Low-care nursing home residents do not require the full suite of services provided by nursing homes and may be able to live in a less restrictive environment with the aid of community support. Community-based services, such as Meals on Wheels, visiting home health aides, transportation programs, and technology-delivered health care programs, may allow older adults to be cared for and remain in a less restrictive and more appropriate setting. Research suggests providing at-home meals to 1% more seniors in every state could save more than $100 million nationally by decreasing low-care prevalence. Beyond cost, aging in place has emotional, social, and health benefits.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is the largest federal nutrition program, helping millions of low-income Americans access food and improve economic security. More than four million low-income households with adults aged 60 and older rely on SNAP to stretch their monthly food budget. On average, senior SNAP beneficiaries received $129 per month in 2014 to help put food on the table. The Food and Nutrition Service works with states to promote SNAP; however, just 41% of eligible seniors enroll in the program, which may be due to transportation and mobility issues, stigma, and misunderstanding about who is eligible, and how SNAP works.

Prescription drug coverage decreases financial strain and increases medication adherence. Medicare beneficiaries can obtain Medicare Part D, a voluntary Medicare drug benefit, through two types of private plans, a stand-alone prescription drug plan or a Medicare Advantage (Part C) plan that covers prescription drugs. Medicare Part D plans vary by state in cost and coverage. Medicare beneficiaries in 2010 spent $4,734 out-of-pocket for health care spending, on average, and 11% of that was spent on prescription drugs. Prescription drug coverage is associated with a 10% reduction in nonadherence due to cost.

Geriatricians are vital to the health of seniors in outpatient and inpatient settings. Compared with standard hospital care, seniors receiving care in special geriatric units have better function at the time of discharge, and inpatient rehabilitative services involving geriatricians result in lower nursing home admissions and improved function at follow-up. In outpatient settings, geriatricians tend to provide better medication management than other clinicians. With aging baby boomers and increasing life expectancy, the number of needed geriatricians will continue to rise. Although the American Geriatrics Society identifies a need to train an additional 1,500 geriatricians yearly, only 75 internal medicine or family medicine residents entered geriatrics fellowship programs in 2010.