skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Saturday, October 5, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The Bureau of Land Management updates a proposed Western Solar Plan to the delight of wildlife advocates, grant funding helps New York schools take part in National Farm to School Month, and children's advocates observe "TEN-4 Day" to raise awareness of child abuse.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Biden voices concerns over Israeli strikes on Iran, Special Counsel Jack Smith details Trump's pre-January 6 pressure on Pence, Indiana's voter registration draws scrutiny, and a poll shows politics too hot to talk about for half of Wisconsinites.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Cheap milk comes at a cost for residents of Washington's Lower Yakima Valley, Indigenous language learning is promoted in Wisconsin as experts warn half the world's languages face extinction, and Montana's public lands are going to the dogs!

Medicaid waiver programs cover in-home care costs for eligible Nebraskans

play audio
Play

Friday, January 19, 2024   

Many Nebraskans age 65 and older with health limitations, as well as younger people living with a disability, want to remain in their own homes.

Medicaid's Home and Community Based Services Waiver programs can make it possible.

Stephanie Hoyt, who supervises the Medicaid Aged and Disabled Waiver program at the Eastern Nebraska Office on Aging, said it waives the fees for in-home support. Medicaid-eligible Nebraskans ages 18 to 64 with a disability, and those over 65 who require nursing home-level care, are eligible based on certain qualifications.

"It's a combination of personal care assistance, cognition, risk factors, and medical," Hoyt outlined. "Those are the four different areas that make up needing nursing facility-level care."

Hoyt pointed out the services used most often include a medical alert system and basic personal care assistance, such as help with bathing, dressing, eating and mobility. Some people can receive cleaning, laundry, shopping and meal prep assistance. Applications are made with the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, and the state's Area Agencies on Aging administer the program.

Medicaid waivers are also available for developmental disability and traumatic brain injury. Hoyt explained someone whose spouse or other family member provides support can still qualify for the waiver program.

"If the spouse is there and able to do it, but also wants to be able to go and have lunch with friends one day, or to be able to go to their doctor's appointments, then there's still a need because one person can't do everything for another person," Hoyt observed. "They still have to be able to take care of themselves, or they're no longer support."

She pointed out married couples may have to go through a spousal impoverishment process in order for the spouse needing care to qualify for Medicaid.

Hoyt added some non-spouse family members even qualify to receive pay for their caregiving.

"Sometimes they'll quit their work and get approved as an Aged and Disabled Waiver Provider," Hoyt noted. "Then they get paid to provide a certain amount of hours to supplement some of that income if they've had to leave work."

Medicaid waivers can also help people with the cost of assisted living once they qualify for Medicaid if the facility accepts the waiver. Hoyt said sometimes people improve enough while in a long-term care facility to move back home with Medicaid Waiver services.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
To date, the Bureau of Land Management has permitted clean-energy projects on public lands adding 29 gigawatts of electricity, or enough to power more than 12 million homes, according to the agency. (Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

A new federal proposal details which public lands across the West would be open to solar development. Wildlife advocates are glad to see that some - …


Environment

play sound

October is National Farm to School Month, and New York schools are using grant funding to participate. School districts statewide have received …

Social Issues

play sound

As Florida recovers from Hurricane Helene, the state's network of Community Health Centers continues to provide crucial care statewide. Community …


Helene ranks among the nation's deadliest hurricanes, as the death toll surpasses 200. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

A week after Hurricane Helene wreaked havoc across the Southeast, the North Carolina town of Boone is facing an uphill battle. With many roads still …

Social Issues

play sound

The most recent census figures show a significant drop in poverty in the Richmond metro area - and are being met with skepticism. The American …

In 2020, 36% of Wisconsin voters told the Marquette Law School Poll that political disagreements negatively affected personal interactions with another voter. That number jumped to 46% in the current election cycle. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

A new poll out this week shows nearly half of Wisconsin voters stopped talking about politics with someone because of disagreements over the president…

play sound

Experts say a diverse workforce is crucial for creativity and social justice, and equally good for a company's bottom line. But reluctance to hire …

Social Issues

play sound

By Marilyn Odendahl for The Indiana Citizen.Broadcast version by Joe Ulery for Indiana News Service reporting for the Indiana Citizen-Free Press India…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021