The 5 Best Home Care Agencies for Seniors in Laurens, SC for 2024

Laurens is a southern community that’s home to only 9,319 people. Over a quarter of them are seniors aged 65 and above, meaning the city’s proportion of seniors is far higher than the national median of 16.8%. It’s an affordable community where housing rates are more than half the U.S. average. Residents enjoy 221 days of sunshine annually, and it rarely snows during the winter. The nearest hospital serving the city is Prisma Health Laurens County Hospital. The city’s home care agencies charge $4,671 monthly. While in-home care offers non-medical assistance with daily living activities, such as grooming and meal prep, home health care includes light medical services such as chronic illness management.

Below we’ve compiled a comprehensive directory of every home care provider in the CITY 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.

Older Laurens residents can expect to pay $4,671 per month for an in-home caregiver. While this price is a couple hundred dollars higher than the state’s median, it is more affordable than the national average of $4,957. Home care in Laurens is among the more expensive in the state, but costs in Sumter ($4,957) are higher. Seniors in nearby Spartanburg pay $595 less. Home care rates further southeast, in the cities of Columbia ($4,385) and Florence ($4,195), are lower than in Laurens. 

Home care in Laurens is one of the more expensive care options, but nursing homes are the costliest at $7,543 for a semiprivate room. Assisted living facilities cost $3,743 per month. The most cost-effective option for seniors in Laurens is adult day health care, at a median monthly cost of $1,408. 

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.