Little Rock Senior AdvisorWhat is the very first step?
Get a clear picture of what help your parent needs, ideally from a doctor's visit or a professional assessment, before choosing a type of care.
Write down what a typical day looks like now: meals, medications, bathing, mobility, nights and memory.
Which papers should be in place?
A durable power of attorney for finances, a health care power of attorney or advance directive, and a list of medications, doctors and insurance cards.
These matter in an emergency and for any Arkansas assisted living admission.
How do we set a budget?
Add up monthly income and savings, compare them with CareScout's Arkansas medians, and estimate how many months private pay would last before Medicaid or VA help would be needed.
| Arkansas care type, 2025 | Annual median | Per month (approx.) | One-year change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Assisted living (private one-bedroom) | $54,744 | $4,562 | -3% |
| Home care, non-medical caregiver | $57,200 | $4,767 | -4% |
| Adult day health care | $19,760 | $1,647 | n/a |
| Nursing home, semi-private room | $89,425 | $7,452 | +4% |
| Nursing home, private room | $96,725 | $8,060 | +5% |
CareScout 2025 Cost of Care Survey, Arkansas results (released March 2, 2026). Monthly, hourly and daily figures are our arithmetic from CareScout's published annual medians (annual / 12; home care annual / 2,288 hours; adult day annual / 260 days; nursing home annual / 365).
How do we narrow the options?
Match the care need to the setting, check each candidate's license level or CMS record, and tour two or three places with a written list of questions.
An advisor can help you build the short list at no cost.
Who can help us for free in the first week?
CareLink at (501) 372-5300 for Pulaski, Saline, Faulkner and Lonoke counties, hospital case managers if a hospital stay is involved, and a referral advisor such as ours to build a short list.
Grant County families can call the Area Agency on Aging of Southeast Arkansas in Pine Bluff, and Perry County families the regional office in Russellville.
What mistakes do families make most often?
Waiting for a crisis, choosing by appearance rather than by level of care and staffing, not reading the agreement's discharge terms, and giving money away without checking Medicaid's 60-month look-back.
Each of these is avoidable with a little time. The guides on this site walk through each one.
Should our parent be part of the decision?
Yes, as much as possible: people who help choose where they live usually settle in faster, and Arkansas rules give residents rights that start with being informed.
Even when memory loss limits decision-making, a parent can usually say what matters most, such as a garden, a pet, church or being near a grandchild.
Sources: Arkansas Office of Long Term Care assisted living rules, the Health Services Permit Agency's Bed Need Book, Arkansas DHS waiver and PACE fact sheets, CMS, CareScout and VA rate tables, each cited in the text. Our editorial standards explain how we check them.
