Waiver

MI Choice Waiver Program

Medicaid Assisted Living Payment Program

True Care Living is proud to be a participant in Michigan’s Medicaid Waiver Program to assist those who need an Assisted Living but cannot afford the cost of care.

Waiver Description

MI Choice, a Michigan Medicaid Waiver Program, is intended for seniors and disabled individuals who require levels of care similar to those of a nursing home but wish to remain living at home or in an Assisted Living such as an adult foster care home or a home for the aged (similar to assisted living).

This program helps to subsidize the individual’s income to help pay for the difference in the cost of care of an Assisted Living that provides services like:

• • 24-hour staffing
  • Meal service
  • Medication management
  • Activities
  • Housekeeping
  • Laundry services
  • Assistance with bathing, grooming, and dressing
  • Transfer assistance
  • Assistance with self toileting or incontinence
  • Dementia care

Eligibility Guidelines

General Requirements

In order to be eligible for the MI Choice Waiver, an individual must meet the following requirements:

• • Be a Michigan resident.
  • Be at least 65 years old (or 18-64 and disabled).
  • Qualify for a nursing home level of care such as requiring assistance with activities of daily living like medication management, bathing, dressing, toileting, transferring, dementia care etc.
  • Require two services provided by this waiver on a monthly basis. (See Benefits and Services below.)

In addition, persons must be financially qualified to receive assistance from the Choice Waiver.

Financial Requirements

Both an individual’s income and assets are considered.

Income Limits

As of 2024, a single individual is allowed up to $2,829 per month in income. Married couples, in which both spouses are applying for the MI Choice Waiver, are considered as single applicants. Therefore, each spouse is allowed up to $2,829 in monthly income. When only one spouse of a couple is applying for the waiver, only the monthly income of the applicant is considered. This means the non-applicant spouse is able to keep all of his / her monthly income.

However, sometimes the applicant spouse is the one who receives all of the household income, or nearly all of it. To prevent the non-applicant spouse from having insufficient income from which to support himself / herself, the applicant spouse can transfer income in his / her name to the non-applicant spouse. As of 2024, this monthly income allowance could be as much as $3,853.50 a month. If the spouse’s income is already at this amount, the monthly transfer is not permitted.

Asset Limits

In 2024, a single applicant can have up to $2,000 in countable resources. Couples, with both spouses as applicants, are able to retain as much as $3,000. (Unlike income, a married couple’s assets are considered jointly owned. Learn more here.)

When only one spouse of a married couple is applying, the non-applicant spouse can keep 50% of the couple’s assets, up to $154,140 (as of 2024). If the couple’s assets are under $30,828, the non applicant spouse can keep all of the assets, up to this amount. This is in addition to the $2,000 in assets the applicant spouse is able to keep.

Defining Countable Resources
“Countable resources,” “countable assets,” and “non-exempt assets” all refer to the resources that Medicaid considers when determining one’s eligibility. (Basically, all of the terms are used interchangeably.) However, there are several resources that are considered exempt when it comes to Medicaid eligibility.

For example, owner-occupied homes are exempt. This means the real estate value is not included, provided the equity value of the home does not exceed $713,000 (in 2024). If the applicant is married and his/her spouse lives in the home, it is also considered exempt, even if the applicant does not live in it. Primary vehicles, burial plots, and irrevocable funeral trusts are also exempt.

Over the Financial Limits?

Persons who are over the income and / or asset limits still might gain eligibility for the MI Choice Waiver by working with a financial professional to help them restructure their income and assets in order to meet the limits. There are techniques that can be utilized in order to gain eligibility, while still preserving a family’s resources for future generations. If you believe you are over the limits, consider seeking Medicaid planning assistance in order to increase your chances of qualifying for assistance. Learn more.

Warning

Medicaid has a 60-month look-back period in which all transfers within this time frame are scrutinized. Assets are not allowed to be gifted in order to meet financial requirements, otherwise the individual will be penalized with a period of Medicaid ineligibility.

How to Apply / Learn More

The MI Choice Waiver program is overseen statewide by Michigan’s Department of Health and Human Services and is administered by local Waiver Agencies. There is room in this program to accommodate approximately 18,000 participants however there is a waiting list to receive services via this waiver. Only a small fraction of Assisted Living Homes are contracted with the Waiver program and lesser still are willing to admit seniors on waiver program so placements are limited to Assisted Living homes that are contracted and accepting Waiver recipients. New applicants can expect an approximately 4- to 6-month waiting list to begin services.

Priority enrollment:

• • Seniors who are currently in a Nursing Home can apply for Assisted Living  Waiver Program or Medicaid Assisted Living Payment Program and their application will be expedited.
  • Seniors with open case with APS, Adult Protective Services, can themselves or have a concerned family member request that their APS Worker apply for the MI Choice Waiver Program their application will be prioritized on the wait list. Adult Protective Services provides services for vulnerable adults in need of resources or assistance to safe guard their wellbeing and can often help with placement of Seniors who are in need of care click on this link to learn more Webpage.

To apply for the program, one should contact their local MI Choice Waiver Agency. A list of Waiver Agencies by region can be found here.

Some limited information about this program is available on the Michigan Department of Health & Human Services webpage.

How to Apply

 

Contact Carewell Services and ask to apply for MI Choice Waiver Program

 

• • (269) 441-0930 (Info & Assistance)
  • 1(800) 626-6719 (Toll Free)
  • (269) 966-2450 (Office)
  • info@carewellservices.org

or Contact Milestone Senior Services and ask to apply for MI Choice Waiver Program

Phone: 269-382-0515
Toll Free: 800-711-2113
Email: info@milestoneseniorservices.org