·State program
Florida Statewide Medicaid Managed Care - Participant Directed Option (PDO)
Florida's Participant Directed Option (PDO) within the Statewide Medicaid Managed Care Long-Term Care program allows enrollees to hire family members including spouses and legally responsible individuals as paid caregivers. Eight managed care plans offer PDOs, with each plan setting its own fee schedule. As of June 2020, approximately 7,841 participants used PDO out of roughly 51,848 HCBS enrollees. Florida also has CDC+ for developmental disabilities.
What it offers
Florida PDO provides participant-directed personal care through managed care. Participants can hire qualified people they choose, including family members, neighbors, or friends, as direct service workers. AHCA PDO materials do not publish one statewide hourly amount; direct service workers are paid by the health plan based on a set rate, and the participant/direct service worker agreement must include the hourly rate. No licensing is required for adult companion, homemaker, or personal care services. SMMC-LTC uses the SSI-related long-term care pathway: income up to 300% of the SSI Federal Benefit Rate ($2,982/month for an individual in 2026) and a $2,000 individual asset limit.
Questions that decide eligibility
GiveCare prepares the questions; the program makes the decision. Bring these to the call or the application:
- 01
Does the person receiving care live in Florida?
Residency is usually the first thing a program checks.
- 02
Does your relationship to the person — spouse, parent, child, sibling, grandparent, other relative, or non relative — count for this program?
- 03
What are the current income and asset limits, and whose income counts?
Our record lists gross monthly limit around $2,982 for a household of one or an asset limit around $2,000 — limits change, so confirm the current figures.
- 04
What counts as a qualifying disability or level of care need, and what documentation shows it?
- 05
Does the VA disability rating meet the program’s minimum (our record lists null%)?
- 06
Do the work hours meet the minimum (our record lists null hours)?
- 07
Is there a caregiver-specific department, coordinator, or support line? Ask for it by name.
Many agencies have one that isn’t advertised on the website.
- 08
What documents do you need from us to start an application?
- 09
Is there a waitlist right now, and how long is it?