Medicaid Benefits for At-Home Care

Medicaid is a program administered by the state. Because of this, each state has different rules regarding whether or not Medicaid recipients are eligible to receive home care aid. The Medicaid provided is also based on the amount of money that the individual or couple is bringing into the home, with some income levels making individuals ineligible for Medicaid.

Regular Visits

• Alabama allows Medicaid recipients to receive two home checkup visits a week. California allows Medicaid recipients to receive 50 visits a year. Connecticut divides visits by hours, allowing recipients to receive 20 hours from home care aides a week. In Indiana, recipients receive 120 hours of hospital care within 30 days of being discharged from the hospital. These aides sometimes perform housekeeping activities, help patients with personal hygiene, explain medications and medical equipment to patients, and accompany patients when traveling to run errands and visit the doctor, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Short -Term Care

• Medicaid will sometimes pay for home health aides to live with the Medicaid recipient for short-term care. Some Medicaid programs provide short-term care for individuals suffering from a temporary injury or illness. Other programs provide temporary home care for individuals who will likely be transitioned into a nursing home facility if they become unable to take care of themselves.

Allowed Income

• Different states have different laws regarding how much money a Medicaid recipient can be receiving before becoming eligible for Medicaid home care assistance. In New York, for example, those on Medicaid with home care are allowed to have income of $4,200 a month if living alone and are allowed $5,400 if living as a couple, according to the Western New York Law Center. A recipient also is allowed to have a minimal amount of money to pay for burial space and arrangements which cannot exceed $1,500. If the equity in your home does not exceed $750,000, you will not have a lien placed on your home by Medicaid if you go into nursing home care unless there is a spouse, minor or disabled child living in the home.

Right to Choose Aide

• The home care aid can be chosen and trained by the elderly Medicaid recipient or family members of the recipient, according to the Western New York Law Center. If the family or recipient does not do this, a vendor agency will come and perform this function, setting the Medicaid recipient up with a home care aide.