McAllen Senior AdvisorWhat does senior care cost in the McAllen area?
CareScout's 2025 Texas medians are $5,666 a month for assisted living, $185 a day for a semi-private nursing home room, about $30 an hour for a home caregiver and $90 a day for adult day health care; no McAllen, Valley or memory care median is published.
Last verified: November 2026| Care type (Texas median, 2025) | Per year | Per month | Per day or hour | U.S. median per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assisted living (private one-bedroom) | $67,992 | $5,666 | $184 | $74,400 |
| Nursing home, semi-private room | $67,525 | $5,627 | $185 | $114,975 |
| Nursing home, private room | $91,250 | $7,604 | $250 | $129,575 |
| Homemaker / non-medical caregiver (44 hrs/week) | $68,640 | $5,720 | $30 an hour | $80,080 |
| Adult day health care (5 days/week) | $23,400 | $1,950 | $90 | $24,700 |
CareScout 2025 Cost of Care Survey, Texas results (released March 2, 2026). Monthly figures are CareScout's own Texas monthly medians; national figures are CareScout's 2025 national annual medians. CareScout publishes no McAllen or Rio Grande Valley median and no memory care median in its Texas release.
Who pays for long-term care in Texas?
Most families start by paying privately; Medicare covers only short skilled stays, home health and hospice; Texas Medicaid pays nursing home care for residents who qualify and, through STAR+PLUS, attendant care, adult day care and the care portion of contracted assisted living; and VA benefits help eligible veterans and surviving spouses.
The fact that shapes the Valley most: none of Hidalgo County's licensed assisted living facilities reports accepting Medicaid, so Medicaid here mostly pays for nursing homes, adult day centers and attendants at home.
Where can McAllen families get free benefits counseling?
The Area Agency on Aging of the Lower Rio Grande Valley in Weslaco offers benefits counseling, case management and legal assistance for people 60 and older at (956) 682-3481, and HICAP gives free Medicare counseling at 1-800-252-9240.
Medicaid applications go through YourTexasBenefits.com or 2-1-1, option 2. The Texas Medicaid enrollment broker at 1-800-964-2777 helps members choose a STAR+PLUS health plan.
Costs & Paying: every guide
What senior care costs in McAllen and across Texas
CareScout's 2025 Texas medians for assisted living, nursing homes, home care and adult day care, what they mean for McAllen families, and why no Valley-specific figure exists.
Read the guide →STAR+PLUS: how Texas Medicaid pays for long-term care in the Valley
STAR+PLUS for McAllen families: who qualifies, the 2026 income and asset limits, what HCBS covers, the Hidalgo County health plans, and the room-and-board gap in assisted living.
Read the guide →How Texas Medicaid pays for a nursing home
Texas Medicaid nursing home rules for 2026: the $2,982 income cap, $2,000 asset limit, applied income, the $75 personal needs allowance, spousal protections and estate recovery.
Read the guide →What Medicare pays for, and what it leaves to families
Medicare in McAllen and the Valley: skilled nursing after a hospital stay, home health, hospice and what Medicare never pays, with HICAP free counseling for Hidalgo County.
Read the guide →VA help with senior care in the Rio Grande Valley
VA Aid and Attendance pension rates for 2025-26, the net worth limit, how care costs reduce countable income, the Alfredo Gonzalez Texas State Veterans Home and VA clinics serving McAllen.
Read the guide →Protecting the spouse at home
Texas Medicaid spousal impoverishment protections for 2026: community spouse resource allowance, monthly maintenance needs allowance, the home, and when to see an elder law attorney.
Read the guide →Paying privately for care in the Valley
How McAllen families pay privately for assisted living, home care and adult day: income, savings, long-term care insurance, life insurance, home equity and planning for a Medicaid transition.
Read the guide →How Valley families pay for adult day care and attendants
Paying for DAHS adult day care and personal attendant services in Hidalgo County: STAR+PLUS authorization, physician orders, private pay, VA programs and Area Agency on Aging help.
Read the guide →Side by side
| This section gives you | This section does not give you | |
|---|---|---|
| Prices | Texas's published 2025 medians | A McAllen or memory care figure that does not exist |
| Programs | How STAR+PLUS, Medicaid, Medicare and VA pension work | An eligibility decision |
| Limits | 2026 income, asset and spousal standards | Legal or tax advice |
| Planning | Questions to ask and when to start | A replacement for an elder law attorney |
