Medicaid waiver
Home and Community Benefits for the Elderly and Adults with Disabilities
Checked
- Program status
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Members are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis as funding allows. The Office of Aging and Disability Services keeps the wait list.
- Who qualifies
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Adults 18 or older who meet MaineCare eligibility and the medical eligibility rules for nursing facility services, as found in a face-to-face Medical Eligibility Determination assessment, and who have a permanent or chronic disability or functional impairment that limits their ability to care for themselves. Their health and welfare must not be endangered by getting services at home, and the services must cost no more than the program's monthly cap.
Services include personal care, attendant services, respite, home health, home delivered meals, emergency response systems, assistive technology and home modifications, all approved in advance in an Authorized Plan of Care.
- Can a family member be paid
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Yes. Yes, through an agency. A family member who meets the requirements can be a Personal Support Specialist and be paid for delivering personal support services. A Personal Support Specialist must be employed by, or work under contract with, a licensed home health agency or a registered personal care agency.
The member's spouse is covered by a stricter rule: see the next answer. The parent or stepparent of a minor child who is a member cannot be paid.
- Can a spouse be paid
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Depends. Only for Extraordinary Care. Since July 1, 2020, a spouse can be paid as a Personal Support Specialist for personal care when the member needs care beyond what a spouse would ordinarily do in the household for someone the same age without a disability. This covers help with activities of daily living, not household tasks such as shopping, cleaning or meals. The spouse must meet the Personal Support Specialist qualifications and work for a personal care agency, and the Service Coordination Agency must authorize the need.
A spouse cannot be paid to provide respite or household (IADL) tasks, and cannot be paid as an Attendant under the Participant-Directed Option.
- Hours limit
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Attendant or personal care services from one staff member to one member or household may not exceed 40 hours a week. A member at risk of institutionalization can ask for an exception.