The Benefits of California’s IHSS Program

For you, taking care of your disabled child is a full-time job. Receiving help from friends and family members can only go so far, and relying on them all hours, day and night, makes you feel guilty or that you are taking them for granted.

There is no doubt you love your child, but you need continued help for the foreseeable future. Who else can you reach out to for support?

IHSS eligibility

Your child may qualify for California’s In-home Support Services (IHSS) Program. The program helps to pay for services so your child can remain in your home. Eligibility requirements include:

• California resident
• Medi-Cal eligible
• Live at home
• Submit Health Care Certification form

If your child receives Supplemental Security Income, he or she is automatically eligible. If IHSS pays you to be a provider and your child receives SSI, the payments will not affect it.

Your child may also be suitable for IHSS if you:

• Work out of the house working or are going to school
• Cannot provide care because of disability or illness
• Caring for other family members

Provided services

IHSS provides several services like:

• Housecleaning
• Grocery shopping
• Personal care, i.e., bathing and grooming
• Protective supervision, not to include routine child care
• Accompaniment to doctor’s appointments
• Paramedical services that can include injections, catheters and tube feeding

If you have a spouse, one of you may provide in-home support services and get paid for this if the other spouse works out of the home or is in school. This also pertains to a spouse who is physically or mentally unable to offer services.