New York stands alone in a new national study of long-term care costs, and not in a good way. It is the only state where the typical senior household falls short on both counts the study measured: how much it has saved and how far that money goes.
The study, from the long-term care cost researchers at CareScout, calculated how long $250,000 would pay for long-term care in every state. In New York, it covers 2.46 years, below the national average of 2.78 years and 38th among the 50 states.
The typical New York senior household, meanwhile, has a net worth of $239,040, below the $250,000 benchmark and well below the national figure of $343,980. The estimate draws on Census Bureau wealth data, with an adjustment for age.
Ten other states also have typical senior net worth under $250,000, but in every one of them, $250,000 lasts longer than the national average. New York is the exception on both measures.
The biggest pressure point is nursing home care. A semi-private room in New York costs a median $186,333 a year, compared with $114,975 nationally. At that price, $250,000 covers 1.3 years.
Care at home is a different story. A non-medical in-home caregiver in New York costs $80,080 a year, exactly the national median, and $250,000 covers 3.1 years. Assisted living costs $85,320 a year and covers 2.9 years. The gap between the cheapest and most expensive setting in New York is nearly two years of coverage.
The study averaged the three settings to rank the states, drawing prices from CareScout’s 2025 Cost of Care Survey. The averaging mirrors how care tends to progress, from help in the house to assisted living and, for many, a nursing home. The report advises families to budget for that progression rather than for the least expensive setting.
Measured against its own region, New York looks better. It ranks second among the nine Northeastern states, behind only Pennsylvania at 2.72 years, and ahead of New Jersey at 2.30, Connecticut at 2.23 and Vermont and Massachusetts, tied at 2.11. The Northeast as a whole averages 2.31 years, the lowest of any region, even though its senior households have a typical net worth averaging about $519,000. New York’s figure is less than half of that, which is what sets it apart from its neighbors: they tend to have more saved to absorb higher prices.
Across the country, the same sum has been buying less each year. It paid for 3.8 years of care in 2020; today the average is 2.8. The range across states is wide, from 3.9 years in Arkansas to 1.9 years in Alaska and Hawaii.
The stakes are broad. Federal health researchers estimate that 70% of people who make it to 65 will develop severe long-term care needs before they die. Medicare, whose enrollment window opens Oct. 15, generally does not pay for it, and the report says many families do not learn that until they need care.
The figures are statewide medians, and the report notes that actual costs depend on the community and provider. Prices in the Finger Lakes may not match those in New York City or its suburbs, and families here may find local care costs higher or lower than the state figures suggest.
For many New York households, though, the statewide picture is a clear signal to plan early: less saved than the national benchmark, and care that uses it up faster than most of the country.
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