Individuals who are sick or with disabilities may need help with their care or to complete daily activities.
For that, they must hire people to assist their needs. However, in California, Medi-Cal allows the caregiver to be a family member.
The In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) helps a person with disabilities with payments for services to pay a caregiver and to stay at home. This help extends to children with disabilities and people over the age of 65 who may qualify, as well.
The services authorized by the IHSS for the care of people includes:
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- Housekeeping
- Preparing food, laundry, purchasing of groceries
- Personal care
- Help with injections, curing wounds, colostomies and catheters under the instruction of a medical professional
- Licensed care
- Accompanying medical visits
- Supervision of people with mental disabilities
What are the requirements to receive this help?
To solicit help under the IHSS, a person must:
- Be 65 years or older and with a disability recognized by the Social Security Administration (SSA). Children with disabilities are also eligible;
- Be a California resident
- Be eligible for Medi-Cal
- Live in a home (own or rent)
- Send a completed Care Certification Form
How is the process to solicit help?
- You can make a phone call contacting the IHSS office in the county you reside in. You can find a list of offices by clicking here.
- You can also make a written request, sending with it an IHSS SOC 295 request form.
- You will receive a visit from a social worker to determine the types of services you need and the amount of hours, based on your medical history, place and the amount of people you live with.
- A person should send a Care Certification Form (SOC 873) to the county to determine the authorization of services.
How will I know if the services were approved?
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The applicant will receive a Notice of Action (NOA), in which you will be notified if you were approved or denied the service.
In case that services were approved, the NOA will notify which services and hours per month were approved. The person should be in charge of hiring a caregiver and will be considered their employer.
The caregiver can be a friend or family member, who should sign up with the program before working for you.
If the county you reside in has IHSS providers, you can choose that option for your care.
This article originally appeared on NBCLA's sister station, Telemundo 52. To read the original report, click here.
