Care-need scenario

What this parent situation usually points toward

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.

Choose the closest picture of what is going on. You will see an illustrative cost planner with live private-pay totals, educational next steps, and which guides and county pages to open. This is not an eligibility determination, not an IHSS hours result, and not a quote.

This page is educational. It is not county advice, a Medi-Cal determination, an hours authorization, or a wage quote. Your county IHSS office and Medi-Cal decide eligibility, hours, and who can be paid. Licensed facilities and home care agencies decide their own admissions and private-pay terms. County IHSS staff decide whether a home-care file is complete and which tasks to authorize. County Medi-Cal staff decide Medi-Cal eligibility and share of cost. A facility or agency is a separate conversation.

Skip to the illustrative cost planner·Open the full cost calculator

Which picture is closest right now?

Leaving a hospital or skilled stayA parent is discharging, or just discharged, and the plan is a return to their own house or apartment.Memory change or supervision concernsA parent has dementia, confusion, or a safety risk when left alone, and the family is trying to understand home care versus a residential memory setting.Help with bathing, dressing, or mealsA parent still lives at home and needs hands-on or standby help with ordinary daily tasks.After a fall or a walking changeA parent had a fall, a new walker, or a transfer problem, and the family is asking what home support can look like.Already home with Medi-Cal, exploring IHSSThe parent lives in their own home, Medi-Cal is active or pending, and the family is ready to talk with the county about IHSS.Family cannot cover the day aloneRelatives already help, and the day still has gaps. The family is comparing IHSS, a licensed home care agency, a mix of both, or a move.

Educational next steps

Select a situation to see next steps. Leave it blank until you are ready. The county still reads the real file.

No combination of answers here files an application or authorizes hours. Your county IHSS office and Medi-Cal decide the case.

Planning estimate only. Not a quote, not a facility admission, not a Medi-Cal or IHSS eligibility result, and not an hours authorization. Rates vary by county, agency, and facility. IHSS hours and provider pay are county and Medi-Cal decisions. We do not calculate IHSS paycheck amounts. Licensed agencies and facilities 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.

Illustrative cost planner

Live dollar totals for private-pay settings, using CareScout 2025 California medians. IHSS is shown as a program path, not as a household paycheck.

Hours of help per week

Private home care is billed by the hour. CareScout publishes its California home-care median on a 44 hour/week basis. Facility rows stay monthly fees even if you change hours.

20 hours/week

About 2.9 hours/day across 7 days

Exact hours

Days per week (optional)

Used to show hours/day and to model live-in framing as 12 billed hours times the days you choose. Facility fees do not change with this number.

Which setting are you pricing?

Private home care (licensed HCO)An agency sends aides to the house and bills by the hour. Compare this private-pay total to IHSS for the same hours.Live-in home care (hourly framing)Modeled as 12 billed hours per day, not 24 times the hourly rate. Agencies often quote a daily live-in package instead. CareScout does not publish a California live-in daily median.Assisted living (RCFE)A licensed residential care facility for the elderly. Billed as a monthly community fee, not by the hour.Memory careUsually a secured assisted-living unit for dementia. CareScout does not publish a separate California memory-care median.Nursing homeA skilled nursing facility. Semi-private and private-room medians are both published. Long-stay custodial care is typically private pay or Medi-Cal, not Medicare.IHSS / Medi-Cal pathThe program may cover authorized services in the home. A family member may be paid as the provider after enrollment. Hours and the hourly wage are county and Medi-Cal decisions. This planner does not estimate an IHSS paycheck.

Estimated private-pay cost

Private home care (licensed HCO)

$3,033 to $3,900monthly

Low: $3,033
Midpoint: $3,467
High: $3,900

Annual: $36,400 to $46,800Midpoint $41,600 per year

How this number was calculated

20 hours/week × $40/hour × (52 ÷ 12) weeks = $3,467/month at the midpoint. Low uses $35/hour. High uses $45/hour. 52 ÷ 12 is about 4.33 weeks.

Compare settings at these hours

Private home care (licensed HCO)

$3,467/month mid

$3,033 to $3,900 monthly · $41,600 per year at midpoint · 20 hours/week

Live-in home care (hourly framing)

$14,560/month mid

$12,740 to $16,380 monthly · $174,720 per year at midpoint · 84 hours/week

Assisted living (RCFE)

$7,000/month mid

$5,600 to $8,400 monthly · $84,000 per year at midpoint

Memory care

$9,100/month mid

$8,400 to $9,800 monthly · $109,200 per year at midpoint

Nursing home

$13,673/month mid

$12,167 to $15,178 monthly · $164,076 per year at midpoint

IHSS / Medi-Cal path

Wage set by county

Private-pay alternative: $3,033 to $3,900 per month for the same hours.

Assumptions and sources

CareScout Cost of Care Survey 2025, July through November 2025. California statewide median. Published 2025 by CareScout.

Private home care midpoint uses the CareScout 2025 California non-medical caregiver median of $40 per hour.
Assisted living midpoint uses the CareScout 2025 California median of $7,000 per month for a private one-bedroom residential care facility.
Memory care is a 20% / 30% / 40% planning premium on that assisted living median. CareScout does not publish a separate memory-care row.
Nursing home low and high are the published semi-private and private-room medians.
Live-in framing bills 12 hours/day, not 24 times the hourly rate.
If a county authorizes in-home help, the program may cover those authorized services. A family member may be paid as the provider after enrollment. Hours and the hourly wage are county and Medi-Cal decisions. This planner does not calculate an IHSS paycheck and does not say anyone will receive a set amount.

Paying for care and official pages

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.

Want help lining up the next packet?

A coordinator can walk through Medi-Cal, county forms, and the home-versus-facility conversation with you. The county still decides any IHSS case. A facility or agency still decides its own admissions.

Your name

Email address

Where are you in the process?

California county (optional)

What should we help with? (optional)

For example: starting an IHSS application, provider enrollment, or county forms. Keep medical records and diagnoses for the county packet.