How we research, write, fact-check, and update the information on The Care Compass — and why you can trust it.
The Care Compass exists to make long-term care planning understandable for ordinary families. This is one of the most consequential — and confusing — financial and legal challenges millions of Americans face, often during a crisis. We believe everyone deserves access to clear, accurate, unbiased information regardless of their ability to pay a financial advisor or elder law attorney.
We are a free educational resource. We make money through affiliate referrals when readers choose to use recommended services — but our editorial content is never influenced by those relationships. We will always tell you when a link is an affiliate link, and we will never recommend a product or service we don't genuinely believe serves our readers.
Every factual claim — eligibility limits, costs, rules — is sourced from official government sources, peer-reviewed data, or primary research. We do not publish claims we cannot verify.
We clearly disclose how we make money, what affiliate relationships exist, and where our information comes from. No hidden agendas.
Our content is written for the person making the decision — not for search engines, not for advertisers. If a recommendation doesn't serve our reader, we don't make it.
Long-term care planning involves complex legal and financial decisions. We always remind readers to consult qualified professionals before making major decisions.
Medicaid rules, care costs, and regulations change. We review and update our content at least annually — and immediately when significant rule changes occur.
Affiliate partners and advertisers have no influence over our content. We cover topics based on reader need, not commercial relationships.
Every article and guide on The Care Compass goes through a defined research process before publication:
| Source | What we use it for |
|---|---|
| Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) | Federal Medicaid rules, eligibility guidelines, program updates |
| State Medicaid agency websites | State-specific eligibility rules, asset limits, income limits, application processes |
| Medicaid Planning Assistance (medicaidplanningassistance.org) | State-by-state Medicaid data, nursing home cost benchmarks |
| Genworth Cost of Care Survey | Annual nursing home, assisted living, and home care cost data by state |
| A Place for Mom Senior Living Data | Assisted living and memory care cost data |
| Social Security Administration | SSI benefit rates, income thresholds |
| U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs | VA Aid & Attendance benefit rates and eligibility rules |
| National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA) | Elder law practice guidance and legal strategy accuracy |
| AARP Public Policy Institute | Long-term care policy research and statistics |
Long-term care rules change every year — Medicaid asset limits adjust, care costs shift, and state programs evolve. Here is our update process:
Every page is reviewed at the start of each calendar year to reflect updated Medicaid limits, cost data, and regulatory changes for the new year.
When a state makes a significant Medicaid rule change or CMS issues new federal guidance, we update affected pages as quickly as possible — typically within 2 weeks.
If a reader identifies an error or outdated information, we investigate and correct within 5 business days. We take these reports seriously.
Every guide displays the date it was last reviewed so readers can assess currency. We never display a false "updated today" date.
The Care Compass is an educational resource. Our content is designed to help you understand your options, ask better questions, and make more informed decisions.
We are not a law firm, financial advisory firm, or licensed care placement agency. Nothing on this site constitutes legal advice, financial advice, or a recommendation to take any specific action. Long-term care planning involves complex personal, legal, and financial factors that vary significantly by individual situation and state law.
Always consult a qualified professional — including a certified elder law attorney and/or a certified financial planner specializing in elder care — before making major decisions about Medicaid planning, asset transfers, trusts, or care facility selection.
The Care Compass is free to use because we earn referral fees when readers use certain recommended services. Here is exactly how this works:
For full details, see our How We Make Money page.
We take accuracy seriously and we make mistakes. If you find an error — a wrong eligibility limit, an outdated rule, or factually incorrect information — please tell us. We will investigate every report and correct verified errors promptly.
We do not quietly fix errors and pretend they never happened. When we correct a factual error, we note the correction at the bottom of the affected page.
We welcome corrections, feedback, and questions about our content and sourcing.