Medi-Cal In Home Support Services (IHSS) is a program that is available to low income individuals who can reside at home for their personal and domestic needs. For individuals to qualify the total liquid resource asset amount is $2,000, with $870 in monthly income, and married couples can have $3,000 and a combined income of $1,570. When your income is over the limit, you will be tagged a share of cost which acts like an insurance policy deductible.

After applying and qualifying for the In Home Support Service program, a social worker visits your home, makes an assessment as to how many hours weekly you will need for care. Each county regulates the hourly rate of pay for your caregiver. Family members are allowed to be caregivers. The maximum number of hours allowable is 283 per month. Hours available are regulated by each county.

The program can provide:

• Domestic Services: Meal preparation, cleaning, laundry and taking out the garbage
  
  
• Personal Care Services/Non Medical Care: Bathing, feeding and toileting
  
  
• Transportation and accompaniment to medical appointments
  
  
• Protective Supervision: Safeguard from injury for persons with mental impairments
  
  
• Paramedical Tasks: Assistance with medications, bowel, bladder care, catheter insertion
  

Your social worker will evaluate your living situation using the criteria below:

• The client's physical/mental condition, living/social situation and ability to perform various functions of daily life.
  
  
• The client's statement of need.
  
  
• Medical records/physicians' statement of need.
  
  
• Other information the case manger may consider necessary and appropriate to assess the need.
  

Example:
A single person with a gross income of $1,070 (county always counts the gross amount, not the net) is $200 over the allowed income allowance of $850. This means the beneficiary needs to first pay out-of-pocket, $200, in the month medical expenses are incurred, before Medi-Cal kicks in. Same ruling applies to married couples whose net income is over the limit. This only happens in the month you use medical services.

Based on your individual situation, Senior Medi-Benefits can help you qualify or advise you how to do it yourself.

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