Louisiana grants
& benefits: LDH programs, a senior assessment freeze and veteran tax tiers.

Louisiana expanded Medicaid on July 1, 2016, covering adults 19 through 64 who earn no more than 138% of the federal poverty level. Congress passed a law in July 2025 that now requires some of them to show work or community engagement, starting with applications and renewals on January 1, 2027.

To pass, log 80 hours each month of work, volunteering, a work program or at least half-time school, or earn $580 in the month. LDH says most members are exempt, and it will check employment and Social Security records first, so many people will not need to send anything.

Renewal packets arrive 60 days before your renewal date, with 45 days to respond. Members renewing in January 2027 got a notice in May 2026 and get the packet in November 2026. Send proof through MyMedicaid.la.gov, by email, fax or mail, or at a Medicaid office.

LDH lists these groups as not required to meet the rule:

• People under 19 or age 65 and older, and former foster youth under 26
• Blind or disabled members, plus anyone medically frail
• Veterans the VA rates as totally disabled
• Anyone enrolled in or entitled to Medicare Part A or Part B
• Members who are pregnant or in postpartum coverage
• Parents or guardians of a child under 14, and family caregivers for a disabled person
• People meeting SNAP work requirements, and people in substance use or alcohol treatment
• People released from incarceration within the last three months
• Native Americans and Alaska Natives eligible for Indian Health Service

How the expansion group fits into Medicaid nationally is explained in our Medicaid program guide.

Louisiana lets some homestead owners lock in the assessed value of the house. It freezes the value, not the tax bill. Owners 65 or older qualify, as do veterans the VA rates 50% or more disabled from service, and people certified as permanently and totally disabled by a court or agency.

Adjusted gross income on the prior year's federal return, with both spouses combined, must stay under the limit. The constitution set it at $100,000 and began yearly CPI adjustments with tax year 2026. The Ascension and St. Tammany parish assessors list $102,700 for 2026.

Apply with your parish assessor, or in Orleans Parish with the district assessor. Owners under 65 who get the freeze keep it the next year by certifying to the assessor that their income still qualifies. The freeze also requires that construction or reconstruction not raise the home's value by more than 25%.

On November 3, 2026, voters decide Amendment 9. A yes vote would raise the income limit from $100,000 to $150,000 for every group that can get the freeze, not only seniors, with yearly inflation adjustments restarting in tax year 2028. A no vote keeps the $100,000 base. Ask your assessor which limit applies.

Voters approved Constitutional Amendment No. 2 (Acts 2022, No. 172), and the three-tier veteran exemption took effect January 1, 2023. It applies to a home that already has the homestead exemption. A surviving spouse keeps it only while still owning and living in that same home.

It is not granted automatically. Ask an LDVA veterans assistance counselor for an updated Form A25 with your current address and file it with your parish assessor. On top of the $7,500 homestead exemption, the tiers work this way:

• Rating of 50% to 69%: the next $2,500 of assessed value is exempt
• Rating of 70% to 99%: the next $4,500 of assessed value is exempt
• Rating of 100%: the home is exempt from all ad valorem taxes, except certain municipal assessments

Title 29 is Louisiana's in-state tuition exemption for qualifying children of living veterans, spouses of POW or MIA veterans, and surviving spouses and children of deceased veterans. Residency rules apply. A parish counselor approves the application, and LDVA mails the certificate to the student.

LDVA runs five veterans homes. Louisiana veterans honorably discharged after 90 days of active duty qualify, as can spouses and Gold Star parents, and veterans rated 70% to 100% pay no monthly fee. Burial in one of the five state veterans cemeteries is free for eligible veterans.

The Military Family Assistance Fund pays as much as $10,000 within 12 months toward housing, utilities, some medical costs and other essentials for eligible veterans and Guard or Reserve members facing hardship. Military retirement pay is exempt from Louisiana income tax.

The Louisiana Housing Corporation (LHC) runs LIHEAP, while local agencies in each parish do intake. LHC lists three windows: heating help December 15 to March 31, cooling help April 13 to September 30, and crisis help through the year, October 1 to September 30.

The statewide online portal is closed, and crisis applications are never taken online, so call your parish agency. LHC's 2026 income table, pegged to 60% of the state median, caps yearly income at $30,618 for a single person and $58,882 for a four-person household.

Bring a heating or cooling bill no older than 30 days, the last 30 days of pay stubs, proof of other income, photo ID and Social Security cards. Crisis help also needs a disconnect notice. There is no fee to apply, and LHC says no one will ask for bank or card numbers.

Louisiana's seasons and crisis help are paid from the federal block grant described in our LIHEAP program guide.

Apply for SNAP, FITAP or the Kinship Care Subsidy Program on the CAFÉ Self-Service Portal, by phone at 888-LAHelp-U (888-524-3578), or by fax or mail. Phone interviews run Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until 3:30 p.m., and approved benefits are paid back to your application date.

Since February 18, 2026, Louisiana SNAP cannot be used for soft drinks, energy drinks or candy, including gum and mints. LDH says this federal pilot runs until January 12, 2028.

Who qualifies, how much a household gets and when cards are reloaded are covered in our Louisiana food stamps guide.