Nursing home costs in Hawaii are 44 percent higher than the national average, according to a new report from MetLife.

A private room at a nursing home costs $306 a day in Hawaii, compared to the national average of $212 a day.

The 2008 MetLife Market Survey of Nursing Home and Assisted Living Costs found that the nationwide average rates for a private room in a nursing home remained almost unchanged from 2007.

Alaska had the highest daily average at $577. Meanwhile Louisiana had the lowest at $127 a day.

The monthly average rate for assisted-living communities in Hawaii is nearly 18 percent higher than the national average, according to the report.

Assisted-living communities in Hawaii cost on average $3,566 a month, compared to $3,031 nationwide. Southern Maine had the highest average monthly base rate at $4,708, meanwhile North Dakota had the lowest rate at $1,980.