This Subtopic provides guidance on commitments for health care entities within the scope of this Topic.
A continuing care retirement community expects to provide services and the use of facilities to individuals over their remaining lives under continuing-care contract agreements. The nature and extent of such services depend on such variables as the individual's age, health, sex, and economic status upon entering the continuing care retirement community.
Continuing care retirement community facilities may be independent or they may be affiliated with other health care facilities. They usually provide less intensive care than do hospitals. They generally supply required continuous nursing service or appropriate assistance to residents who have a wide range of medical conditions and needs.
An advance fee may be met by transferring a resident's personal assets (which may include rights to future income) or by paying a lump sum of cash to the continuing care retirement community. Advance fees received for future services may be refunded at the occurrence of some future event, such as death, withdrawal from the continuing care retirement community, termination of the contract, or reoccupancy of a residential unit. The amount of the refund generally is based on contractual provisions or statutory requirements.
Payment of an advance fee generally is required before a resident acquires a right to reside in an apartment or residential unit for life. A portion of advance fees may be refundable by rescission within a legally set time period or if a certain future event occurs, such as the death or withdrawal of a resident or termination of the contract. Some refunds are paid only if a residential unit is reoccupied.
Continuing care retirement community refund policies vary either by region or according to statutory requirements, but generally the amount of the refund is based on provisions specified in a contract. For example, some contracts require a refund of the advance fee, less a reasonable processing fee. Amounts refunded may be based on a fixed amount or percentage, an amount that declines to a fixed amount over time, an amount that declines to zero, or an amount based on the resale amount. Refunds may be contingent on vacating the unit, resale of the unit, or passage of a fixed period of time if the unit is not resold.
Some contracts between a continuing care retirement community and a resident stipulate that all or a portion of the advance fee may be refundable if the contract holder's unit is reoccupied by another person. The source of money for the payment is from the proceeds of the advance fees collected by the continuing care retirement community from the next resident of the reoccupied unit. The terms governing how the proceeds from the next resident are to be paid to the previous resident vary from contract to contract.