What Long Term Care Costs in Texas
Care in Texas is genuinely more affordable than in many other states, but do not let that fool you into skipping the math. A private nursing home room still costs a median of $85,045 a year, and even a semi-private room runs $65,700 annually. Home health aides and assisted living communities cost less, but neither is cheap when you need care for several years. These figures come from the Genworth and CareScout Cost of Care Survey, 2024 medians for Texas, released March 2025, and they are statewide averages. Costs run higher in the big metros, Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, and Austin, than in rural counties, and they climb every year. Whatever number you see today, plan against a higher one five or ten years from now, since most people who need long term care need it later in life, not right away. Medicare does not step in to cover this. It pays for short skilled nursing stays after a qualifying hospitalization, and it stops there. Custodial care, the ongoing help with bathing, dressing, eating, and mobility that most long term care actually consists of, is not a Medicare benefit at any income level. That gap is exactly what long term care insurance is built to fill.
| Care type | Monthly median | Annual median |
|---|---|---|
| Home health aide | $5,720 | $68,640 |
| Assisted living community | $5,250 | $63,000 |
| Nursing home, semi-private room | $5,475 | $65,700 |
| Nursing home, private room | $7,087 | $85,045 |
Source: Genworth and CareScout Cost of Care Survey, 2024 medians for Texas (released March 2025)
Costs run higher in the big metros and continue rising each year, so plan against future costs, not today's.
Who Should Consider Long Term Care Coverage in Texas
The best candidates are usually in their 50s to mid 60s and in reasonably good health. That combination matters because both age and health drive your premium and your ability to qualify at all. Waiting until a health condition appears often means paying much more, or being declined outright. Coverage also makes sense for people who have assets worth protecting, a home, retirement savings, an inheritance for children, but not so much that they could self fund years of paid care without disrupting their financial plan. If a nursing home stay could quietly drain a retirement account, long term care insurance is worth a serious look. Family location matters too. Texans with parents or in laws in Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, or Austin often end up as unpaid caregivers by default, simply because no other plan exists. A long term care policy can pay for professional care instead, which protects both your loved one's independence and your own time and finances. One more Texas specific point: this state has no state long term care payroll tax, unlike Washington's program. That means buying coverage here is entirely a personal choice, not something you do to offset a mandatory state tax. Private insurance is the main tool Texans have to plan for these costs, which makes comparing policies early worthwhile.
The Texas Long Term Care Partnership Program
Texas has operated a Long Term Care Partnership Program since 2008, and it is one of the more valuable, less understood benefits available to Texas policyholders. The program links qualified private long term care policies with the state Medicaid system. Here is how it works in practice. Every dollar your Partnership qualified policy pays out in benefits protects a dollar of your personal assets from Medicaid's spend down requirements, and from estate recovery after you pass away, above the standard exemption amount. In plain terms, if your policy pays out $150,000 in claims over the years, you can keep an additional $150,000 in assets and still qualify for Medicaid long term care coverage if you eventually need it and your policy benefits run out. To qualify as a Partnership policy, coverage must be tax qualified and include inflation protection, since the whole point is to keep pace with rising care costs over time. Another advantage worth knowing about: most other states honor Texas Partnership protection through reciprocity, so if you buy a Partnership policy here and later move to another Partnership state, your asset protection generally moves with you.
Hybrid Life and Long Term Care Policies
A lot of people avoid traditional long term care insurance for one reason: the use it or lose it worry. If you pay premiums for twenty years and never need care, that money feels gone. Hybrid policies were built to answer exactly that objection. A hybrid policy combines life insurance, or sometimes an annuity, with a long term care benefit. If you need care, the policy pays for it. If you never need care, your beneficiaries receive a death benefit instead. Either way, the money is not wasted. Many hybrid policies also come with premiums that are guaranteed not to increase, which appeals to people who have seen traditional long term care premiums rise over time. Hybrid coverage is not automatically the better choice, it usually costs more upfront and the long term care benefit pool may be smaller than what a traditional policy offers for the same premium dollar. The right answer depends on your health, your budget, and how much you value that guaranteed payout. Lara quotes both traditional and hybrid policies side by side so you can compare real numbers rather than guessing.
How to Get Texas Quotes at No Cost
Lara Goulson meets with Texas residents by phone or video, whichever is easier for you, and compares policies from multiple carriers side by side. Before you apply anywhere, she runs a free underwriting pre check so you know roughly where you stand on health questions before an insurance company sees your application. There is no cost and no obligation. Call (818) 472-5484 to get started.
Call (818) 472-5484 for a free Texas long term care quote comparison.
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