If you are arranging senior care in Orleans Parish, start with two calls: the New Orleans Council on Aging at 504-821-4121, your local Area Agency on Aging, and Louisiana Options in Long-Term Care at 1-877-456-1146 for Medicaid screening. In 2026, New Orleans assisted living averages about $4,900 a month, above the state median but below the national one.
If you are arranging senior care in Orleans Parish, start with two calls: the New Orleans Council on Aging at 504-821-4121, your local Area Agency on Aging, and Louisiana Options in Long-Term Care at 1-877-456-1146 for Medicaid screening. In 2026, New Orleans assisted living averages about $4,900 a month, above the state median but below the national one.
Orleans Parish and the City of New Orleans are the same place, from the French Quarter and Uptown to Lakeview, Gentilly, Mid-City, New Orleans East, and Algiers across the river. This guide gathers the local phone numbers, the real cost ranges for the New Orleans market, and the kinds of care in the parish, so your family can take a clear next step.
Who do I call first for senior help in Orleans Parish?
Call the New Orleans Council on Aging at 504-821-4121. It is the Area Agency on Aging for Orleans Parish and runs a free Aging and Disability Resource Center that helps with meals, in-home support, and Medicare and Medicaid questions. For long-term-care Medicaid screening, call Louisiana Options in Long-Term Care at 1-877-456-1146.
Those two lines cover most first questions. The New Orleans Council on Aging (NOCOA), at 2475 Canal Street, Suite 400, connects families to home-delivered meals, homemaker help, family caregiver support, and legal aid, and its Resource Center will help you sort out what your parent qualifies for (NOCOA, 2026). The statewide Louisiana Options line is the single door for every long-term-care Medicaid program, so one call screens for in-home services, waivers, and PACE at once (Louisiana Department of Health, Office of Aging and Adult Services). Please confirm these phone numbers when you call, as local office lines change.
How much does senior care cost in the New Orleans area?
Greater New Orleans prices at or above the Louisiana median. In 2026, assisted living in New Orleans averages about $4,912 a month (A Place for Mom), near the 2024 CareScout state median of about $5,100. Memory care runs higher, nursing homes run higher still, and in-home care is billed by the hour. Louisiana overall stays below the national average.
New Orleans is the most expensive of Louisiana's major metros for assisted living, so a budget built on the state average should lean toward the top of the range here. The numbers below blend the authoritative 2024 CareScout survey (state-level) with family-facing sources for the New Orleans market. Memory-care figures are estimates, because that category is not measured by the CareScout survey.
| Care type | Greater New Orleans monthly range (2026) | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Assisted living | about $4,900 to $5,100 | New Orleans about $4,912 (A Place for Mom, 2026); Louisiana median about $5,100 (CareScout, 2024) |
| Memory care (estimate) | about $5,200 to $6,500 | A Place for Mom and SeniorLiving.org estimates, not in the CareScout survey |
| Nursing home (semi-private room) | about $7,500 | Louisiana median (CareScout, 2024) |
| In-home care (about 40 hours a week) | about $3,500 to $3,800, more at metro agency rates | Louisiana benchmark about $20 to $22 an hour (CareScout, 2024) |
A few honest notes on these figures. Assisted living estimates vary widely by source and year, so treat the range as a planning number and confirm real prices community by community. Memory care usually adds roughly $800 to $1,600 a month over assisted living for a secured setting and specialized staff. Nursing-facility Medicaid can cover a nursing home fully once your parent qualifies, which changes the math entirely. And in-home agency quotes in the New Orleans metro often run higher than the state benchmark, closer to $25 to $30 an hour, with round-the-clock live-in care reaching far more, often above $15,000 a month (CareScout, 2024; FOX 8 New Orleans, Nov 25, 2025).
What kinds of senior care communities are in Orleans Parish?
Orleans Parish offers the full range: assisted living and residential care, memory care, skilled nursing homes, a PACE program, and many in-home care agencies. Directory listings for 2025 show roughly 30 licensed assisted living or residential care communities and about 14 nursing homes across the parish (SeniorGuidance.org), a directional count worth confirming with current, licensed options.
In Louisiana, what most families call assisted living is licensed by the Louisiana Department of Health as an Adult Residential Care Provider, in four levels that range from small homes with a handful of residents to apartment-style communities with kitchenettes and, at the top level, some nursing services. Memory care is usually a secured wing within one of these communities rather than a separate building, so many assisted living addresses also serve dementia. Skilled nursing homes provide the highest medical level of care. Because these communities sit across very different neighborhoods, from Uptown and Lakeview to New Orleans East and Algiers, location and neighborhood often matter as much as price when your family is deciding.
| Kind of care | Roughly how many locally (2025 directory) | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Assisted living / residential care | about 30 | Help with daily tasks in a community setting, licensed in four levels by the Louisiana Department of Health |
| Memory care | often a secured wing within assisted living | Secured setting and specialized staff for dementia |
| Nursing homes (skilled nursing) | about 14 | The highest medical level of care, room, board, and nursing |
| PACE | 1 program (PACE Greater New Orleans) | All-inclusive Medicare and Medicaid care for eligible seniors 55 and older |
| In-home care agencies | many | Care delivered in your parent's own home, billed by the hour |
We do not list specific community names or prices here, because those change and deserve a current, verified quote. An advisor who works the New Orleans market can match your parent to real, licensed options that fit their needs and budget.
Does Medicaid help pay for senior care in New Orleans?
Yes, for several kinds of care. Long-Term Personal Care Services covers up to 32 hours a week of in-home help with no waitlist, the Community Choices Waiver and PACE cover more, and nursing-facility Medicaid covers a nursing home fully once your parent qualifies. Louisiana Medicaid does not pay room and board in assisted living. One line, 1-877-456-1146, screens for all of it.
For a New Orleans family, the practical map looks like this. To keep a parent at home, Long-Term Personal Care Services is the fastest path because it is an entitlement with no line to wait in, while the Community Choices Waiver covers far more but uses a registry, so a slot must open first. For a nursing home, nursing-facility Medicaid pays room, board, and care once your parent meets the income, asset, and care-level rules. Assisted living is the gap: a waiver can sometimes fund the care services inside an assisted living community, but the resident always pays room and board out of pocket. For 2026, a single applicant generally must have monthly income at or below $2,982 and countable assets at or below $2,000, and these limits change each January (Louisiana Department of Health, Office of Aging and Adult Services). Because eligibility and estate-recovery rules are detailed, our companion guides on paying for care walk through them, and an elder-law attorney can confirm your parent's situation.
What is PACE Greater New Orleans?
PACE Greater New Orleans is a Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly that coordinates all of a person's Medicare and Medicaid care through one local center. It serves residents 55 and older who meet a nursing-facility level of care and live in the service area. The Shirley Landry Benson PACE Center at St. Cecilia is at 4201 N. Rampart Street, New Orleans, LA 70117, at 504-835-0006.
PACE is worth knowing about because it can let a frail parent stay in the community rather than move to a nursing home. The program bundles doctors, therapy, adult day services, transportation, and long-term care under one team, with the day center as the hub (PACE Greater New Orleans). It is the only PACE program in the New Orleans area, and enrollment requires meeting the age, care-level, and residence rules, so call the center to check whether your parent qualifies. Please confirm the phone number and address when you reach out.
How a Louisiana advisor helps: A local guide like this points you to the right doors, but choosing among 30 communities and several ways to pay is a lot to carry alone. An advisor who knows Orleans Parish can pull real current pricing from communities that fit your parent, explain what Medicaid will and will not cover here, and weigh in-home care against a move so a community is only one option, never the default. You work with one advisor, your family is never sold to a list of companies, and because families pay nothing for this help, a first conversation costs you only the time to talk.
These figures are medians and estimates that vary by community, room type, care level, and market, and they change year to year. Medicaid rules and local resource details also change. This is general education to help your Orleans Parish family plan, not medical, legal, or financial advice.
Common questions
Who do I call first for senior help in Orleans Parish? Call the New Orleans Council on Aging at 504-821-4121. It is the Area Agency on Aging for Orleans Parish and runs an Aging and Disability Resource Center that gives free guidance on meals, in-home help, and Medicaid. For long-term-care Medicaid screening statewide, call Louisiana Options in Long-Term Care at 1-877-456-1146.
How much does assisted living cost in New Orleans? In 2026, assisted living in New Orleans averages about $4,912 a month (A Place for Mom), the highest of Louisiana's major metros, close to the state median near $5,100 from the 2024 CareScout survey. Orleans Parish prices at or above the state average, so plan toward the higher end of the range.
Is there a PACE program in New Orleans? Yes. PACE Greater New Orleans operates the Shirley Landry Benson PACE Center at St. Cecilia, 4201 N. Rampart Street, New Orleans, LA 70117, reachable at 504-835-0006. PACE bundles all Medicare and Medicaid care for residents 55 and older who meet a nursing-facility level of care and live in the service area.
Does Louisiana Medicaid pay for senior care in Orleans Parish? Yes, for some care. Long-Term Personal Care Services covers in-home help with no waitlist, the Community Choices Waiver and PACE cover more, and nursing-facility Medicaid covers a nursing home fully. Medicaid does not pay room and board in assisted living. One line, 1-877-456-1146, screens for all of it.
How many senior living communities are in Orleans Parish? Directory listings for 2025 show roughly 30 licensed assisted living and residential care communities and about 14 nursing homes across Orleans Parish, plus PACE and many in-home care agencies (SeniorGuidance.org). Treat those counts as a directional starting point and confirm current, licensed options community by community.
