The National Center for Assisted Living has launched the AL Cost Calculator, a web-based resident assessment tool that enables assisted living providers to assess how costs are allocated across residents.

“This data is imperative in today’s value-based marketplace,” NCAL Executive Director Scott Tittle said. “As managed care companies, accountable care organizations and other healthcare providers look to partner with high-quality, low-cost providers, assisted living communities could use the AL Cost Calculator to help demonstrate their value.” 

As McKnight’s Senior Living reported during the 2017 AHCA/NCAL annual meeting, where a preview of the technology was offered, users will be able to gauge their costs by completing an assessment that includes 25 possible health and service categories for each resident. After they input information on wages for their licensed and unlicensed staff, the tool will compute the average monthly costs for each resident and the overall monthly costs for the community.

Other anticipated monthly costs, such as taxes and benefits, also may be factored into total costs. The platform offers customizable graphs of the cost data and allows multi-facility organizations the ability to compare costs between multiple assisted living communities within each company.

“With resident acuity on the rise and workforce availability shrinking, assisted living providers face increasing pressures to efficiently and effectively meet consumer demands,” Chris Mason, CEO of Senior Housing Managers and NCAL’s immediate past chairman, said in a statement. “The AL Cost Calculator will allow assisted living providers to better understand the full needs of their residents, so they can put the right staff with the right skills in the right place at the right time.” 

The software tool is available exclusively to NCAL member communities at no additional cost. Data are hosted by Prime Care Technologies.

Members must register for the tool through the association’s website. NCAL does not use the AL Cost Calculator to analyze or compile data regarding the costs or revenues of any assisted living communities.