Louisiana program
A room near the children’s hospital
Charitable family houses in Baton Rouge and New Orleans offer lodging for families traveling for a child’s care.
What it is
Charitable family houses in Baton Rouge and New Orleans offer lodging for families traveling for a child’s care.
A nearby room can ease long drives during treatment. Each house checks its own rules and room availability. Your hospital social worker can explain which house serves the hospital and how referrals work.
Eligibility rules
- Baton Rouge requires financial need and difficulty traveling between home and the hospital or affiliated clinics.
- The New Orleans Ronald McDonald House ordinarily serves patients from birth through age 21 whose family lives more than 30 miles from the House and outside New Orleans city limits. Critical-care and case-by-case exceptions may apply. The House confirms distance measurement, guest arrangements, required adult background checks and room availability.
What you get
- A free room at the Baton Rouge family support home for eligible families.
- A hospital referral to Ronald McDonald House in New Orleans when its rules fit.
What the help covers
- Ronald McDonald House in New Orleans suggests a $10 nightly donation when affordable; inability to contribute does not prevent a stay. One room ordinarily holds four people, and extra extended-family space needs approval. The House should confirm any deposit, distance measurement and available room directly; a referral is not a reservation.
If you decide to apply
- Ask the oncology social worker about the family house linked to your hospital.
- Have your home address, travel distance and admission or treatment dates ready.
Hospital social worker; Baton Rouge family home 225-765-5016; New Orleans Ronald McDonald House 504-486-6668 · Official page ↗
After you apply
- A nurse or social worker makes the New Orleans referral. Each house confirms availability and the stay arrangements.
Good to know
These houses are charities. A referral does not guarantee that a room is available.
Other details
- Baton Rouge’s Hogs for the Cause Family Support Home can be reached at 225-765-5016. Medicaid lodging for long trips is a separate route.
Official sources
“Could a family house make our hospital travel easier? What are the costs and limits, and could you help with a referral if a room would suit us?”
Why I’m asking: I want to know whether staying nearby could reduce the cost and strain of travel.
More background and detailed requirements
Additional program information and published rules
Who does what
The three parts, side by side. The agency decides; nobody on this page does.
You
Ask early and say how far away home is.
Your social worker
The oncology nurse or social worker makes the referral.
The care team
Records and letters when the application asks for them.
- Who decides
- The charity that runs the house.
- Ask your social worker
- “We live a long way from the hospital. Can you refer us to the family house, and is there a waiting list?”
How to apply
First step: Ask the oncology social worker for a lodging referral this week, or call 225-765-5016 in Baton Rouge.
- Ask the oncology social worker for a lodging referral on the first admission.
- Call 225-765-5016 if you are at the Baton Rouge campus.
Official application / program page ↗
Where it starts: Ask the oncology social worker to refer you, or call the Baton Rouge home on 225-765-5016.
What to gather
- Your home address and the distance to the hospital
- The admission dates
How long: It depends on rooms being free. Ask what the wait looks like.
What a yes looks like
A room booked for the admission, at no charge at the Baton Rouge house.
What a no looks like, and the next move
Usually availability rather than eligibility. Ask to be put on the list and ask about Medicaid lodging for long trips.
Watch out
- These are charities, not state programmes, so rooms depend on availability.
- Ask on the first admission rather than the third; the waiting list is real.
Each hospital’s own policy
The federal rule sets the floor; each hospital’s policy sets the actual numbers. “Unknown” means the policy could not be read yet: call the number and ask.
The numbers and the rules
The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 11, 2026.
What it is worth
A free room near the ward for a family who lives too far to travel daily, subject to need and availability.
- $25 — Minimum distance outside New Orleans published for Ronald McDonald House
Covers: Accommodation at no charge on the Baton Rouge campus for families who show financial need and travel difficulty · Ronald McDonald House referral for children 21 and under living at least 25 miles outside New Orleans
What it costs the family: The Baton Rouge home is published as free. Any Ronald McDonald House fee was NOT FOUND.
The eligibility facts, as published
- Baton rouge
- demonstrated financial need and travel difficulty from home to the hospital or affiliated clinics, subject to availability
- New orleans
- Ronald McDonald House South Louisiana normally serves children from birth through 21 whose families live more than 30 miles from the House and outside New Orleans. Medical and case exceptions are reviewed individually. A $10 nightly donation is suggested; inability to donate is not a barrier. A room normally holds four people; more guests need approval. Referral and room availability still apply.
The trap: Both run on referrals and both depend on rooms being free. Ask the oncology social worker to put your name in on the first admission, not the third.
Where I read this
- Hogs for the Cause Family Support Home — Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System, read September 10, 2026
- Pediatric Family Resource Center: Where to Stay — Ochsner Health, read September 10, 2026