If you are searching for Colorado senior living options (assisted living, independent living, Alzheimer's care or nursing home), here are some things to keep in mind. Aging comes in several phases and each phase bring new challenges and priorities. During early retirement, one of the main priorities for senior living is amenities. For those searching for amenities, Colorado has an abundance. Open spaces, hiking trails, and more than 300 hundred blue-sky days per year add up to a high quality of  life. As time progresses and mobility becomes an issue, proximity to friends, family and good health care are the priority. 

The relatively low cost of living (in areas outside of Boulder and the ski towns) also means that your social security and retirement  dollars will go further. Most of Colorado is considered to be health conscious. This means that there is an abundance of health food stores (like Whole Food and Vitamin Cottage), state-of-the-art health facilities (including cancer treatment), and plenty of organization that promote healthy living and exercise (like hiking and biking clubs). The dry air and moderate temperatures during most of the year also are  attractive to many seniors (especially if you suffer from some level of depression). All these factors add up to make Colorado a great place for assisted living, independent living and all levels of senior care. This directory also includes information about Denver Alzheimer's Care .

Colorado Assisted Living Facilities Inspections

Colorado assisted living facilities are inspected by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. Health and fire safety inspections are performed annually for the first two years and then are performed every other year. To get a copy of an inspection report, contact the health facilities division of the Colorado Department of public health at (fax)303-753-6214 or e-mailed them at: health.facilities@state.co.us. There may be a fee associated with copies of inspection reports.

Colorado Assisted Living Facilities Complaints

• Pat Tunnell, State Long Term Care Ombudsman
• The Legal Center 455 Sherman Street Suite 130 Denver, CO 80203
• Thelegalcenter.org/
• Phone: (800)288-1376, ext. 217 Fax: (303)722-0720

Please try to minimize your list of potential assisted living facilities before contact these Colorado agencies.

This directory includes 1095assisted living options for Colorado. Use the "Advance Search" to find the nearest 40 senior services based on your desired location or select a city and then choose a tab to see different types of senior care including nursing homes, Alzheimer's care centers, CCRCs, independent living, in-home and hospice care.

Of coarse, when it comes time to select an assisted living or nursing home, the decision is usually driven by proximity to family and friends in conjunction with a desire to stay in an area that they know. Once the desired area is specified, the criteria typically becomes price versus amenities. The next factor in selecting a Colorado assisted living or nursing home is friendliness of facility staff, recommendations from current residences and current Medicare status of the facility. In general, it is best to avoid any facility that are on the Medicare violation list. Because most senior in assisted living facilities have some level of mobility issues, local amenities and attractions are not the most important issues. Having someone come to visit is more of the focus. For this reason, we have added a maps to allow users to search their area to find facilities based graphically. Just pick your location and you can see all the surrounding options for independent, assisted and senior living. Click on a flag (on the map) and you can get more details about that facility including reviews, amenities, costs and capacities. Since many of these facility have graduated service, you can see where sister facilities are located.

For those near a large metro area like Denver, Grand Junction, Fort Collins, or Colorado Springs, there are hundreds of options for senior living. If you have full retirement fund and you are searching for one of the best retirement areas in country, you may consider a Boulder assisted living facility. As you venture out further into other areas, you will have fewer options for assisted living facilities, nursing homes and independent living communities. Colorado has both large corporate and small independent facilities. Both options have advantages so make sure you dig deep to find out as many details about the level of services. They range from resort levels of service to maintaining the absolute minimum level to sustain life. Whether you are making long term plan for your own future or you are trying to make emergency plans for an aging parent, the AssistedSeniorLiving directory can help you find the best Colorado facility.