Carter County covers roughly 3,348 square miles of prairie and rangeland in the far southeastern corner of Montana, bordering South Dakota and Wyoming. Ekalaka is the county seat and its only town, with an older small-town core anchored by the Carter County Courthouse and ranch properties spread out across the county.
At about 0.42 people per square mile, getting to care means a long drive for most households. That is a big reason families here look at a stair lift: it lets someone keep using the whole house in Ekalaka or out on the ranch instead of moving for one flight of stairs.
The county has about 817 housing units, and much of it dates from earlier building eras typical of remote eastern Montana ranch towns. Older multi-level farmhouses and in-town homes in Ekalaka are the ones most likely to have an interior stairway worth fitting with a lift.
Most of these stairways are a single straight run, which is the simplest and quickest lift to install. Older farmhouses sometimes have a turn or landing partway up, and those need a curved rail built to the exact shape of the stairs.
Split-level homes usually have short flights of a few steps between levels. A short straight lift can handle each flight, and we look at where the rail ends so it does not block a hallway or doorway.
Single-story ranch-style homes on outlying agricultural properties often have no inside stairs at all, but the front or back entry may have steps. For those, an outdoor-rated stair lift or a vertical platform lift at the porch is often the better fit than an inside unit.
About 44.0% of Carter County residents are 65 or older, so a lot of households are already thinking about stairs. Most homes here are owner-occupied, which makes a permanent installation a practical choice.
Ekalaka is served by Dahl Memorial Healthcare Association, a 25-bed Critical Access Hospital. Beyond that, specialized care usually means travel, so making the home safer is often the more workable plan.
The one program whose own materials name stair lifts is Montana Assistive Technology Loans (MATL). It is a loan, not a grant, and it is open to Montanans of any age or income who can repay it.
Other programs listed below either cover home modifications without naming stair lifts, or offer help like meals and referrals. The VA HISA grant specifically excludes stair glides, so veterans should ask about other VA options instead. Call the agency before you sign anything so you know what they will and will not pay for.
A Montana Medicaid waiver for people who need a nursing-facility level of care; its services include environmental adaptations, but stair lifts are not named and there is a waiting list. Call (406) 444-4077.
A statewide loan program that lists stair lifts by name, with 0% interest on loans up to $1,500 and a fixed 3.5% rate above that. Call (406) 454-5709.
A center for independent living serving Carter County that gives information on home modifications such as ramps, grab bars and wider doors and connects people to loans like MATL; stair lifts are not named. Call (406) 259-5181.
Serves adults 60 and older with referrals, in-home services, meals, weatherization and energy assistance; no stair lift or home-modification program is listed. Call (406) 377-3564.
Offers donation-based meals, homemaker services and respite care through Dahl Memorial Nursing Home for seniors 60 and older in the county; stair lifts are not listed. Call (406) 775-8751.
Loans up to $40,000 at 1% and grants up to $10,000 for very-low-income rural homeowners, with grants for those 62 and older; accessibility work such as ramps is mentioned, but stair lifts are not named. Call (406) 585-2580.
A VA grant of up to $6,800 or $2,000 for medically necessary home changes, but it explicitly excludes stair glides and porch lifts. Call (800) 827-1000.
Larger VA grants, up to $126,526 for SAH and $25,350 for SHA in FY2026, for veterans with certain severe service-connected disabilities; stair lifts are not specifically named. Call (800) 827-1000.
Older adults
2030 N. Merrill Ave., Glendive, 59330
Veterans
1020 N Haynes, Miles City, 59301
Usually, yes. Straight stairways take a standard rail, and stairs with a turn or landing need a curved rail made to measure. We measure the stairway in person before recommending anything.
Montana Assistive Technology Loans (MATL) lists stair lifts by name. It is a loan, with 0% interest up to $1,500 and 3.5% above that, and you can reach them at (406) 454-5709.
No. The VA excludes stair glides and porch lifts from HISA. Veterans can ask about the SAH and SHA grants at (800) 827-1000 or visit the Miles City Service Office at 1020 N Haynes, (406) 232-1203.
Yes. MATL is open to Montanans of all ages, and LIFTT serves people with disabilities in Carter County regardless of age. The Area I agency and the county senior center serve people 60 and older.
The Carter County Senior Citizens Center is at (406) 775-8751. Area I - Action for Eastern Montana in Glendive, at 2030 N. Merrill Ave., can be reached at (406) 377-3564.
An outdoor-rated stair lift or a vertical platform lift at the porch is often the right choice. Which one depends on the number of steps and the space at the top and bottom.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
