Annual nursing home costs jump 44% in Sacramento

The cost of nursing home care in some parts of Northern California has jumped far more rapidly than the national average since 2004, according to a report released Tuesday by a major long-term-care insurer. The survey said the cost of a private nursing home room in Sacramento has jumped 44 percent to more than $90,000.

The cost of a private room jumped 12 percent in San Francisco and nine percent in San Jose over the last five years, compared to 17 percent across the United States, but rates shot up 44 percent in Sacramento and 21 percent in Oakland, Genworth Financial Inc. (NYSE: GNW) reported April 29 in its annual Cost of Care survey. (Semi-private rooms cost considerably less.)

Rates increased 19 percent in Los Angeles, 17 percent in Santa Ana, and 28 percent throughout the rest of California, the report indicated.

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One year in a San Francisco nursing home now costs an average $100,101, the survey said. A comparable private room costs $92,740 in Oakland, $92,094 in Sacramento, $89,973 in San Jose and just $76,459 in Los Angeles. In less urbanized parts of California, the statewide average is $72,919 annually, which is less than the U.S. average.

In comparison, the national average is $76,460, which Genworth notes is more than one and a half times the average annual household income of $48,201.

Richmond, Va.-based Genworth surveys more than 10,000 nursing homes, assisted living facilities and home care providers in all 50 states and 90 geographic regions, including the District of Columbia, officials said.

Many California cities also have higher than average costs for private one-bedroom units in assisted living centers, according to the Genworth survey. The U.S. average for such a unit is $36,090. In contrast, San Francisco's annual assisted living cost for that type of unit is $44,011, compared to $38,358 in Oakland, $32,591 in Sacramento, $31,183 in San Jose and $39,815 in Los Angeles.