New Orleans Senior AdvisorWhat should I check first when choosing an ARCP in New Orleans?
Check that it is on LDH's current Licensed Providers Report, at the level and capacity you expect, with an unexpired license.
Our directory reproduces LDH's records for every ARCP in the six parishes, with license dates.
Should we choose a small home or a large building?
Choose by how your parent lives best: a Level 1 or 2 home offers a quiet, family-style routine with few faces, while a Level 3 or 4 building offers an apartment, activities and more staff.
Neither level is a quality grade; compare the specific homes.
What documents should a provider show us?
The posted statement of deficiencies and plan of correction, the written pre-residency information including fees and disaster charges, the residency agreement, and the resident copy of the evacuation procedures.
If the provider markets dementia care, add the written program policies and inclusion criteria.
What should we ask about staffing?
Ask how many staff are awake overnight, whether any are agency workers, who gives medications, and whether staff work at other ARCPs, which Louisiana forbids on the same shift.
For a Level 4, ask who the RN nursing director is and how to reach the nurse on call.
What should we ask about money?
Ask for the total monthly cost at your parent's assessed care level, what triggers a move to a higher level, how rate increases are noticed (at least 30 days in writing), and what happens if the money runs out.
Louisiana Medicaid will not pay the ARCP, so the last question matters.
What should we ask about hurricanes?
Ask where residents went in the last evacuation, how long it took, what the generator powers and the written disaster-fee formula.
Louisiana requires ARCPs to disclose disaster charges with a formula before move-in.
How do we compare nursing homes?
Compare CMS health inspection results, staffing hours and turnover, then visit at mealtime and in the evening.
Each certified home in the six parishes has its own page on this site with CMS data and the latest inspection date.
Should we visit more than once?
Yes: visit once on a scheduled tour and again unannounced at a mealtime or in the evening, when staffing is thinner and daily life is easier to see.
Talk with residents and families if they are willing, and notice how staff speak to residents who need help.
How do we compare quotes from different providers?
Ask each for the total monthly cost at the same assessed care level, list every add-on fee, and compare the disaster-fee formulas and termination criteria side by side.
A lower base rate with expensive care levels can cost more than a higher all-inclusive rate.
