COST & CARE BY STATE
Cost & care in Iowa
A calm starting point for care in Iowa — the real local care landscape from Medicare, the national cost medians, and the official places to find help. Not advice; a place to begin.
Iowa's care landscape
128Medicare-certified home-health agenciesavg CMS quality rating 3.1★
389Medicare/Medicaid nursing homesavg CMS overall rating 3.1★
Counts and star ratings are from Medicare Care Compare (CMS provider data), retrieved 2026-07-08. A star rating is CMS's own quality measure — a screening tool, never a substitute for touring in person and asking questions.
What care costs (national medians)
Genworth/CareScout doesn't publish a free figure for every state, so these are national medians — Iowa's costs may run higher or lower. Use them as a middle estimate, then confirm locally.
| Type of care | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| In-home care (non-medical caregiver) | — | $80,080 |
| Homemaker services | — | $75,504 |
| Home health aide | — | $77,792 |
| Adult day health care | — | $24,700 |
| Assisted living facility | $6,200 | $74,400 |
| Nursing home, semi-private room | — | $114,975 |
| Nursing home, private room | — | $129,575 |
Finding help in Iowa
- Eldercare Locator (eldercare.acl.gov) ↗ — the official ACL service to find your local Area Agency on Aging and services by ZIP.
- Your state Medicaid agency ↗ — Medicaid may help with long-term care costs; each state runs its own program (no eligibility promise here).
- BenefitsCheckUp (NCOA) ↗ — a free, confidential screen for programs you or your parent may qualify for.
- Medicare Care Compare ↗ — look up and compare specific agencies and nursing homes in Iowa.
This page gathers public facts and official links for Iowa; it is not medical, legal, or financial advice, and not a statement of what any program will cover. Provider counts and ratings change — confirm current details on Care Compare, and verify any benefit eligibility with the program directly.