The 5 Best Home Care Agencies for Seniors in Kankakee, IL for 2024

An hour south of Chicago, Kankakee, IL, is the principal city in the Kankakee-Bourbonnais-Bradley metro area. About 14.5% of its 24,000 residents are 65 and older, many of whom relish the city’s calmer pace of life. Kankakee also has a very low cost of living and one of the region’s more senior-friendly climates. There are two local hospitals, the 300-bed Riverside Medical Center and the 182-bed Ascension Saint Mary-Kankakee. Home care and home health care agencies also serve the city’s seniors. The former provides nonmedical services, such as help with bathing, while the latter delivers medical care from registered nurses and licensed therapists. The median monthly fee for home care is $5,148, based on 44 hours of care per week.

Below we’ve compiled a comprehensive directory of every home care provider in the Kankakee area – complete with services offered and reviews from families who’ve actually used the service. In addition to our in-depth provider listings, we’ve compiled resources to help seniors and their families to access all the tools they need to age in place safely and gracefully.

According to the 2021 Genworth Cost of Care Survey, the median monthly fee for home care in Kankakee is $5,148. A comparison with the Illinois average reveals Kankakee’s typical senior saves $191 per month. However, Kankakee’s senior pays an additional $191 compared to the national average. But the city is one of the more affordable in northern Illinois. Rockford’s median monthly fee is $477 higher, while Chicago’s adds $47 per month to that figure. Champaign is also costlier than Kankakee, although the increase is only $48 per month. A more affordable regional option is Peoria, where the typical senior could see monthly savings of $95 compared to Kankakee.

At $5,148 per month, the median fees for home care and home health care are identical in Kankakee. This is despite home health care being a limited medical service delivered by licensed nurses and therapists. At $4,623, assisted living is a more affordable option, though it requires the senior to relocate to an institution, a choice that isn’t for everyone. Nursing home care has the highest median fee at $7,133, reflecting the near-hospital levels of care provided.

Given the high cost of in-home care, many people use one or more forms of financial assistance to cover the expenses. Below, we explain some of the most common sources of financial help for paying for in-home care. If none of these options are available to you, you can reach out to your Area Agency on Aging or Aging and Disability Resource Center to learn about local resources.

• Long-Term Care Insurance: Long-Term Care Insurance covers expenses related to senior care, including in-home care. Depending on the policy type, beneficiaries may receive a cash payment to use towards long-term care or reimbursement for qualifying long-term care expenses. Note that there are limitations- typically a maximum benefit of $150 per day- and exact coverage terms vary depending on the exact policy, so always check the details.
• Medicare: Medicare does not cover in-home care because it is classified as custodial, or non-medical, care. However, some Medicare Advantage and Medicare Supplement plans, which offer expanded benefits, may cover in-home custodial care.
• Medicaid: Medicaid coverage of in-home care varies between different states because it is not a federally mandated benefit. Currently, all states cover some in-home care either through their standard Medicaid or a waiver program. The specific coverage rules are set individually by each state.
• Veterans’ Benefits: The Aid and Attendance benefit is a monthly cash payment that beneficiaries can use to pay for senior care, including in-home care services. To qualify for A&A, Veterans must already receive the VA pension and meet several additional requirements, including needing assistance with the activities of daily living. Contact the Department of Veterans Affairs to learn more.
• Reverse Mortgages: Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs) are federally insured loans that are available to homeowners age 62 and over. Reverse mortgages allow you to access a portion of your home’s equity in cash, tax free. Many seniors use reverse mortgages to finance their care expenses, including in-home care. Note that although there are no monthly payments due on reverse mortgage loans, borrowers do have to repay the loan once the last surviving homeowner passes away, moves, or sells the home.