Assisted Living
Bickford Cottage Ames
2418 Kent Ave, Ames, IA 50010 · Map
Licensed for 63 residents
Bickford Cottage Ames is a state-licensed assisted living community in Ames, Iowa. It is licensed for 63 residents. Lilisity publishes no score or ranking for this community; the details below come from the state licensing record.
Prices
Starting prices the community publishes, with the date we checked each one and a link to where it is published. Care charges are usually added after an assessment.
| Care | Starting at | Checked |
|---|---|---|
| Assisted Living | $4,256 /mo | Oct 12, 2026 |
Area costs
Lilisity’s independent report
What the public record shows
Gathered by Lilisity from state and federal sources. Communities can’t edit this part of the page.
State inspections
Last recertification or initial survey: May 29, 2025. See the record
License
Active, 63 residents
Assisted Living Program S0024.
Nearest emergency room
1.8 miles
Mary Greeley Medical Center, rated 4 of 5 stars by CMS.
Side by side with nearby communities
The 4 nearest communities that offer assisted living, by straight-line distance. Prices are starting prices each community publishes; we never show estimates.
| Community | Distance | Licensed capacity | Published starting price | License | Inspection citations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bickford Cottage Ames this community | 63 | $4,256/mo | Active | 13 state violations in 3 years | |
| Assisted Living at Northcrest Community | 0.3 mi | 64 | Not published | Active | No record |
| Maggie's Place at Northridge Village | 0.5 mi | 16 | Not published | Active | No record |
| Rose of Ames | 3.0 mi | 112 | $1,245/mo | Active | 6 state violations in 3 years |
| Independence Village of Ames | 3.0 mi | 122 | $3,329/mo | Active | 4 state violations in 3 years |
State inspection record13 state violations in 3 years
- Last recertification or initial survey
- May 29, 2025
- Visits in three years
- 6
- Complaint visits in three years
- 6
- State violations (all visits)
- 13
- State fines in three years
- 1 ($2,925 after adjustment)
- Certification expires
- March 5, 2027
- No violations cited at the last 2 visits (March 2026)
- Certified since 1999
Visits (newest first)
- March 4, 2026: Complaint, no state violations listed · report
- March 4, 2026: Complaint, Complaint Revisit (revisit), no state violations listed · report
- October 23, 2025: Complaint, Incident, 8 state violations; Fining & Citation · report · citation
- The program’s policies and procedures on incident reports, at a minimum, shall include the following: e. All accidents or unusual occurrences within the program’s building or on the premises that affect tenants shall be reported as incidents. 481 IAC 67.2(1)e
- The program shall follow the policies and procedures established by the program. 481 IAC 67.2(3)
- Tenant Rights. To receive care, treatment and services which are adequate and appropriate. 481 IAC 67.3(2)
- Tenant Rights. To receive from the manager and staff of the program a reasonable response to all requests. 481 IAC 67.3(5)
- Nurse delegation shall, at a minimum, include the program's newly hired registered nurse shall within 60 days of beginning employment as the program's registered nurse document a review to ensure that staff are sufficiently trained and competent in all tasks that are assigned or delegated. 481 IAC 67.9(4)a
Show all 8
- All records shall be protected from loss, damage and unauthorized use. 481 IAC 69.25(3)
- Prior to the tenant's signing the occupancy agreement and taking occupancy of a dwelling unit, a preliminary service plan shall be developed by a health care professional or human service professional in consultation with the tenant and, at the tenant's request, with other individuals identified by the tenant, and, if applicable, with the tenant's legal representative. All persons who develop the plan and the tenant or the tenant's legal representative shall sign the plan. 481 IAC 69.26(2)
- When a tenant needs personal care or health-related care, the service plan shall be updated within 30 days of the tenant's occupancy and as needed with significant change, but not less than annually. 481 IAC 69.26(3)
- May 29, 2025: Recertification, Complaint, 2 state violations · report
- Nurse delegation shall, at a minimum, include within 30 days of beginning employment, all program staff shall receive training by the program's registered nurse(s). 481 IAC 67.9(4)b
- Nurse delegation shall, at a minimum, include services being provided to tenants in accordance with the training provided. 481 IAC 67.9(4)f
- February 20, 2025: Complaint, Incident, 1 state violation · report
- Tenant Rights. To receive care, treatment and services which are adequate and appropriate. 481 IAC 67.3(2)
- May 1, 2024: Complaint, Incident, 2 state violations · report
- The program shall follow the policies and procedures established by the program. 481 IAC 67.2(3)
- Tenant Documents. Documentation for each tenant shall be maintained by the program and shall include An occupancy record including the tenant’s name, birth date, and home address; identification numbers; date of occupancy; name, address and telephone number of health professional(s); diagnosis; and names, addresses and telephone numbers of family members, friends or other designated people to contact in the event of illness or an emergency 481 IAC 69.25(1)a
State fines
- Visit October 23, 2025: fine issued November 3, 2025, $4,500, adjusted to $2,925; paid $2,925, owed $0 (enforcement no. 10943)
DIAL Health Facility Database record → (Bickford Cottage Ames)
What these terms mean
DIAL's Health Facility Database lists each visit to the program, the number of state violations found, and any certification or licensure action and fine that followed. The scanned report for each visit is linked; it holds the inspectors' findings in full.
Recertification: DIAL's routine survey of the program for its certification. Complaint: a visit to look into a complaint. Incident: a visit to look into an incident the program reported. Initial: the survey of a new program. A revisit is a follow-up visit after an earlier one. A visit can be more than one type.
Iowa Code 231C.14 lets DIAL fine an assisted living program for “noncompliance with any regulatory requirements which presents an imminent danger or a substantial probability of resultant death or physical harm to a tenant,” for continued failure to comply after notice, or for interfering with an inspector. A fine is reduced by 35 percent when the program does not contest it and pays within 30 days; the Assessed Fines Report shows this as “State Adjusted”. “State Susp” is the part suspended.
A complaint visit with no violations listed does not say whether the complaint was substantiated; the linked report does. This program is certified for 63 residents or units; larger programs are visited and cited more often, so read counts with size in mind. Source: Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing (DIAL), Health Facilities Division, data as of October 16, 2026. Always visit in person and ask the program about anything listed here.
License and ownershipActive license
- License type
- Assisted Living Program
- License number
- S0024
- License status
- Active
- Licensed capacity
- 63
- County
- Story County
- Executive Director
- Melissa Borgeson
Source: Iowa state licensing records (agency listing), retrieved 2026-09-09. Licensing status is a matter of public record; it is not a quality rating.
Executive Director name from the operator's website, as of Oct 12, 2026.
Paying with Medicaid and other programsHow Medicaid pays for care in Iowa, and other programs
How Medicaid pays for care in Iowa
- Elderly (E) Waiver, Assisted Living Service. Iowa Medicaid's Elderly Waiver, for people 65 and older, lists "Assisted Living Service" among its services. Waiver slots can have waiting lists. (state page)
- Waitlist. Iowa HHS says there is currently no waitlist for the Elderly Waiver, and that this could change. (source)
Ask the community whether it accepts Medicaid.
Location and nearby careNearest hospital 1.8 mi, nursing home 1.1 mi, pharmacy 1.0 mi
- Nearest hospital with an emergency room
- Mary Greeley Medical Center, Ames. 1.8 miles away, straight line. CMS overall hospital rating: 4 of 5 stars.
- Nearest Medicare nursing home
- Northridge Village, Ames. 1.1 miles away, straight line.
- Nearest home health agency office
- Mary Greeley Home Health Services, Ames. 1.8 miles away, straight line. Agencies travel to clients, so ask which ones serve this address.
- Nearest pharmacy
- Walgreens. 1.0 mile away, straight line. From OpenStreetMap, which does not list every pharmacy, so one may be closer.
- Area
- USDA classes ZIP code 50010 as metropolitan (metropolitan core).
- Dialysis within 15 miles
- Davita Ames Mary Greeley Dialysis, Ames, 3.0 miles away, straight line (CMS rating 5 of 5 stars)
- Hospice
- 13 Medicare hospices tell CMS they serve ZIP code 50010.
Mary Greeley Hospice Services, office in Ames, 1.8 miles away, straight line (CMS family survey rating 4 of 5 stars)
Heartland Hospice (West Des Moines), office in Ames, 2.8 miles away, straight line
St Croix Hospice, office in Ankeny, 23.1 miles away, straight line (CMS family survey rating 4 of 5 stars) - Nearest geriatric medicine practice
- Joseph Hoagbin, MD, Marshalltown. 36.2 miles away, straight line. 1 geriatric medicine doctor listed there.
Distances are straight lines from the community, not driving distance. Hospitals, home health, dialysis, hospice and doctors come from CMS provider data (CMS, hospital list updated Jul 22, 2026). Star ratings are CMS’s own.
Emergency and natural hazard riskFEMA overall risk relatively low; outside FEMA's high-risk flood areas
Public hazard maps for this location. Ask the community about its emergency plan, its generator and where residents would go in an evacuation.
- Flood zone
- Outside the high and moderate risk flood areas on FEMA's flood map (Zone X, minimal flood hazard, or not studied). (FEMA flood map)
- FEMA National Risk Index
- Overall: relatively low. By hazard: hurricane very low, inland flooding relatively low, wildfire very low, tornado relatively high, heat wave very low, earthquake very low. These are FEMA’s ratings for the census tract, compared with tracts nationwide. (FEMA, December 2025)
A flood zone describes the map at this point, not the building's elevation. In an emergency, follow the local emergency management agency.
Questions to ask on a tour10 questions picked for this community from its record
Picked for this community from its record. Ask them in person and write down the answers.
- The state recorded a finding in October 2025. What was it, and how was it fixed?
- Your published starting price is a base rate. What would the total monthly cost be for my parent's needs?
- How much have prices gone up in each of the last three years?
- How many caregivers are on duty during the day and at night?
- What happens if care needs increase? When would someone need to move?
- What fees are charged at move-in?
- How do you tell families about falls, illness or changes?
- How long have the executive director and the head of care been here?
- Who gives medications, and what training do they have?
- For what reasons can a resident be asked to leave?
What we checked12 public sources we searched, with dates
Every public source we searched for this community. “Nothing on record” means we found no record that matched it. A record can be missed when a name or address differs.
| Source | Data as of | What we found |
|---|---|---|
| Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing (DIAL), Health Facilities Division inspection records | Oct 16, 2026 | See above |
| U.S. Department of Labor wage and hour cases | Oct 15, 2026 | Nothing on record |
| OSHA workplace safety inspections since 2016 | Oct 15, 2026 | Nothing on record |
| FEMA flood map | See above | |
| USDA wildfire risk | Apr 15, 2026 | Not shown: FEMA rates wildfire risk here very low |
| FEMA National Risk Index | See above | |
| CMS hospitals, home health, dialysis, hospice and doctors; OpenStreetMap pharmacies | See above | |
| HUD Multifamily Properties - Assisted | Jul 6, 2026 | Nothing on record |
| State Veterans Homes (NASVH directory) | Sep 20, 2026 | Nothing on record |
| CMS Hospice - General Information | Aug 19, 2026 | Nothing on record |
| CMS Home Health Care Agencies | May 27, 2026 | Nothing on record |
| The community’s own website | Could not read the site |
Common questionsAnswers to 4 questions families ask
What type of care does Bickford Cottage Ames provide?
Bickford Cottage Ames is licensed by the state of Iowa for assisted living in Ames, Iowa. Its licensed capacity is 63 residents.
Does Lilisity rate Bickford Cottage Ames?
No. We publish state licensing details for Bickford Cottage Ames but no score, rating, or ranking. Only communities on the Top Communities list or with a Senior Living Alliance Excellence Award, both based on phone-verified resident and family interviews, are ranked.
How much does Bickford Cottage Ames cost?
Assisted Living in Iowa typically starts at $1,450 to $4,650 a month. Based on 33 communities that publish prices. These are area figures, not this community's price. The starting prices it publishes are in the Prices section on this page.
How do I contact Bickford Cottage Ames?
Use Bickford Cottage Ames's website, bickfordseniorliving.com/branch/bickford-of-ames, or visit at 2418 Kent Ave, Ames, IA 50010.
How Lilisity works. The only scores or rankings Lilisity publishes are the Top Communities list and the Excellence Awards, both built from phone-verified resident and family interviews. Communities can pay Lilisity a flat monthly fee to manage their own listing: photos, prices, contact details, and receiving the inquiries families choose to send them. The fee is the same no matter how many families contact them or move in. Senior Living Alliance, which runs Lilisity, offers the same listing to its member communities as part of their membership; members pay SLA for its resident and family interview program. No community pays Lilisity per inquiry, per referral or per move-in. Payment never changes a testimonial, a rating, or the order of search results. The "Nearby Senior Living Alliance communities" box shows member communities only. How we verify testimonials · How we are paid