A Comparison of African American and Caucasian Working Age Individuals in Nursing Homes

Background: Working age minorities, especially African Americans are an increasing share of the nursing home population. Little is known about this population relative to older nursing home residents. Objective: We compare the characteristics of working aged African American and Caucasian residents. Data and Methods: Data from the 1999 National Nursing Home Survey are used. Descriptive methods are used to compare the study groups of interest. Findings: Among residents both discharged to the community and those with longer stays (90 days or longer), compared with working age Caucasian nursing home residents (age 18 to 64), two thirds of African American residents are males. Less than half of Caucasians are males. African Americans are less often married (16.28%), compared to Caucasians (30.30%). They are less likely to utilize private insurance as a source of payment (18.18%), while Caucasians tend to access private insurance more (31.36%). African Americans are more likely to use the Medicaid (52.27%), than the Caucasians (33.73%), and the difference becomes more obvious among the longer stayed residents (81.69% vs. 68.57%). Compared to their Caucasian counterparts, African Americans are less likely to have functional limitations in bathing (62.22%), dressing (57.78%), or walking (40.00%). Among the longer stay residents, African American residents are more likely to be hospitalized before nursing home admission. Implications: In light of the Olmstead decision and subsequent policy initiatives, these findings have implications for identifying and assisting nursing home transitions for working aged minority individuals.