By Alexis Abramson, writer, Huffington Post |

For an aging person, the move to a skilled nursing facility is a costly one. Nationwide, the average annual cost of a semi-private room in a skilled nursing facility (nursing home) in 2011 was $78,110, according to the 2011 MetLife Market Survey of Nursing Home, Assisted Living, Adult Day Services, and Home Care Costs Survey. And the cost is clearly rising!

The majority of the cost of care online casino in a skilled nursing facility is borne by taxpayers through Medicaid. At $78,110 annually, it doesn”t take long for even the most financially prepared senior to go through their retirement savings and other assets to qualify for Medicaid.

But the financial burden is not the only “cost” felt by seniors who must move into skilled nursing facilities. Whether they are leaving the home where they raised their families, the community where they looked forward to spending their retirement years, or the assisted living center where they had hoped to live the rest of their lives with a degree of autonomy, the move to a nursing home costs them their freedom and independence.