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MI Choice Medicaid Waiver Print E-mail

MI Choice (Medicaid Waiver)
MI Choice

Nursing homes used to be the only choice for older adults and people with disabilities who needed help caring for themselves. But today more 

options and financial assistance programs are available - often giving people the choice of staying at home or in a community setting.

For older adults and younger persons with disabilities (over age 18) who have limited financial resources and who medically qualify for nursing home admission, the MI Choice Waiver Program provides a wide range of home- and community-based, long-term care services. Using the
following services, a care plan can be designed to help disabled individuals remain living in their homes:

  • Homemaker services
  • Respite services
  • Adult day care
  • Environmental modifications
  • Transportation
  • Medical supplies and equipment not covered under the Medicaid State Plan
  • Chore services
  • Personal emergency response systems
  • Private duty nursing
  • Counseling
  • Home delivered meals
  • Training in a variety of independent living skills
  • Personal care

Eligiblity for MI Choice Program

To qualify for the program, you must:  

1.
a)  Be age 65+ and medically eligible for nursing home admission, OR
b)  Be age 18 or older with a disability and medically eligible for nursing home admission, OR
c)  Be a nursing home resident assessed as able to return home safely if supportive services are provided and financial guidelines are met.

2. Have a monthly income of $2,022 or less for an individual (Note: A spouse's income is not counted toward this monthly income limit).

3. Have individual assets limited to $2,000 (Note: If the disabled individual has a spouse, federal spousal impoverishment guidelines are used to allow the spouse to keep some cash assets). See spousal impoverishment link for more details.

Fees
Persons determined eligible for the MI Choice program are made aware of help which can be provided. Often the individual and/or family may need to supplement the amount of care on behalf of the disabled individual.

Applying for the MI Choice Program and MI Choice Provider Agencies

All persons referred to the MI Choice program receive a telephone interview to determine whether they are appropriate to receive a full, in-home assessment.  When it appears that the person might qualify for the program, a nurse and social worker visit the person's home for an in-depth assessment of their needs. The assessment evaluates:
physical and mental health, functional status, current formal and informal support being provided, home environment, financial resources, and third-party insurance coverage.  

If the individual is eligible based on the assessment, a care plan is developed and discussed with the individual and family members. Pending acceptance of this plan, services start in the home. Care is monitored regularly and plans may be changed as individual needs change.

Please note there may be a waiting list for enrollment into the MI Choice program and priority is given to persons currently residing in a nursing home who wish to return home. To inquire about the program, contact one of the following MI Choice provider agencies:

Detroit Area Agency on Aging
www.daaa1a.org
Mary O'Neil, Program Director
1333 Brewery Park Blvd., Suite 200
Detroit, Michigan 48207
(313) 446-4444
Fax: (313) 446-4445
Serves: Cities of Detroit, Hamtramck, Highland Park, Grosse Pointe Shores, Grosse Pointe Woods, Grosse Pointe Farms, Harper Woods

Area Agency on Aging 1B
www.aaa1b.com
Kathleen Kueppers, Program Director
29100 Northwestern Highway, Suite 400
Southfield, Michigan 48034
(248) 357-2255 | (800) 852-7795
Fax: (248) 948-9691
Serves: Counties of Livingston, Macomb, Monroe, Oakland, Washtenaw, St. Clair

The Senior Alliance
(The Area Agency on Aging 1-C) 
www.thesenioralliance.org
3850 Second Street, Suite 201
Wayne, Michigan 48184-1755
(734) 722-2830
(800) 815-1112 (SE Michigan only)
Fax: (734) 722-2836
Serves: 34 communities of Western and Southern Wayne County

Macomb-Oakland Regional Center, Inc.
www.morcinc.org
Marcia Marklin, Program Director
16200 Nineteen Mile Road
P. O. Box 380710
Clinton Township, Michigan 48038-0070
(586) 263-8953
(866) 807-6940
Serves: Counties of Macomb and Oakland

The Information Center, Inc.
www.theinfocenter.info/
Kelly Faber, Program Director
20500 Eureka Road, Suite 110
Taylor, Michigan 48180
(734) 282-7171