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What senior care costs, and how Austin families pay for it

Published figures where they exist, honest gaps where they do not.

Quick answer

The 2025 CareScout Cost of Care Survey puts the Texas median for assisted living at $5,666 a month and a private nursing home room at $7,604. CareScout does not publish separate Austin figures, and Austin generally runs above the state median.

HomeWhat senior care costs, and how Austin families pay

Senior care pricing in Austin is harder to pin down than it should be. The survey everyone cites publishes state medians but no Austin figures, memory care is not surveyed at all, and the nursing home number is skewed by Medicaid reimbursement. Each guide below takes one piece of that and says what is actually known.

Short answer

The published Texas median is $5,666 a month for assisted living and $7,604 for a private nursing room. No Austin-specific median is published by any primary source, and no median exists for memory care anywhere in Texas.

Cost and payment guides

Questions Austin families ask

Does Medicare pay for assisted living in Texas?

No. Medicare does not pay for assisted living room, board, or custodial care anywhere, including Austin. Medicare covers limited skilled nursing facility stays after a qualifying hospital admission, plus home health and hospice. Assisted living in Texas is paid privately, through long-term care insurance, or via Medicaid STAR+PLUS.

Does Texas Medicaid pay for assisted living?

Partially. The STAR+PLUS HCBS waiver covers assisted living care services but explicitly does not cover room and board, which comes from the resident's own income. You must meet nursing facility level of care, income under $2,982 monthly, and assets under $2,000, and usually wait on an interest list.

What's the Medicaid income limit for a nursing home in Texas in 2026?

For a single applicant in 2026, monthly income must be under $2,982 and countable assets under $2,000. Your home and one vehicle are generally exempt. You must also meet Nursing Facility Level of Care. A community spouse may keep a separate resource allowance.

How much money can my spouse keep if I go into a nursing home in Texas?

Texas allows a Community Spouse Resource Allowance so the at-home spouse isn't impoverished, reported at $162,660 for 2026. The applicant spouse is limited to $2,000. Because these figures change annually and the calculation is complex, confirm current amounts with HHSC or a Texas elder law attorney.

How much spending money does a Texas nursing home resident keep?

Texas sets the Personal Needs Allowance at $75 per month, raised from $60 effective January 1, 2024. That's well above the $30 federal minimum. Nearly all remaining income, after Medicare premiums, any spousal allowance, and allowable medical expenses, goes to the facility as applied income.

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