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PACE — all-inclusive care at home
PACE is the best-kept secret in this whole field: a Medicare/Medicaid program whose entire design goal is keeping people who qualify for a nursing home living at home instead. Where it exists, it can change a family's story completely.
What it is
The Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly takes over and coordinates everything: primary care and specialists, an adult day health center, meals, transportation to the center and to appointments, in-home care, prescriptions, and hospital or temporary nursing-home care when needed — one team, one plan (medicare.gov/pace). For most participants who have Medicaid, the long-term-care side costs nothing out of pocket; people without Medicaid can pay privately.
Who qualifies, and where it exists
Four tests, set federally: age 55 or older; living in a PACE organization's service area; state-certified as needing nursing-home-level care; and able to live safely in the community with PACE's support. As of 2026 there are 202 PACE programs serving 95,000+ participants in 33 states and D.C. (National PACE Association — npaonline.org). Coverage is by service area, not whole states — the finder above answers "is there one near us?" in a minute.
Where the public record stops — and who to ask
Is there a PACE program serving your person's address, and would they qualify? That answer depends on your state and your situation, and it belongs to the people who decide it — not to us. Here is who has it, and exactly what to ask so you arrive prepared instead of lost.
Who to ask: the National PACE Association program finder (npaonline.org), your Area Agency on Aging, or your state Medicaid office
What to ask them:
- Is there a PACE organization whose service area covers this address?
- What does the state's nursing-home-level-of-care assessment involve, and who does it?
- What would PACE cost in our situation — with Medicaid, or private-pay without it?
- If my person joins PACE, what happens to their current doctors?
You now know more than most people who walk into that office. That is the whole point of this page.
Who helps you locally — free, and on your side. You do not have to figure this out alone. Your Area Agency on Aging gives free options counseling; reach any of them through the federal Eldercare Locator at 1-800-677-1116 or eldercare.acl.gov (Administration for Community Living). More on the four people who help — and what each one does — on Who helps me locally.
Quick answers
What is the PACE program for the elderly?
PACE (Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly) is a joint Medicare/Medicaid program that provides and coordinates all medical and long-term care — doctors, an adult day health center, meals, transportation, home care, medications, and hospital or nursing-home care when needed — so people certified as needing nursing-home-level care can keep living at home. As of 2026, 202 programs operate in 33 states plus D.C.
Who is eligible for PACE?
A person must be 55 or older, live in a PACE organization's service area, be certified by their state as needing nursing-home-level care, and be able to live safely in the community with PACE support. Most participants have Medicaid; those without it can pay privately for the long-term-care portion.