Do Louisville memory care units have to be licensed separately?
Yes. Any Kentucky community with a secured dementia unit, or that markets specialized dementia care, needs an Assisted Living Community with Dementia Care (ALC-DC) license from OIG, which inspects the unit on site before licensing it.
The license is inscribed “Assisted Living Community with Dementia Care.”
How much training do memory care workers in Kentucky get?
At least 8 hours of dementia orientation in their first 30 days on the secured unit, at least 16 hours of specialized dementia training within 30 days of working independently, and at least 8 hours every year after, under KRS 194A.7205.
The manager of an ALC-DC must complete 10 hours of dementia-specific training a year.
Is there a required staffing ratio in Kentucky memory care?
No numeric ratio. Kentucky requires staffing sufficient for residents' scheduled needs, night staffing based on residents' sleep patterns, and only dementia-trained staff on the secured unit except in documented emergencies (KRS 194A.7203).
Ask each community how many trained staff are inside the unit overnight.
Can someone in a wheelchair live in Kentucky memory care?
Often yes. Kentucky's assisted living residents must be ambulatory unless temporarily not, but the statute defines ambulatory to include people who move with a wheelchair or walker and with hands-on help (KRS 194A.700(2)).
The community must have a policy for evacuating residents who need assistance.
What is the average cost of memory care in Louisville?
There is no reliable average: CareScout, the standard source, does not survey memory care, so no Louisville or Kentucky memory care median exists; the only accurate number is a written quote at your parent's care level.
For reference, the 2025 Kentucky assisted living median is about $5,290 a month.
Do Louisville memory care units have to offer outdoor space?
Kentucky requires dementia care units built after July 14, 2022 to offer access to secured outdoor space (KRS 194A.7052(7)); older units are not held to that requirement.
Ask when the unit was built and whether residents actually use the outdoor area.
Does Kentucky Medicaid pay for memory care?
No. Kentucky Medicaid has no waiver that pays for assisted living or ALC-DC memory care; Medicaid pays for long-term care in nursing facilities, and the HCB waiver and PACE pay for services at home for eligible adults.
Plan for private pay, VA Aid and Attendance or long-term care insurance.
Must a Kentucky memory care community give families its dementia policies?
Yes. 902 KAR 20:480 requires an ALC-DC to give the resident and their designated contact or legal representative a copy of its dementia-care policies and procedures at move-in.
Ask for them before signing so you can compare communities.
