New Orleans Senior AdvisorWhich parishes does New Orleans Senior Advisor cover?
We cover six parishes: Orleans, Jefferson, St. Tammany, St. Bernard, Plaquemines and St. Charles, which together make up the core of the New Orleans area on both banks of the river and both shores of Lake Pontchartrain.
| Parish | Population | Residents 65+ | Median age | ARCPs | Nursing homes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orleans Parish | 362,154 | 65,389 | 39.2 | 8 | 13 |
| Jefferson Parish | 431,398 | 88,462 | 40.5 | 37 | 12 |
| St. Tammany Parish | 279,108 | 58,209 | 41.8 | 17 | 9 |
| St. Bernard Parish | 45,642 | 6,748 | 36.6 | 0 | 0 |
| Plaquemines Parish | 22,256 | 3,643 | 38.7 | 0 | 1 |
| St. Charles Parish | 50,586 | 9,479 | 40.6 | 1 | 2 |
Population: U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 county (parish) population estimates by age (July 1, 2025). Licenses: LDH, October 2026.
Why does Louisiana use parishes instead of counties?
Louisiana's local governments have been called parishes since the territorial era, when the boundaries followed Catholic church parishes; a parish does the same job a county does elsewhere.
For senior care that matters in two practical ways: each parish has its own council on aging, and parish emergency officials, not the state, usually make the first evacuation calls for their residents.
Which parish agencies help older adults?
Each parish has a council on aging that serves as its area agency on aging, and two of them also run the region's Aging and Disability Resource Centers: the New Orleans Council on Aging for Orleans, Plaquemines and St. Bernard, and the Jefferson Council on Aging for Jefferson.
| Parish | Agency | Phone | Address |
|---|---|---|---|
| Orleans | New Orleans Council on Aging | (504) 821-4121 | 2475 Canal St., Suite 400, New Orleans, LA 70119 |
| Jefferson | Jefferson Council on Aging | (504) 888-5880 | 6620 Riverside Dr., Suite 216, Metairie, LA 70003 |
| St. Tammany | St. Tammany Council on Aging | (985) 892-0377 | 72060 Ramos Dr., Covington, LA 70433 |
| St. Bernard | St. Bernard Council on Aging | (504) 278-7335 | 8201-A West Judge Perez Dr., Chalmette, LA 70043 |
| Plaquemines | Plaquemines Council on Aging | (504) 934-3695 | 278 Civic Dr., Port Sulphur, LA 70083 |
| St. Charles | St. Charles Council on Aging | (985) 783-6685 | 282 Judge Edward Dufresne Pkwy., Luling, LA 70070 |
How different are the six parishes for senior care?
Very different: Jefferson Parish has the most licensed assisted living and the most residents 65 and older, Orleans Parish has the most nursing homes and hospitals, St. Tammany has the oldest population and the fastest-growing supply, and St. Bernard, Plaquemines and St. Charles have little licensed care inside their borders.
That is why families in the smaller parishes usually compare options across a parish line, and why the parish pages list the nearest alternatives as well as local licenses. River crossings matter too: West Bank families in Plaquemines and Algiers often look to Gretna and Marrero first, while Northshore families rarely want a daily drive across the Causeway.
