Cost of careChico cost of care
Chico cost of care
Cost of home care in Chico
Updated September 16, 2026. Reviewed September 16, 2026 against public CDSS, DHCS, Medicare.gov, VA, and CareScout 2025 California tables. County wages, hours, and wait times still change. Official .gov pages decide.
Chico and Oroville sit in Butte County in the northern Sacramento Valley. Camp fire recovery and university-town housing still sit next to older family homes. Adult children who left for Sacramento or the Bay Area file IHSS in Butte County when the parent remains. Planning estimate only. Figures use CareScout 2025 California statewide medians plus labeled planning bands. They are not a quote, not a facility admission, not a Medi-Cal or IHSS eligibility result, and not an hours authorization. Agency and community prices vary by county and by acuity. IHSS hours and provider pay are county and Medi-Cal decisions. This site does not calculate an IHSS paycheck.
Planning estimate only. Figures use CareScout 2025 California statewide medians plus labeled planning bands. They are not a quote, not a facility admission, not a Medi-Cal or IHSS eligibility result, and not an hours authorization. Agency and community prices vary by county and by acuity. IHSS hours and provider pay are county and Medi-Cal decisions. This site does not calculate an IHSS paycheck. Licensed home care organizations and residential communities set their own private-pay terms. County IHSS staff authorize tasks. County Medi-Cal staff decide coverage and any share of cost. Ask those offices and providers for the number that counts.
Short answer
For Chico, use CareScout 2025 California statewide medians to plan private-pay home care ($40/hour midpoint), assisted living, memory care, and nursing homes. File IHSS in the county where the parent lives. This page does not invent a Chico private-pay table or an IHSS paycheck.
If you are the adult child
A parent in Oroville uses Butte County IHSS, not Sutter County. A parent in Paradise still uses Butte even if you now live in Chico’s student neighborhoods or in Sacramento. Rebuild addresses can move. Confirm the current home before you file.
Local settings, statewide dollars
A smaller market can mean fewer licensed communities within a short drive. That is a reason to ask what is actually available, not a reason to invent a Butte County private-pay median.
IHSS and Medi-Cal path
If the parent lives in Butte County, open the Butte County IHSS page and the CDSS office list. County staff set hours and the wage.
Compare settings for a parent in Chico
Monthly figures are midpoints at 20 hours/week for hourly rows, and published or labeled medians for facility rows. Move the live calculator below to change hours. Facility fees do not change with the slider.
| Setting | How billed | Hours | Monthly midpoint | Who typically pays | When IHSS may apply |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Private home care (licensed HCO) | Hourly | 20 hrs/week | $3,467$3,033 to $3,900 | Usually the family or another private payer. Medicare home health is a different skilled benefit. | IHSS may cover authorized tasks in the same house on a separate calendar. It does not pay the agency invoice. |
| Live-in home care (hourly framing) | Modeled as 12 billed hours/day | 84 hrs/week | $14,560$12,740 to $16,380 | Private pay. Agencies often quote a daily package instead of 24 times the hourly rate. | IHSS is not a live-in staffing pattern. Authorized tasks may still run in the home. The county sets those hours. |
| Assisted living (RCFE) | Monthly community fee | Facility staffing, not hourly | $7,000$5,600 to $8,400 | Usually private pay or long-term care insurance. Medi-Cal rarely pays the room. | IHSS does not follow someone into a licensed residential care facility. Own-home rules still apply. |
| Memory care | Monthly community fee | Secured unit staffing | $9,100$8,400 to $9,800 | Usually private pay. CareScout does not publish a separate California memory-care median. | A licensed memory-care unit is not the IHSS own-home setting. Ask the county before assuming hours continue. |
| Nursing home / SNF | Monthly room and board | Facility nursing roster | $13,673$12,167 to $15,178 | Private pay or Medi-Cal long-term care after a stay qualifies. Medicare may cover a limited skilled stay, not custodial long-stay care. | A nursing facility is not own home. IHSS stops while someone lives there. A return-home plan can restart the county file. |
| IHSS / Medi-Cal path | County-authorized tasks | Set on the Notice of Action | Not estimatedCounty wage page | Medi-Cal funds authorized tasks. The recipient is generally the employer of an enrolled individual provider. The State issues the warrant. | May apply when the person lives in their own home, has a Medi-Cal determination, and the county authorizes listed tasks. |
County IHSS and neighbor pages
Guides
Related tools and resources
- Open the live cost calculator
- Compare care options
- Care-need scenario planner
- Paying for elder care
- Does Medicare or Medi-Cal pay?
- Does Medicare pay for home care?
- Care by condition
- Printable checklists
- En español
- How to pay for elder care
- Private pay home care
- Assisted living and nursing-home payment
- County IHSS pages
- Partner kit
- Ask for help lining up paperwork
Official sources
- CareScout Cost of Care tool
- CareScout 2025 median tables (PDF)
- CareScout 2025 California press note
- CDSS: county IHSS wage rates
- CDSS: In-Home Supportive Services
- DHCS: Medi-Cal
- CDSS: county IHSS offices
- CDSS: Home Care Services
- CDA: find services in my county
- Medicare: long-term care
- Butte County licensed agencies
Official California sources
Official program pages: CDSS: In-Home Supportive Services, CDSS: IHSS for children, County IHSS offices, CDSS: IHSS providers, CDSS: county IHSS wage rates, CDSS: provider orientation, CDSS: Electronic Visit Verification, CDSS: Electronic Services Portal, DHCS: Medi-Cal, Apply for Medi-Cal, BenefitsCal, CDSS: hearing requests, CDSS: forms catalog, CDSS: IHSS overtime and workweek, DDS: regional centers.