The three main senior care options, plain English
Home care brings caregivers into your loved one's own home on a schedule you control. Assisted living moves your loved one into a residential community designed for older adults who need some help with daily tasks but not constant medical care. A nursing home (skilled nursing facility) is a licensed medical setting for people with significant ongoing medical needs. The three options sit on a spectrum of intensity and cost — and most Baton Rouge families end up using more than one across the late-life arc.
Home care — what it covers, what it costs
Home care (also called non-medical home care or personal care) is hands-on help with the activities of daily living delivered in the senior's own home. Caregivers help with bathing, dressing, meals, medication reminders, mobility, companionship, transportation, and the small routines that anchor a senior's day. Schedules range from a few hours a week to 24/7. In the Baton Rouge market, hourly rates run roughly $26 to $32 per hour. A 20-hour-per-week schedule typically runs $2,200 to $2,800 a month; 40 hours runs $4,400 to $5,600; live-in care runs $9,000 to $13,000 a month.
- •Best when your loved one wants to stay in the home they know.
- •Best when need is part-time, predictable, and family-managed.
- •Best for couples where one spouse still wants to be home with the other.
- •Funded by private pay, long-term care insurance, VA benefits, and Louisiana Medicaid waivers.
Assisted living — what it covers, what it costs
Assisted living is a residential community licensed by the Louisiana Department of Health for adults who need help with some daily activities but don't need round-the-clock medical care. Residents have a private apartment or room, share dining and activity space, and receive a base level of personal care, housekeeping, and meals included in the monthly rate. Care levels above the base (more help with bathing, mobility, medications) are typically billed as add-ons. Baton Rouge market rates for assisted living typically run $4,500 to $7,500 per month for the base, with secured memory care units running $5,500 to $8,500.
- •Best when loneliness or social isolation is the biggest problem.
- •Best when the current home is no longer workable (stairs, distance from family, safety).
- •Best when daily structure and built-in community are needed.
- •Funded by private pay and long-term care insurance; Medicaid generally does not pay for assisted living in Louisiana.
Trying to decide between options? Let's talk through your situation.
Nursing home — what it covers, what it costs
A nursing home (skilled nursing facility, or SNF) provides round-the-clock skilled nursing care for residents with significant medical needs — feeding tubes, complex wound care, IV antibiotics, ventilator support, advanced late-stage dementia, or serious functional dependence. Care is delivered by licensed nurses and certified nursing assistants under physician orders. Baton Rouge nursing home rates typically run $7,500 to $10,000 per month for a semi-private room and higher for a private room. This is the only one of the three settings that Louisiana Medicaid pays for as a long-term residence (assuming clinical and financial eligibility).
- •Best when medical care is too complex for home or assisted living.
- •Best when frequent skilled nursing intervention is needed.
- •Best when other options have genuinely been exhausted.
Side-by-side: cost, services, dignity, autonomy
| Home care | Assisted living | Nursing home | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Setting | Own home | Residential community | Licensed medical facility |
| Typical Baton Rouge cost (2026) | $2,200–$5,600/mo (part-time) to $9,000–$18,000/mo (live-in or 24/7) | $4,500–$8,500/mo (base + add-ons) | $7,500–$10,000+/mo |
| Medical care | Non-medical (skilled care via separate home health) | Limited; medical care brought in | Skilled nursing on staff 24/7 |
| Social engagement | Family + caregiver-driven | Built-in community | Limited; medical focus |
| Autonomy | Highest — own routine, own home | Moderate — community schedule | Lowest — institutional schedule |
| Medicaid (Louisiana) | Yes (CCW, LT-PCS waivers) | Generally no | Yes (with eligibility) |
How to choose for YOUR family (not the average family)
There is no average family. The right answer depends on what your loved one wants, what their medical reality is, what the home itself can support (stairs, layout, distance to family), and what the family can sustain. The most useful questions to ask are not about the options — they are about the person. What did they say they wanted years before any of this came up? What does their day actually look like right now? What is the one thing that, if it kept going for another six months, would force the conversation? Start there.
- Start with what your loved one wanted before this came up — most people choose home if it's possible.
- Be honest about safety. Could the next 12 months go well at home with help, or is the home itself the problem?
- Compare real numbers from real Baton Rouge providers, not online averages.
- Ask: 'If we choose this and it doesn't work, what's plan B?' Plans should have flexibility.
- Read our companion guides on cost of home care, how to pay for home care in Louisiana, and home care vs. home health.
