Editorial standards
Everything here affects people's money and their care. These are the rules we hold ourselves to.
Every material factual claim is checked
A factual review checks every material claim, not just the money figures. That includes eligibility rules, deadlines, legal duties, coverage rules, ratings, statistics and statements about how a program works. The sources used for the review are listed on the page with the date we accessed them.
We use the source that publishes the rule or record wherever one exists. That normally means CMS, Medicare.gov, Medicaid.gov, the Social Security Administration, the VA, HHS, the Federal Register and the eCFR, state Medicaid agencies and state statutes. Secondary research can be useful for a statistic or reported experience, but we name the organization and do not use it as authority for a government rule. If a reliable source does not support a claim, we remove it, narrow it or clearly label it as an estimate or inference.
Every figure carries a date
Many US figures change each year: Medicare premiums and deductibles, the Supplemental Security Income federal benefit rate, the federal poverty guidelines and the Medicaid spousal protection standards usually change in January, and VA pension rates change in December. State Medicaid limits change on each state's own schedule. Every current money figure on this site is stamped with the year it belongs to. The current rate set was last checked on October 27, 2026.
Current rates live in a single file and are inserted into pages at build time. This lets one update reach every page that uses the same rate. A page that uses a rate that is past its next effective date without review fails our checks and does not publish.
We do not invent data
No fabricated statistics, no made-up case studies presented as real, no invented reviews or awards. Where we could not find a source we would stand behind, we leave the section out and say why. There are places on this site where we explicitly decline to publish a number for that reason.
Rankings are evidence-based and show their working
Any "top 10" or "best" list on this site is derived from published CMS data using criteria stated on the page, with the date of the underlying data. We do not accept payment for a position in a ranking. There is no advertising and no sponsored placement. The full methodology sets out the ranking criteria, which pages are indexed, and what is deliberately excluded.
We distinguish what we know from what we infer
CMS rates some kinds of provider, such as home health agencies, hospices and nursing homes, and it does not rate others, such as non-medical home care agencies and assisted living residences. States license providers, and the rules differ by state. The NPI Registry is filled in by the providers themselves, so its service category is a signal and not a fact. Where we do not have evidence, we say the information is not known. We do not present an inference as a fact, and an absence of data never renders as a "no".
We are clear about what we are not
Carevo is a connection platform and a directory. We do not deliver care, employ caregivers or place residents, and we are not attorneys, benefits counselors or financial advisers. Our tools give estimates based on published rules. They do not make a Medicare, Medicaid, VA or Social Security decision. We do not vouch for any provider. CMS rates, states license, and we report what they publish.
Review and correction
Factual pages carry a review date and a visible source list. We re-check every rate after its scheduled update and re-review a page after a policy change that affects it. Automated checks make sure sources and access dates are present, but a person must still confirm that each source supports the claim made on the page.
Pages are checked by the Carevo editorial team. We do not yet have a named nurse, social worker or elder law attorney reviewing pages, and a page says so rather than implying it. If you find an error, email [email protected]. We will correct it and note the change where it is material.
Accessibility
This is a site for older adults, people with disabilities and the people who help them. We aim for WCAG 2.1 AA. See our accessibility statement for what we build to and how to report a problem.