Written by a parent, not a doctor. Nothing here is medical advice.

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Medicaid home-care programs (waivers)

Approved services at home, such as nursing or personal care, depending on the program and the child’s assessed needs.

What it is

Approved services at home, such as nursing or personal care, depending on the program and the child’s assessed needs.

The Children with Complex Health Needs waiver supports eligible children who need hospital- or nursing-facility-level care at home. A local Case Management Agency assesses needs and coordinates the eligibility review. Ordinary Medicaid nursing is a separate route, so a waiver review is not the only way to discuss help at home.

Eligibility rules
  • The Children with Complex Health Needs waiver serves medically fragile children ages 0 through 18 who meet hospital or nursing-facility level of care.
  • The local Case Management Agency assesses the child’s care needs; cancer alone does not establish waiver eligibility.
What you get
  • Approved home services for children who meet a program’s criteria.
Nursing and waiver care
  • Health First Colorado also covers eligible Private Duty Nursing and Home Health services across ages. EPSDT adds protections before age 21. A waiver assessment, approval of nursing and finding an available nurse are separate steps.
If you decide to apply
  1. Ask whether the discharge or home-care team should assess the actual tasks, their frequency and the skilled-care needs; your answers here cannot settle the care level.

Discharge planner or care manager

If care needs increase
  • The hospital social worker can help identify the local Case Management Agency and discuss an assessment. A county-specific contact should only be shown to families served by that agency.
Good to know

A note of the tasks you do at home and how long they take helps any assessment; it is not a requirement.

Questions before deciding
  • This waiver serves children from birth through age 18 who meet its hospital or nursing-facility level-of-care test. Parents’ income is not counted in the waiver income test; the child’s own countable income and resources are reviewed. The published 2026 screen is income below $2,982 a month and resources below $2,000. A local Case Management Agency assesses care needs and coordinates the financial review. Ask that agency about current openings, waiting-list procedures and the services in your child’s proposed plan; an assessment or referral does not reserve a place.

Related Colorado cards: Colorado’s waiver for a medically fragile child · Nursing at home, paid by the state.

Official sources
Ask your social worker

“If our child’s care at home becomes heavier, which Colorado program would you ask the care team to assess for, and what should we note down?”

Why I’m asking: We want to be ready if home care needs change.

More background and detailed requirements
Additional program information and published rules

Who does what

The three parts, side by side. The agency decides; nobody on this page does.

You

Register the child on the list, keep the task log, and answer the assessment call when it comes.

Your social worker

Names the waiver that takes medically fragile children in this state and helps with the registration form.

The care team

Documents the nursing-level tasks and the risk if care stops.

Who decides
The state waiver agency after a level-of-care assessment
Ask your social worker
“Which home-care program fits my child, and can we register today? Can Medicaid start home-nursing hours while we wait?”

How to apply

First step: Ask the discharge team which state home-care service or waiver fits your child's assessed needs, and how to apply.

  1. Register on the list this week.
  2. Ask the Medicaid plan for EPSDT nursing hours while you wait.
  3. Keep a two-week task log for the assessment.

Where it starts: State application or interest list. Assessment when a slot opens

What to gather

  • A two-week log of daily tasks: what, how often, how long
  • Doctor's letter naming nursing, equipment or safety needs
  • Medicaid ID if the child has one

How long: Application steps, assessment timing and waiting-list availability depend on the specific state program. Ask for its current process.

What a yes looks like

A service plan with approved hours and a case manager's name.

What a no looks like, and the next move

“Does not meet level of care” or “no slot”: ask for Medicaid's rule that a child under 21 gets what is medically needed nursing through the Medicaid plan instead, and stay on the list.

Watch out

  • If a suitable waiver has a waiting list, ask how and when to register and how priority is determined.
  • For a child already on Medicaid, Medicaid's rule that a child under 21 gets what is medically needed home nursing can start long before a waiver slot opens. Ask for both.
  • The assessment considers the child's actual care needs under the specific program's rules. No diagnosis or item of equipment guarantees approval.

The numbers and the rules

The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 7, 2026.

What it is worth

Nursing hours, respite, personal care, equipment, home changes and a case manager. The value is the approved hours.

Covers: Case management · Respite · Personal care · Nursing (some waivers) · Adaptive equipment · Home and vehicle modifications · Caregiver training

What it costs the family: Medicaid-delivered. Patient liability depends on the state.

The eligibility facts, as published

State specific
yes
Institutional level of care
yes
Target population
medically fragile or technology-dependent children in most states

Decisions this site cannot make: Level of care · Service-plan necessity · Financial eligibility (child-only in institutional-deeming waivers)

Expect friction on: Interest lists · Provider shortages · Reassessment

The trap: Ask which waiver, if any, serves your child's needs and whether it has a waiting list. Request covered Medicaid services separately while any waiver application is reviewed.

What changes by state: Which waiver takes medically fragile children, the list length (Texas runs years), and whether parents' income is ignored.

Where I read this

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