Catoosa County sits in the Appalachian foothills of northwest Georgia, right on the Tennessee state line and along I-75 just south of Chattanooga. Most households live in or around Ringgold, the county seat, and Fort Oglethorpe, with smaller communities in Lakeview and Indian Springs and a rural stretch beyond them.
The houses here are mostly established single-family homes, many of them owned by the same people for a long time. That matters for stairs. A split-level in Fort Oglethorpe and a two-story townhouse in Ringgold call for different lifts, and this page walks through which type fits and where to look for help paying for one.
The 2020 Census counted 27,971 housing units in Catoosa County, with 72.4% owner-occupied and only 1.3% homeowner vacancy. Population grew a modest 6.1% from 2010 to 2020, so this is not a county full of brand-new builds.
With a median resident age of 41.0 and 18.3% of residents 65 or older in that same census, a good share of these homes are lived in by people who have been there for years. Staying put usually means adapting the house you already have, and the staircase is often the first thing that gets hard.
In a detached single-family home with one straight flight between floors, a straight stair lift is usually the simplest and quickest install. The rail mounts to the stair treads, not the wall, so the house itself stays largely unchanged.
Split-level homes are different. You may have two or three short flights with landings between living areas, and each one needs its own plan. Sometimes a straight lift on the flight you use most is enough, and sometimes a curved rail that follows the turns makes more sense.
Townhouses tend to have narrower stairs and more than one level. We measure the width, the turns and the landing space at the top and bottom before recommending anything, because a lift that fits on paper can still block a doorway in real life.
If the trouble starts at the front or back door rather than inside, an outdoor-rated stair lift can handle exterior steps. These units are built to take the weather and are worth asking about if your entry has a set of steps up from the driveway or yard.
For someone who uses a wheelchair, a seat lift does not solve the problem. A platform lift carries the chair itself and is the better fit, though it needs more room and planning than a standard stair lift.
None of the programs below name stair lifts on their program pages. That does not always mean no, so the practical move is to call and ask directly. The programs section below lists each one and who to contact.
For Medicaid waiver programs, the Northwest Georgia Regional Commission AAA in Rome is the regional starting point at (706) 295-6485. Veterans can get help with VA grant applications from the Georgia Department of Veterans Service Dalton Field Service Office at (706) 272-2355.
Other Georgia programs worth asking about by name include the Independent Care Waiver Program (ICWP), the Home Access Program, the Credit-Able Loan Program and VA Benefits for Veterans (HISA + Prosthetics).
A Medicaid waiver program with case management for elderly or disabled Georgians, including Catoosa County residents, who meet a nursing-facility level of care. Its listed services are adult day health, alternative living, emergency response and personal support, and stair lifts are not mentioned; call (800) 759-2963 to ask.
A state Medicaid waiver for frail elderly and disabled Georgians who qualify for nursing-facility level of care and meet Medicaid financial rules, applied for through the regional Aging and Disability Resource Connection (ADRC). Stair lifts and home modifications are not listed as covered services; call (877) 423-4746 for details.
A free program for people with disabilities of any age in its 15-county service area, which includes Catoosa County, offering resources for wheelchair ramps, wider doorways and bathroom modifications. Stair lifts are not named, so call (706) 314-0008 to ask whether stair lift referrals are included.
A federal grant of up to $126,526 (FY2026 cap) for veterans or service members with certain severe service-connected disabilities who own or will own the home, usable up to 6 times. It funds disability-related alterations such as ramps and widened doorways, but stair lifts are not explicitly named; the Dalton Field Service Office at (706) 272-2355 can help with questions.
A federal grant of up to $25,350 (FY2026 cap) for adapting a permanent home owned by the veteran or a family member, for qualifying disabilities such as loss of use of both hands or a serious breathing injury. Stair lifts are not explicitly named as a covered item, and a related Temporary Residence Adaptation (TRA) grant of up to $9,100 exists for veterans living temporarily with family.
Older adults
1 Jackson Hill Dr., Rome, 30161
Veterans
305 Point North Place, Suite 7, Dalton, 30720
This page covers Catoosa County as a whole, including Ringgold, Fort Oglethorpe, Lakeview and Indian Springs.
The CCSP and SOURCE Waiver program pages do not list stair lifts or home modifications among their covered services. Because they are not mentioned either way, call CCSP at (800) 759-2963 or SOURCE at (877) 423-4746 and ask about your situation.
The Northwest Georgia Center for Independent Living serves people with disabilities of any age in Catoosa County and offers free home modifications such as ramps and wider doorways. Stair lifts are not named, so call (706) 314-0008 to ask.
The Georgia Department of Veterans Service Dalton Field Service Office at 305 Point North Place, Suite 7, Dalton, can help, and their number is (706) 272-2355. The SAH grant goes up to $126,526 and the SHA grant up to $25,350 for FY2026, though neither names stair lifts explicitly.
Often, yes. Split-levels usually have short flights with landings, so the answer may be a straight lift on one flight or a curved rail that follows the turns, and a measurement at the house tells you which.
The Northwest Georgia Regional Commission AAA, based at 1 Jackson Hill Dr. in Rome, is the regional aging office. Their number is (706) 295-6485.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
