North Carolina has 10.3 million residents, and of these, approximately 170,000 individuals are living with Alzheimer's disease, according to figures from the Alzheimer's Association. In Davidson County, North Carolina, part of the Winston-Salem Metropolitan Statistical Area, there are approximately 29,823 people age 65 or over, or about 17.9% of the county's population of 166,614 people. Many of these seniors may require memory care, and there are four memory care facilities to accommodate them — three in Thomasville and one in Lexington.
Memory care facilities are known as Special Care Units, or SCUs, in North Carolina, and typically exist within Adult Care Homes (ACHs), which are classified as a type of assisted living residence (ALR).
- On Sperling's Comfort Index, Davidson County scores a 61 out of 100 — a higher score indicates a more comfortable year-round climate. Davidson County receives an average of 216 sunny days a year and only 4 inches of snow in the winter. This climate makes it an agreeable place for seniors, as long as they have access to plenty of air conditioning in the summer.
- Seniors and their families considering memory care in Davidson County may want to inquire about additional security measures, since property crime especially is on the higher side. On a scale of 1 to 100, low crime to high crime, Davidson County scores a 55.4 for property crime, which is well above the state average of 37.7 and violent crime is 22.4, about on par with the state average of 21.4.
- Davidson County is considered to be somewhat tax-friendly for seniors, as the state's income tax rate is 5.5%, which is applied to pension fund income and withdrawals from retirement accounts. Social Security in North Carolina is fully tax exempt.
- Davidson County is home to world-class medical facilities, including those specializing in brain health and dementia care such as the Neurology Department at Thomasville Medical Center in Thomasville, NC, in the event of medical emergencies or illness.Â
Note:Â Data on this page was updated in 2019 and based on the latest 2018 figures.