Where to start › Questions to ask
Questions to bring with you
Whether you're calling your Area Agency on Aging, applying for Medicaid, or touring a facility, walking in with written questions changes everything. Here's a short starter set — print it, or text it to yourself. We're building fuller, situation-specific checklists next.
For your Area Agency on Aging / options counselor
- Given my person's situation, what services am I eligible for right now?
- What can help us keep them at home safely, and what would it cost?
- Is there help for me as the caregiver — respite, support, training?
- What should I be doing now to prepare for the next stage?
For the Medicaid office
- What are the current income and asset limits for long-term-care Medicaid?
- What does the application require, and how long does it take?
- If my parent is married, how is the spouse at home protected?
- Which local facilities accept Medicaid, and are beds available?
For a facility tour
- What's your staffing at night and on weekends?
- How do you handle a medical emergency, and a change in needs over time?
- What exactly is included in the price, and what costs extra?
- May I see your most recent state inspection report?
Before a tour, check the facility's public safety record in our directory so your questions are grounded in what regulators already found.
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.