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

Childhood Cancer Lantern
Search Saved

Oklahoma program

Pay for a family caregiver through a home-care agency

A qualifying family member can be employed by a home-care agency to care for a child on SoonerCare.

What it is

A qualifying family member can be employed by a home-care agency to care for a child on SoonerCare.

This benefit may help a family member provide care at home. It starts with approved private duty nursing and an agency willing to employ and train the caregiver. A cancer diagnosis alone does not establish eligibility.

Eligibility rules
  • Your child must be under 21, have SoonerCare and have approved private duty nursing.
  • The caregiver must meet agency employment, training and provider requirements.
  • The benefit took effect March 1, 2026.
What you get
  • Up to 40 paid hours a week for a qualifying family caregiver.
  • Employment through a home-care agency.
What this covers
  • The agency employs the family member. The plan or state approves the underlying nursing services.
If you decide to apply
  1. Ask the social worker which nursing agencies offer Paid Family Caregiver employment.
  2. If agency employment fits and you decide to pursue it, the agency can explain the nursing schedule, training and hiring paperwork.

Your child’s nursing agency · Official page ↗

What happens next
  • The agency can explain which family members it can hire and what the work involves.
  • The approved nursing schedule sets the context for any caregiver hours.
Good to know

Caregiver hours replace part of the approved nursing-hour allocation; they do not add 40 extra hours and do not mean a nurse must be present throughout the caregiver’s shift.

Other details
  • This is different from ordinary State Plan Personal Care, which does not pay a parent.
  • An eligible adult relative or equivalent close-family caregiver must meet agency employment and screening rules and complete the required 80-hour training and competency evaluation, with child-specific training as needed. The agency explains wages, payroll and supervision. Caregiver and nursing services share the approved hour limit; for example, 112 approved hours could be 40 caregiver hours plus 72 nursing hours.
  • The agency and each benefit office can explain how caregiver wages affect other benefits. Existing-job pay, leave pay and unemployment have separate rules; there is no general promise that all can be received together.
Official sources
Ask your social worker

“If our child has approved nursing hours, could a family member be hired for some of the care? What are the benefits and responsibilities, and could you help us explore an agency?”

Why I’m asking: I want to know whether the care our family provides could qualify for paid agency work.

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

Ask the agency about the benefit and complete its training and paperwork.

Your social worker

The social worker can name the agencies that do this.

The care team

Records and letters when the application asks for them.

Who decides
The home-care agency employs the caregiver; the plan or the state authorizes the underlying nursing hours.
Ask your social worker
“Now that nursing hours are approved, which agencies here employ a family member under the Paid Family Caregiver benefit?”

How to apply

First step: Once nursing hours are approved, ask the agency whether it employs family caregivers under this benefit.

  1. Once nursing hours are approved, ask the agency whether it employs family caregivers under this benefit.
  2. Ask what training the agency requires and how long it takes.

Where it starts: Ask the nursing agency whether it employs family caregivers under the Paid Family Caregiver benefit.

What to gather

  • The nursing authorization
  • The agency's training requirements

How long: Depends on the agency's hiring and training.

What a yes looks like

The family member is hired by the agency and paid for authorized hours.

What a no looks like, and the next move

No nursing authorization yet, or the agency does not run the benefit. Ask another agency.

Watch out

  • Caregiver and nursing hours share one approved allocation; 112 hours could mean 40 caregiver and 72 nursing hours.
  • It only exists where nursing hours have already been approved.
  • The caregiver must be employed by an agency and meet its training requirements.

Dates that change this

2026-03-01: The contract appendix adds the Paid Family Caregiver benefit for qualifying members under 21 with approved private duty nursing on or after March 1, 2026.

The numbers and the rules

The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 11, 2026.

What it is worth

Up to 40 hours a week paid to a qualifying family caregiver employed by a home-care agency, within the approved nursing-hour allocation.

  • $40/week — Weekly maximum, within the approved nursing-hour allocation

Covers: Paid caregiving hours delivered by a family member through a home-care agency

What it costs the family: None. The agency employs and pays the caregiver.

The eligibility facts, as published

Age
under 21
Coverage
SoonerCare with approved private duty nursing
Caregiver
Eligible adult relative or equivalent close-family caregiver; agency employment, screening, 80-hour training and competency evaluation, plus child-specific training as needed.
Hours
up to 40 a week, within the approved nursing-hour allocation
Effective
2026-03-01

The trap: Caregiver hours replace part of the approved nursing allocation, not add 40 hours or require a nurse throughout the caregiver shift. The caregiver must meet agency hiring, 80-hour training and competency requirements. Ordinary personal care does not pay a legally responsible parent.

Where I read this

← Back to your options