Indiana is an example of a state that, on the one hand, offers a leaner set of of Medicaid waiver programs for helping elderly and disabled residents continue to live independently; and on the other hand, that supplements those programs with a state-directed fund. This week, we’ll look at…

There’s a saying, first used by farm seed companies and now popular on T-shirts and bumper stickers throughout the region, that “Life is best in the Midwest.” This month, we’re looking at two midwestern states, both of which offer…

Once a month, we highlight the programs that two states offer to help their elderly and disabled residents continue to live independently. But occasionally, a single state offers such a profusion of services that it deserves its own post. Kentucky is one of these states.

Through its Cabinet for Health and Family Services Division of Community Alternatives, the Bluegrass State offers an unusually well-defined suite of Medicaid waiver programs and state-run services that can help seniors and disabled people maintain independence through case management, home modifications, help with transitioning from an institutional setting to community living, and technological assistance.

Maine and Louisiana are pretty far apart in distance (1,563 miles), climate (Maine’s monthly average high temperature never climbs above 80°F, while its monthly low gets as low as 11°F; Louisiana’s average highs can pass 90°F, while its lows rarely go below freezing), and culture (in the north, lobster and ocean and snowy woods; in the south, crawfish and Cajun and piney woods with swamps). But the two states have surprisingly similar offerings…

As 2021 begins, Americans are glimpsing the possible “beginning of the end” of the almost year-long coronavirus pandemic with the deployment of multiple vaccines against the disease and important breakthroughs in treatment. Pandemic-weary Americans look forward to that change. In addition, other changes may be ahead with the seating of a new president, whose party will control both houses of Congress. This could result in changes to programs that help aging and disabled people continue to live independently in their homes, and if it does, we will let you know.

For now, though, most states are….

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah — Utah-based Evolve Emod, LLC, is ending the year as it started: inking new agreements that will expand the company’s national network and help people use government benefits programs to make the home modifications that will allow them to continue to live independently.

Evolve’s newest contract is with Humana in Illinois and will cover home modifications for the state’s dual-eligibility population (those who are enrolled in both Medicare and Medicaid). The contract operates…

It’s famine to feast, relatively speaking, for this month’s look at ways seniors in various states can get help paying for home modifications. Last month’s states, Mississippi and Missouri, had relatively sparse offerings currently available. This month, one of our profiled states, Minnesota, offers numerous pathways for seniors and disabled people to get the help they need. If one program doesn’t work for a Minnesota resident, another might! In addition…

It’s easy, and certainly tempting, to see the relatively meager—but identically named—programs offered in this month’s look at U.S. home modifications programs and feel frustrated that there’s so little help in the face of so much need.

But this is November, the month of gratitude. So, in honor of Thanksgiving, we’ll say instead that we’re grateful that these states offer some home modification benefits to their residents.

We’re about halfway through our survey of how each state in the nation helps its residents “age in place,” and we’ve noticed a few things—perhaps you have, as well.

First, and most obviously, the level of assistance available varies widely from state to state: some states (particularly those that have not adopted full Medicaid expansion) have fairly basic programs or rely mostly on federal and community-based supports, while others have a robust suite of programs covering pretty much every need an aging resident may have.

New Hampshire and Nevada are located almost as far apart as two states can get in the continental United States—and yet their programs aimed at helping people maintain independent living have some striking similarities.

Both states have fairly simple, straightforward approaches to offering home modifications. Neither uses regular Medicare or Medicaid programs for this, but…

Even as this blog works its way through benefits programs in all 50 U.S. states, we still won’t cover the whole country—until this week, that is, when we’re taking a look at help available for America’s indigenous people.

Of course, there’s no way to cover all of that in one blog post—or even in one hundred! The United States government officially recognizes 567 tribes and tribal nations, with members speaking more than 260 languages. There are some commonalities across…

Sometimes, even when a program seems straightforward, it’s nice to have help navigating its possibilities. The two states profiled in this month’s look at programs that help residents live independently and stay in their homes illustrate that principle in different ways.

Take New Jersey. The state has a fairly straightforward Medicaid program that provides home modifications benefits, but there also are several other programs in the Garden State that might help with…

The two states profiled in this month’s look at the ways states help residents live independently are a perfect illustration of why our members need Evolve’s services. These two states’ offerings are so diverse, both in scope and approach, that people living in each place may…

The state’s profiled in this month’s look at programs to help people age in place are a perfect illustration of why our members may need Evolve’s services. These two states’ offerings are so different, both in scope and approach, that elderly people living in each place may have completely different experiences as they work to maintain their independence and continue living at home.

We understand that at Evolve, and we’re ready to help…

When you need to modify your home to accommodate “aging in place,” it’s obviously important to know exactly what kind of help your state can give you. Evolve, and often local case managers and Medicaid benefits administrators, can help you with that—as well as this monthly series, which highlights the different programs offered under the umbrella of aging services in each state.

In some states, it’s difficult to find, much less quality for, government programs that will help pay for home modifications, assistive technology, and other adaptations to help people age in place.

And in others, like this week’s featured states, there are an abundance of programs, ranging from the standard Medicaid waivers to alternative state programs and even, in one case, a foundation offering low- to no-interest loans and grants.

Through Medicaid, the U.S. government aims in part to help people “age in place” across the nation. However, the fact that Medicaid is administered differently in each state — including “Medicaid waiver” programs that may involve private companies — means that benefits vary enormously…