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Alzheimer's Report

Which states are best placed for Alzheimer’s care support?

Mirador Living ranked all 50 states across four care-access signals, from Alzheimer’s prevalence growth to nursing homes, geriatric clinicians, and paid care workers.

Explore the rankings US Rankings Read methodology
Key findings

Missouri came first. Here's why, and who led on each measure.

See which states ranked highest and what the numbers reveal for families thinking about memory care.

Missouri ranked No. 1.

Its lead came from steady performance across all four measures, ranking between 5th and 15th on each, rather than relying on one standout metric. For prevalence growth, a lower percentage is stronger. For the three access measures, higher values are stronger.

82.15Alzheimer's Care Score
18.18%Prevalence growth (#5, lower is better)
3.63Nursing homes per 10K (#9)
43.7Clinicians per 100K (#15)
68.34Care workers per 1K (#10)

These four states led on the individual measures.

Lowest 10-year prevalence growth

North Dakota

Had the lowest 10-year Alzheimer’s prevalence increase in the index at 14.29%.

Highest nursing home availability

Iowa

Led all states in the index for nursing home availability, with 5.82 homes per 10,000 older adults.

Highest geriatric clinician access

Rhode Island

Had the highest geriatric clinician rate, with 73.7 clinicians per 100,000 older adults.

Highest care workforce availability

New York

Had the highest paid care worker rate, with 160.69 care workers per 1,000 older adults.

Why care support matters

A state ranking is one thing. Daily life is another.

For someone living with Alzheimer's, a familiar room can feel unfamiliar. See what that looks like.

Small changes can make familiar spaces harder to process.

The rankings measure broad care access, but families feel the need for support in everyday moments like a forgotten routine, a room that suddenly feels wrong, or a sense that something is off. That's care that starts at home.

This is an illustrative example, not a universal experience. Alzheimer's affects people differently.

Everyday view Possible challenges

Drag the handle right or left to compare both views.

US Rankings

Compare the top 10 and bottom 10 states.

Use the tabs to switch between the 10 highest and 10 lowest states in the overall index. Scores are out of 100 and compare states with one another across this specific set of indicators, not individual care communities.

Rank State Prev. Growth Nursing Homes / 10K Clinicians / 100K Care Workers / 1K Alzheimer's Care Score
Full data table

Compare all 50 states.

Use the selector to highlight a state in the table, then switch between the overall ranking and each metric ranking.

Find your state

Jump to one state in the rankings.

Choose a state to keep its row easy to find while you move between ranking views. It’s a quick way to see which care-access signals shape that state’s overall position.

State-level Alzheimer's and memory care access indicators. Use the controls above to switch between the overall score and individual measures.

Find local care options for a loved one with Alzheimer's.

State rankings show broad patterns. Mirador Living helps families compare local communities by services, pricing, reviews, availability, and support needs.

Explore local care options
Methodology

How the states were ranked.

This study ranks all 50 US states to identify those with the strongest care conditions for people living with Alzheimer's. Each state was scored across four core measures, then the scores were averaged equally to produce one overall ranking.

Quick read

Use the ranking as a starting point.

The report compares broad state-level signs that may affect Alzheimer’s and memory care access. Families should pair it with local details such as services, pricing, reviews, availability, and a loved one’s needs.

It does not measure individual care quality, open beds, waitlists, assisted living capacity, memory-care specialization, or local rural and urban differences.

1
Four metrics form the score

The ranking is based on the percentage increase in Alzheimer's prevalence from 2016 to 2025 (Alzheimer's Association), nursing homes per 10,000 older adults (CMS Care Compare), geriatric clinicians per 100,000 older adults (America's Health Rankings), and care workers per 1,000 older adults (Bureau of Labor Statistics).

2
Percentile ranks make the numbers comparable

Each state was ranked across all four measures and converted to percentile scores. This ensures different types of data, growth rates and staffing counts, can be compared fairly.

3
Equal weighting, one overall score

All four measures carry the same weight in the final score. The prevalence growth metric is inverted: a slower increase in Alzheimer's cases scores higher, because it suggests less added demand pressure.

Sources: Alzheimer’s Association, CMS Care Compare, America’s Health Rankings and CMS NPPES underlying data, and Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS May 2024.