The 10 Best Memory Care Facilities in Kern County, CA for 2024

In the 2010 census, Kern County's population was 839,631, including around 90,000 residents who were 65 or older. As of 2015, 9.7 percent of these seniors were diagnosed with dementia, and many of them will eventually require care beyond what loved ones are able to provide at home. To meet the needs of these seniors and their families, Kern offers four memory care facilities. 

California licenses them as Residential Care Facilities for the Elderly (RCFEs). Note that not all RCFEs provide memory care; those that do must meet special staffing and security requirements to ensure quality care for seniors with dementia.

• Choosing a city with a reasonable cost of living may allow families to afford more in terms of memory care. Compared to the rest of California, Kern County's living costs are about 64 percent less expensive, overall, and healthcare is about 9 percent cheaper.
  
• Because Kern County has some of the most polluted air in the nation, it may not be the best choice for seniors with chronic respiratory conditions such as COPD or asthma. Even healthy seniors may want to stay inside their memory care facility on days with especially high pollution.
  
• Kern County's crime rate is above average for the United States. On a scale of one to 100, the county's violent crime rate is 63.9, and its property crime rate is 59.1. The national averages are 31.1 and 38.1, respectively. While memory care communities are generally secure by design, families can always check to see what policies and procedures a facility uses to ensure residents' safety. 
  
• For seniors who will spend some time outside the memory care facility, weather may be an important factor. Kern County tends to have a dry climate with hot summers and cool winters. Typically, the county gets 7 inches of rain and 1 inch of snow annually. The average high temperature in July is 100 degrees, and the average low temperature in January is 38 degrees.
  

Memory Care costs in Kern County start around $5,260 per month on average, while the nationwide average cost of memory care is $5,694 per month.

It’s important to note that memory care rates in Kern County and the surrounding suburbs can vary widely based on factors such as location, the level of care needed, apartment size and the types of amenities offered at each community.

Learn more about these programs, plus who’s eligible, on our Memory Care in California page.

While many families use their own funds or personal assets to pay for memory care, there are plenty of additional options to cover these costs. Some additional ways to finance memory care costs include:

• Veterans Benefits
• Life Insurance Policy
• Long-Term Care Insurance
• Reverse Mortgage

For more information about different ways to finance memory care, visit our Memory Care in California page.

Kern County-area memory care communities must adhere to the comprehensive set of state laws and regulations that all memory care communities in California are required to follow. Visit our Memory Care in California page for more information about these laws.