What is the difference between adult day health care and in-home care?
Adult day health care is an OIG-licensed daytime program, under 902 KAR 20:066, where an older adult spends part of the day with health oversight, meals and activities at a center, while in-home care sends a caregiver to the person's home on a schedule the family sets.
Day programs run on set hours at a fixed location, which lets a working caregiver plan around them; home care covers mornings, evenings and weekends that day programs do not.
How much does adult day health care cost in Kentucky?
CareScout's 2025 Kentucky median for adult day health care is $22,880 a year for five days a week, about $88 a day or $1,907 a month, compared with about $32.50 an hour for non-medical home care.
Kentucky's HCB waiver lists adult day health care among its services, so Medicaid-eligible participants who meet nursing-facility level of care can have it paid for once they come off the waiting list.
How many adult day health programs are in the Louisville area?
OIG's October 2026 directory lists 33 licensed adult day health programs in the seven Louisville-area counties, 29 of them in Jefferson County.
Every program, with license number and expiration, is on our adult day health roster, filterable by city.
Who is adult day health care right for?
Adult day health suits someone who is safe to travel to a center, benefits from structure and company, and lives with a caregiver who needs predictable time for work or rest; it is less suitable for someone who cannot tolerate transport or needs care through the night.
Many Louisville families combine a day program three or four days a week with a few hours of home care, which costs far less than full-time home care.
Can adult day health and home care be combined in Louisville?
Yes, and it is often the most affordable way to cover a full week: three or four days at a licensed adult day health program plus a few hours of home care in the mornings and evenings costs far less than full-time home care at Kentucky's roughly $32.50 hourly median.
For example, four program days at the 2025 Kentucky median of about $88 a day plus ten hours of home care comes to roughly $677 a week, while 40 hours of home care alone would be about $1,300. Transportation is the usual sticking point; ask each program whether it runs vans in your ZIP code and how early pickup starts.
At a glance
| Adult day health is | In-home care is | |
|---|---|---|
| Where | A licensed center | The person's own home |
| Kentucky median (2025) | About $88/day (5 days/week) | About $32.50/hour |
| Schedule | Program hours, weekdays | Any hours the family buys |
| Medicaid HCB | Listed waiver service | Attendant care is a waiver service |
Sources include KRS Chapter 194A, 902 KAR 20:480, Kentucky CHFS and DMS pages, CareScout and VA rate tables as cited above; see our editorial standards.
