About PlainElderCare

Our Mission

PlainElderCare exists because families navigating elder care decisions deserve transparent, data-backed information that is free from commercial bias. Choosing between home care, assisted living, and nursing home care is one of the most emotionally and financially significant decisions a family makes — and it should not be driven by marketing materials from facilities with a financial interest in the outcome.

We believe that every family should have access to the same quality data that researchers and policymakers use: real cost data from national surveys and quality ratings from federal agencies. PlainElderCare presents this information clearly, without paywalls, lead-generation forms, or sponsored recommendations.

PlainElderCare does not accept facility advertising, does not recommend specific providers, and does not earn referral fees. We present federal data as-is and let families draw their own conclusions.

Data Sources

PlainElderCare combines cost data and quality ratings from three public-data sources:

  • CareScout 2025 Cost of Care Survey — Provides state-level median costs for six elder care service types. CareScout (formerly Genworth Financial) has conducted this annual cost survey since 2004, making it the most comprehensive longitudinal source of elder care cost data in the United States.
  • CMS Nursing Home Compare — Provides facility-level quality ratings for over 14,700 Medicare- and Medicaid-certified nursing homes. Ratings are based on health inspections, staffing levels, and quality measures. Updated monthly by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
  • CMS Home Health Compare — Provides quality ratings for over 12,200 Medicare-certified home health agencies. Based on patient outcome data and process measures.

Methodology

PlainElderCare downloads raw data from CareScout and CMS, processes it through an ETL pipeline, and presents it in a unified interface. Key processing steps:

  • Extract state-level median costs for all five care types from the CareScout survey data
  • Import facility-level quality ratings from CMS Nursing Home Compare and Home Health Compare
  • Join facility data with geographic data to enable state and county browsing
  • Calculate aggregate statistics (average ratings, facility counts) by state and county
  • Present cost and quality data side by side so families can weigh both dimensions

We do not create our own ratings. We display official CMS star ratings alongside cost data from the CareScout survey. All monetary figures are taken directly from the source without adjustment.

What We Track

  • 50 states plus D.C. with median costs for 5 care types: home care, adult day, assisted living, nursing home (semi-private), and nursing home (private)
  • 14,700+ nursing homes with CMS 5-star ratings for overall quality, health inspections, staffing, and quality measures
  • 12,200+ home health agencies with CMS quality ratings
  • 2,800+ counties with local facility data and state-level cost context

Data Currency

Cost data reflects the CareScout 2025 survey, the most recent available. CMS facility quality ratings are sourced from the most recent monthly update. Nursing Home Compare data is updated monthly by CMS as new health inspection surveys are completed, staffing data is submitted, and quality measures are recalculated.

We update PlainElderCare when new source data becomes available. Cost survey data is released annually. CMS facility data updates are processed on a rolling basis. All data shown on PlainElderCare reflects the most recent version from each source at the time of our last update.

Important Limitations

This site is for informational purposes only. Costs shown are state-level medians and actual costs vary significantly based on location within a state, level of care, facility type, and individual needs. CMS star ratings reflect standardized quality metrics but cannot capture every dimension of care quality. This site does not provide medical advice or care recommendations. Always consult with healthcare professionals and visit facilities in person before making care decisions.

Who This Is For

PlainElderCare serves anyone navigating the elder care landscape. Families researching care options for an aging parent or spouse can compare costs across states and evaluate facility quality ratings. Healthcare professionals and social workers can use the data to counsel patients and families. Journalists and researchers can access standardized cost and quality data for analysis. Policy makers can examine geographic variation in care costs and quality ratings.

Whether you are starting to plan ahead, facing an urgent care decision, or simply trying to understand what options exist, PlainElderCare provides the data foundation for informed decisions. Our guides section offers plain-English explanations of the most common questions families face, from choosing between care types to understanding how to pay for care.

Editorial Independence

Content on PlainElderCare is compiled by our editorial team. Raw data from the CareScout Cost of Care Survey and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS Nursing Home Compare, Home Health Compare) is transformed into readable profiles by our continuous editorial pipeline, then validated against the source before publication. The PlainElderCare editorial team, operating under Kiznis Studio, is responsible for editorial standards, methodology, and corrections.

Not medical or care advice. PlainElderCare is an informational resource built on public federal and survey data. Nothing on this site is medical advice, legal advice, or a recommendation for any specific facility or care plan — always consult licensed healthcare professionals and visit facilities in person before making elder care decisions.

We do not accept payment, sponsorship, or promoted placement from nursing homes, assisted living facilities, home care agencies, or any covered entity. Our only revenue source is contextual display advertising served by Google AdSense — advertisers do not influence which facilities we cover or how we present CMS ratings and CareScout cost data, and they do not receive preferential placement.

Contact

Questions, corrections, or data feedback: email hello@plaineldercare.com. We welcome reports of data discrepancies and suggestions for improving how we present elder care information.