A nursing home is the priciest long-term care in Indiana. A semi-private room runs about $294 a day, roughly $107,310 a year, which is 38th highest among the states and below the national median of about $315 a day (about $114,975 a year), and that is a heavy bill to carry out of pocket for long. That price is why Medicaid matters so much here: Indiana Medicaid covers nursing-facility care for residents who meet the state's financial eligibility rules.

This guide covers what a nursing home is, how to check a facility's quality before you choose one, what it actually costs in Indiana, and how Medicaid pays for long-term care.

In This Guide

What a Nursing Home Is

Nursing homes are also called skilled nursing facilities, and their services focus more on medical care than most assisted living facilities do. Services typically include nursing care, 24-hour supervision, three meals a day, and help with everyday activities, and rehabilitation such as physical, occupational, and speech therapy is also available. Federal rules require a nursing home to have enough nursing staff for its residents' assessed needs and, unless the requirement is waived, to provide licensed nurses on a 24-hour basis. That medical focus is what sets a nursing home apart: the federal Administration for Community Living describes nursing facilities as the most service-intensive housing option, providing skilled nursing services and therapies as needed.

People arrive at a nursing home along two different paths, and it pays to keep them straight because they're funded differently. The first is short-term rehabilitation, often after a hospital stay for a stroke, a fall, or surgery, where the goal is to recover and go home. Medicare helps with that short rehab stay under specific conditions: it covers up to 100 days of skilled nursing facility care per benefit period generally after a qualifying three-day inpatient hospital stay. Under Original Medicare, days 1 through 20 cost $0 a day once the $1,736 Part A deductible is paid (usually already met by the hospital stay in the same benefit period), and days 21 through 100 carry a $217 daily coinsurance in 2026; a Medicare Advantage plan may charge copayments during the first 20 days, so check with the plan. The second path is long-term custodial care, where someone needs ongoing nursing and supervision they can't safely get at home. Medicare does not pay for that long-term custodial stay. That's the care families worry about affording, and it's where Medicaid comes in.

How to Check a Facility's Quality

Quality varies widely from one nursing home to the next, and Indiana gives you several free tools to vet a place before you commit. Use more than one. Each shows you something the others don't.

Start with state oversight. Indiana nursing homes are licensed by the Indiana Department of Health through its Long-Term Care division, which also runs the federal certification program for long-term care facilities, and the department investigates eligible complaints against facilities. When you tour a facility, ask to see its most recent survey results and look for a pattern of repeat deficiencies rather than reacting to a single old citation.

Next, check the federal scorecard. On Medicare Care Compare, CMS gives a nursing home an Overall rating from 1 to 5 stars, combining health inspections, staffing, and quality measures, and also gives each of those three its own star rating. Look at the staffing rating on its own, not just the Overall score it feeds into.

Finally, know who to call for help. The Indiana Long-Term Care Ombudsman advocates for residents of nursing facilities and licensed assisted living, and works to resolve complaints about quality of care, residents' rights, the use of restraints, and transfers or discharges. An ombudsman can be a candid, on-the-ground source of information about specific facilities in your area before you ever sign anything.

What a Nursing Home Costs in Indiana

Nursing-home care is expensive everywhere, and Indiana sits mid-to-cheap on it rather than at the bottom of the national range. According to the CareScout 2025 Cost of Care Survey, a semi-private nursing-home room in Indiana runs about $294 a day, roughly $107,310 a year, and a private room about $10,326 a month, roughly $123,918 a year. That is 38th and 33rd highest among the states, below national medians of about $114,975 and $129,575 a year. These are medians from an industry survey, not government rates and not maximums, and because CareScout collects rates by metropolitan area, prices vary within Indiana. The figure at any one facility can land higher or lower depending on location, room type, and level of care.

Care setting Indiana (year) National (year)
Nursing home, semi-private room about $107,310 $114,975
Nursing home, private room about $123,918 $129,575
Assisted living about $67,665 $74,400

In-home care is often the lower-cost alternative families weigh first. In Indiana, the 2025 survey reports a non-medical caregiver at about $35 an hour and a private-duty nurse at about $70 an hour. Those are hourly rates, though, so the total depends on how many hours of help someone needs each day.

Does Medicaid Pay for Nursing Homes?

Yes, and this is the single most important thing to understand about paying for an Indiana nursing home. Indiana Medicaid covers nursing-facility care for residents who meet the state's financial eligibility rules. Qualifying turns on two findings that run on separate tracks.

Level of care. You need to meet Indiana's nursing-facility level of care, the medical side of eligibility, set in state rule at 405 IAC 1-3. It covers both skilled and intermediate nursing care, and Medicaid does not pay for care below the intermediate level. This is separate from the money side below.

The financial test. For a single applicant seeking nursing-home or home and community-based long-term care in 2026, the income standard is 300% of the SSI federal benefit rate, about $2,982 a month, counting only the applicant's income and not a spouse's, and the countable-asset limit is $2,000. Depending on countable income, a person who qualifies may owe a monthly patient or waiver liability: a nursing-home resident keeps a personal needs allowance of $52 a month, while for someone getting long-term care through a home and community-based waiver the personal needs allowance equals the $2,982 Special Income Level. And $2,982 is a ceiling: Indiana says an applicant whose income is above it is not eligible unless they have a valid Miller trust, so if income runs even slightly over, ask about a Miller trust before you apply. A community spouse who remains at home is protected by the spousal-impoverishment rules: in 2026 that spouse can keep half of the couple's non-exempt assets, up to $162,660, and at least $32,532. Because these figures depend on your household and can change, confirm the current numbers with Indiana Medicaid before you apply.

PathWays for Aging. As of July 1, 2024, Indiana delivers Medicaid long-term services and supports for most members age 60 and older through a managed-care program called PathWays for Aging, run by contracted health plans (Anthem, Humana, and UnitedHealthcare). If you are 60 or older and entering a nursing home on full Medicaid coverage, your care is generally coordinated through one of these PathWays plans, though some groups are excluded, such as residents of intermediate care facilities for people with intellectual or developmental disabilities.

Estate recovery. After a resident dies, Indiana operates a Medicaid Estate Recovery Program that seeks to recover what Medicaid paid on a member's behalf after age 55, and in certain other limited circumstances. Beginning July 1, 2025 the state has nine months from the date of death to file a claim, though that limit does not apply to assets not reported to FSSA's Division of Family Resources, such as some transferred by a Transfer on Death deed. Nothing can be recovered while the member is survived by a spouse, a child under 21, or a blind or disabled child.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does a nursing home cost in Indiana?

In the CareScout 2025 Cost of Care Survey, a semi-private room in Indiana ran about $294 a day, roughly $107,310 a year, and a private room about $10,326 a month, roughly $123,918 a year. That puts Indiana 38th and 33rd among the states, below national medians of about $114,975 and $129,575 a year. These are industry-survey medians, not maximums, and because rates are collected by metropolitan area they vary within Indiana.

Does Medicaid pay for nursing home care in Indiana?

Yes. Indiana Medicaid covers nursing-facility care for residents who meet the state's financial eligibility rules. For most members age 60 and older, that care is coordinated through the PathWays for Aging managed-care program run by Anthem, Humana, or UnitedHealthcare.

How do I qualify for Medicaid for a nursing home in Indiana?

Eligibility has two parts that run separately: a nursing-facility level of care on the medical side, and a financial test. On the financial side, a single applicant in 2026 faces an income standard of 300% of the SSI federal benefit rate (about $2,982 a month), a hard ceiling unless the applicant has a valid Miller trust, and a countable-asset limit of $2,000. A spouse who stays at home is protected by a higher resource allowance. Confirm the current figures with Indiana Medicaid before applying.

Does Medicare pay for a nursing home in Indiana?

Only for short-term rehab, not long-term custodial care. Medicare Part A covers up to 100 days of skilled nursing facility care per benefit period generally after a qualifying three-day inpatient hospital stay. Under Original Medicare, that's $0 a day for the first 20 days once the $1,736 Part A deductible is paid and $217 a day for days 21 through 100 in 2026. It does not pay for long-term custodial nursing-home care. That care is paid out of pocket, by private long-term care insurance, or by Medicaid for people who meet Indiana's eligibility rules.

How do I check whether an Indiana nursing home is good?

Check the facility's 1-to-5-star Overall rating on Medicare Care Compare, paying close attention to the staffing and health-inspection components behind it. You can also confirm its license with the Indiana Department of Health Long-Term Care division, which handles state licensing and investigates eligible complaints, and contact the Indiana Long-Term Care Ombudsman for on-the-ground information about specific facilities and to report concerns.

Learn More

Care TypesNursing Homes by State: Costs, Medicaid Coverage, and How to ChooseWhat a nursing home costs, how Medicaid pays for it, and how facilities are rated all share a federal floor but vary by state. See yours, with a 50-state guide. Care TypesAssisted Living in IndianaAssisted living in Indiana runs about $5,639 a month, 35th highest among the states. What it costs, who regulates it, and how families pay for it. Care TypesMemory Care in IndianaIndiana regulates memory care through a dementia-care disclosure law. See what the required form tells you, what memory care costs, and how to vet a place. Care TypesHome Care vs. Home Health in IndianaHome care vs. home health in Indiana: home health is skilled care Medicare covers, home care is non-medical help it won't, and the IDOH license draws the line. Care TypesMemory Care vs. Nursing Home in IndianaMemory care vs. a nursing home in Indiana turns on skilled-nursing need and who pays. Compare Indiana costs, what Medicaid covers in each, and how to decide. MedicaidMedicaid Estate Recovery, ExplainedMedicaid estate recovery can claim a home after death, but not while a spouse or a child under 21, blind or disabled survives. See your state's rules. MedicaidMedicaid Personal Needs Allowance, ExplainedHow the Medicaid Personal Needs Allowance works in 2026: the $30 federal floor, what the states set, and how patient liability is calculated. MedicaidMedicaid Planning StrategiesSee which assets you keep, how the 5-year look-back works, and the legal moves that qualify you for Medicaid long-term care without losing the house.

Find personalized help comparing nursing homes in Indiana at brevy.com.

The information on Brevy.com is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional legal, financial, or medical advice. Rules vary by state and program and change frequently. Always verify with the relevant agency or a qualified professional. Brevy is not a law firm, financial advisor, or healthcare provider.

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