senior status myself (over 50, get the card and sometimes the discount but not yet 60 so, not even in the pecking order yet). She's still mentally active and although a private-type, social and involved. Remind me to ask about allergies sometime. Thanks again

[florigidge]

I’m in Eugene but a lifelong Floridian. I have basically gotten stuck here after a year of grad school, which bankrupted me. I’m now 58 - been here three years and hoping to go home. My take is on both Oregon and Florida is the US in general is in a sad state of affairs when it comes to taking care of our seniors. I took care of my ailing mother for many years in Florida and had to fight the system all the way in order for her to get the care she needed.

Here in Eugene they have some apartment complexes that cater to those over the age of 50 - but their application process was unbelievable. You have to supply an incredible amount of personal and financial information - truly invasive. Your financial background and your current financial situation must be pristine. I’m not talking about "nursing facilities" or such. I’m talking about regular, nice apartment complexes, if your mother in law is in good health and can live on her own.

They do have the nursing facilities (commonly called nursing homes to most of us) but as with any service like that you will pay a very high price to take advantage of them. They have, like Florida, facilities that offer different levels of care from very little to very hands on - BUT again, you will pay dearly for it.

If your mother in law is active, the Eugene area offers activities she might take advantage of. But as with anything, she will have to be proactive and search them out. The Eugene area has excellent transit facilities, too, and she can ride for free.

If she has health issues or if you anticipate a future incapacity, you might look into a durable power of attorney down the road. If she owns any assets or a house, you might also remove that responsibility from her ahead of time, putting things in the name of her daughter/son with her agreement. I know this sounds cold, but if your mother in law should at some point become so incapacitated that she would need to be in a nursing facility the expense is exorbitant. In the 90s, nursing homes were $35,000 and up per year in Florida - and I’m not talking top of the line, either. I have no idea what they are now.

The way it works is she would pay from any assets she has, including bank accounts and home. Once the nursing facility has completely gone through your mother's assets, and then she could apply for Medicaid. At that point, her monthly social security check is basically signed over to the nursing facility and she is essentially destitute. At least that was the way it was in the 90s and with my mother. You cannot suddenly decide to put your mother in law's assets/money in your name or her children's names and then admit her to a nursing facility. That’s called fraud. There is a time frame in which to do this - I think it's seven years, but I could be wrong.

The problem is nursing facilities, even the best, are terrible places to be. She would get perhaps "better" treatment as a paying resident. But I know for a fact the neglect involved when someone is on Medicaid. I know that in spades - and my mother most certainly knew it. I hope your mother in law is in good health and maintains it for a long time to come. But these are the realities one must deal with.

[RockyMtnr]

Thank you Flo. We have managed such places as those you mention. The amount of paperwork for any subsidized project can be overwhelming. Owners/operators of senior housing do seem to project a sometimes haughty/picky aura towards prospective tenants - thinking, I believe, that it helps to sell the older generations as they are often perceived (probably rightfully so) of being "pickier" themselves. M.I.L has long been a tenant of such projects and I don't anticipate p/w problems - at least, not on the surface. So much is dependent on knowing your own rights. The power-of-attorney scenario and others you mention are definitely things to prepare for ... and there are days ... but not yet. She is in "okay" health though must use her jazzy-chair and walker but she's not ready for a care-facility - just an "assisted living" facility where folks can have CNA's, housekeepers, etc. come in but can still maintain an independent existence. Thank you for a comparative report and best of luck "getting out of the glue". I know a little about how you might feel as in our current locale, it's basically 500 miles to anywhere - and I can see the west coast being similar as, if you don't like it there, then there's a gigantic expanse of county to cover to get back across the Mississippi. Good luck to you and thanks again.

[nocoldiron]

We are both disabled vets who use the VA for the bulk of our needs but have found ourselves in ER in a private hospital for life threatening emergencies. The hospital accepted payment from the VA and is now dunning us for everything the VA did not pay. Each little department is submitting a bill to our credit records and we hear from their collection agency routinely. Health care cost here is higher than most states but so is cost of living. I recommend you come here and rent and see if the area is right for you. Many people cannot stand the gloomy winters and rain. The price of things may surprise you. People "Rainbird" out of OR and come back for the glorious summers.

[RockyMtnr]

Thank you 'NoCold'. Just an aside - if and when we make it there, we're property-mgrs and will have jobs with accomodations and utilities included.

I've taken steps onsite and with the help of others, determined an area that just might suit us. I've worked some areas of the northwest and visited a few others and observed the "moon-tans" of Nor'Westrnrs - not just genetics, is it? (lol). While I have a romantic involvement with Oceans and coastal areas, I know I couldn't live right there 'cause of the fog, dreary overcast, cold & clammy consistent conditions and so, will remain inland.

The medical conditions (charges,fees,collections) are no surprise - the whole country has lost the edge. Remember the 60's when nearly every job had benefits and they were good and cheap? I do!! I've also worked the other end - i.e., credit & collections - and have to mention that most often it's a matter of paperwork - we need advocates every step of the way! Not relevant but important is NewZealand's approach to communal health-care ... and Sweden's ... and many other countries. We're about due to "phoenix" ourselves from the ashes of the past 30+ yrs.

Thanks for alerting me to the reality that Oregon is in the same boat as most other states I know of - 'twas only wishful thinking to hope OR had risen above it.

[live4kidz]

This is late - just now reading the post that was sent Dec. 2006 regarding senior living conditions/care in Oregon. When I first moved back to Oregon in 2004, I took classes on "Caring For Our Seniors" at the local college and also a few gerontology classes. I took classes, also, to receive a state certification as an Activities Director, hoping to work in the senior care industry. My previous 20+ years had been working predominantly in early childhood care and education! Long story short - one of the things I learned from social workers and R.N.s who were the instructors for the classes I took, was that if you are going to grow old - grow old in Oregon. More specific, we were told, grow old in Clackamas County because they have the best, by far, for services. It's the voters! They either vote on behalf of seniors - or not. Services, I have found, are quite good here. I do happen to live in Clackamas County and am an officer on a senior advisory board a a local town in this county where I live. Oregon, by way of history, can claim having pioneered Adult Foster Care Homes in this state - decades ago - and the path blazed by an Oregon physician. Other states looked to Oregon as the 'model' for this type of care. They worked with the federal government on funding for adult foster care - instead of nursing care homes - with the adult foster care homes (now mostly called adult care homes) being more family-like in structure, a maximum of 6 residents, and more one-on-one care and attention at a fraction of the cost! My sister has managed adult care homes, in the past, and also worked in skilled nursing facilities. There are good and bad in both arenas, but it seems far preferrable to have an aging loved one placed in an adult care home - in a residential neighborhood, with planned activities daily for the seniors, built-in friends, and other homey amenities not often seen in the more institutionalized approach found in skilled nursing facilities. Again, I am not discounting that there are many wonderful facilities out there - but they cost $3000 and up per month whereas the adult care homes start at $1800 (state assisted) and average around $2000 a month. Many do take state subsidies, so are able to charge less to the senior residents.

I've also found that the volunteer programs for Oregon seniors are very active and more dollars go toward supporting these services than I have seen in several other states in which I have lived. Transportation in and around the larger towns and cities is very good. Portland has an active senior transportation system connected with the Tri-Met Transit system. Some of what we have here is taken for granted, and we assume it's the same in all states across the nation. Not so.

We are in our early 60's - in the process of doing a search in Oregon (to stay near 3 of our adult children who live in the Portland area). We need, however, to get out of the expensive cost of living and low-paying jobs in the Portland area and head for smaller, drier, sunnier where we can both work parttime and manage as independently as possible as long as possible.

Hoping this helps to shed a different perspective on the issue of seniors living in Oregon and some of the beneifts more available to them.

Live4kidz