Honolulu Senior AdvisorWhat do Oahu nursing homes provide?
Oahu nursing homes provide 24-hour skilled nursing, short-term rehabilitation after a hospital stay, long-term care for people with heavy medical or physical needs, and end-of-life care, with licensed nurses on every shift and therapy staff on site.
CMS lists 27 certified nursing homes in Honolulu County; 16 of the 25 rated homes have four or five stars.
How are nursing homes paid for in Hawaii?
Medicare pays for short skilled stays after a qualifying hospital admission; long-term stays are paid privately (Hawaii's 2025 semi-private median is about $15,473 a month), by long-term care insurance, or by Med-QUEST for members who qualify.
Ask each home which QUEST Integration health plans it accepts and whether long-term beds are separate from short-stay rehab beds.
How do we compare Oahu nursing homes?
Compare Oahu nursing homes using CMS Care Compare's star ratings, inspection results, staffing hours and turnover, and visit at different times of day.
Our nursing home directory shows every certified home in Honolulu County with its CMS ratings.
Who needs a nursing home rather than a care home?
People who need skilled nursing several times a day, short-term rehabilitation therapy after a hospital stay, two-person transfers around the clock or complex wound or respiratory care usually need a nursing home rather than a care home.
In Hawaii, people at nursing facility level of care who need mostly personal care and supervision can often live in an expanded ARCH or foster family home instead. The choice depends on how much skilled care is needed, not just on the level-of-care label.
What should we look for on a nursing home tour?
On a nursing home tour, look at how quickly call lights are answered, whether residents are up and dressed, how staff speak to residents, how the dining room runs and whether the building smells clean, then compare what you see with the home's CMS inspection report.
Ask about staffing on nights and weekends, agency staff use, the most recent inspection, therapy availability for rehab residents and which QUEST Integration plans the home accepts for long-term stays.
At a glance
| An Oahu nursing home offers | An Oahu nursing home does not offer | |
|---|---|---|
| Nursing | Licensed nurses every shift | A family-home setting |
| Rehab | On-site therapy after hospital stays | Unlimited Medicare days |
| Ratings | CMS star ratings and inspections | Ratings from us |
| Payment | Medicare short stays, Med-QUEST long stays | Free long-term care |
Sources include Hawaii Administrative Rules chapters 11-100.1, 11-90 and 11-800, HRS 321-481 and 321-1.8, Office of Health Care Assurance rosters and pages, the 2026 HHS poverty guidelines, CMS, CareScout and VA rate tables as cited above; see our editorial standards.
