Rising Demand for Home-Based Care
May 16, 2017
1 in 5 Minnesotans will be 65 or older by 2030.
As the population ages, industries that provide home care for older adults and people with disabilities will be in greater demand.
Two of those industries – home health care services and services for the elderly and persons with disabilities – are already experiencing growth. The number of businesses in the home health care services sector tripled in the state between 2000 and 2015, while establishments in the services for the elderly and persons with disabilities industry grew by about more than 150 percent.
The home health care services industry provides skilled nursing care in the home, including personal care, homemaker and companion services, physical therapy, medical social services and more.
The services for the elderly and persons with disabilities industry provides day care, nonmedical home care or homemaker services, social activities, group support, companionship and other services.
With the Minnesota State Demographic Center projecting that one in five Minnesotans will be 65 or older by 2030, these two industries will need to keep growing to meet public need. But low wages and a tight labor market will make it difficult for the industry to fill future job openings.