Racial Differences among Users of Long-Term Care

Abstract

A representative sample of 317 adult day care (ADC) participants from most ADC centers in Missouri in 1990 is analyzed to determine whether there are different patterns of ADC use by African-Americans and Whites. The data show that African-American elderly use ADC at twice the rate of older Whites. No racial differences were found in the functional or cognitive need levels of participants, but African-American participants are much more likely than Whites to depend on children as primary caregivers and to rely on Medicaid. Multivariate analysis shows that caregiver variables are as important as need, predisposing, and enabling variables in explaining the number of days per week of ADC used. African-American elderly will be especially affected by incorporating caregiver needs into research and policy.