On Wednesday, May 14, 2008, the New York Times publihed an article regarding finding long-term care placement for those over 18 - "For the Disabled, Age 18 Brings Difficult Choices in Finding Health Care."

In our Elder and Disability Law practice, we are working with more and more clients who are under age 70 and suffering from some  form of cognitive impairment.  For these individuals, searching for suitable housing is not always an easy task.

Long-term care housing generally is not designed for younger individuals in need of nursing home care.  Yet, more and more younger individuals are in need of a nursing home level of care.  We need to be able to provide proper care for these individuals and develop a new clinical model for facilities to work with a younger population.

One solution is to develop a more homelike setting, especially for those over the age of 18 who have aged out of pediatric facilities.  Caring for a younger population is yet another challenge facing us in the long-term care field.