·State program
Michigan Home Help Program
The Michigan Home Help Program is a Medicaid State Plan personal care program that provides in-home assistance to eligible individuals who need hands-on help with activities of daily living or instrumental activities of daily living. The program allows beneficiaries to choose individual caregivers, including some family members, but MDHHS policy excludes a spouse caring for a spouse and a parent caring for a minor child.
What it offers
Provides Medicaid-funded personal care services in the home. MDHHS Home Help policy says the client chooses the caregiver and is the employer; individual caregivers provide personal care services to a Home Help beneficiary and submit to Michigan Medicaid to be paid. MDHHS policy excludes responsible relatives, including a spouse caring for a spouse and a parent caring for a minor child. Effective January 1, 2026, individual caregivers are paid $17.13/hour ($13.73 state minimum wage plus $3.40 direct care worker wage increase). Hours are authorized based on individual assessment of care needs.
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 Michigan?
Residency is usually the first thing a program checks.
- 02
What counts as a qualifying disability or level of care need, and what documentation shows it?
- 03
Does the VA disability rating meet the program’s minimum (our record lists null%)?
- 04
Which citizenship or immigration statuses does the program accept, and which documents show it?
- 05
Do the work hours meet the minimum (our record lists null hours)?
- 06
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.
- 07
What documents do you need from us to start an application?
- 08
Is there a waitlist right now, and how long is it?