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I’ve heard Medicare will pay 35 hours a week for home care. I still work and she cannot function alone mentally or physically. Does anyone know how to file for assistance?

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Services covered by Medicare or do you mean Medicaid have to be prescribed by her doctor who will give you names of providers.
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I doubt that either Medicare or Medicaid will ever pay for an outside 1-on-1 caregiver for 35 hrs a week. Unless she lives in an extremely high cost-of-living area like NYC.

I’d suggest that you read up on what Medicare and Medicaid are & more importantly are not. This site has several really good articles on this.

You mention that you are both in AL. So your working at an outside job but live with your mom in an Assisted Living apartment, is that correct?
If so, just what is the AL providing for her care?
Adding an outside caregiver into an existing AL situation doesn’t make sense to me. What kind of AL is this that allows an able working family member to live with a parent who gets AL care & services? 
How is the AL being paid?

You know to get any type of care, your mom will have some sort of in person needs assessment done by a medical team. It’s not just you file an application online and she gets a caregiver. The assessment is usually done by Geriatric specialist RN and SW duo. If your mom needs 24/7 nursing oversight, then they are going to report she needs to be in a NH for skilled nursing care. If it’s determined she needs 18hrs a week care, then that’s what will be provided by whatever program she is eligible for financially.
BUT if she is already living in AL, why isn’t her care needs being provided by the AL? Or provided for between the AL and yourself? 
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Iggie; I think that they are in Alabama. Not assisted living.
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I would contact your county's Area Agency on Aging (it might have a slightly different name). That should help get you started to see what is available for your mom. Good luck!
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My mom's numerologist suggested and ordered some home health saying her Medicare supplement will pay for up to 20 home health. I thought, "wow, that would be nice, I can get a little break" but when I checked on what it actually covered, it was only specific things and no daily living tasks. They would send someone to bathe her...it would not be a break...I would have to be there. Not sure if that is what you are referring to, just my experience.
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I hate autocorrect...it thinks it is smarter than me...mom does not have a numerologist she does have a neurologist 😂😂😂
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need to get medicaid then you can get other service also take care if go to nursing home to
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Also if you use Medicaid for help, the state would require a pay back if your mother owns any property. That's one reason I homecared my mother for 8 yrs with dementia.
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Toula there are abbreviations used on this forum and AL stands for assisted living. In order to gain a more useful perspective, you should clarify you live in Alabama or Assisted Living.
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Alabama? MEDICAID. Let's hope your beknighted state still has MEDICAID. Medicare pays for hospitalization, doctors visits, prescriptions, etc.  MedicAID is what you need.   Get a clue, dear, and see if there is Medicaid, for when your mother needs long-term care.
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DK, do contact your Area Agency on Aging. They will have the information you need. Contrary to what others on here say, I think Medicare does pay for some in-home care; it may not pay for your mom, however.
Medicare in Indiana paid for hospice care for my father-in-law for many months; but it was only for 2 or 3 visits a week to bathe him and for a nurse about once a week to see if he needed anything medically.

MedicAID is different. It's for people who are broke financially. You could call your County Welfare Dept., or Department of Family Services to see if your mom qualifies.
It will be a difficult time for you both, so don't hesitate to ask for help.
Sorry that there was a misunderstanding about what AL meant--it is commonly used here to mean assisted living, which may be what your mom needs.
Also, some places have adult day-care where you might be able to take her while you're at work. Perhaps check with your Area Agency on Aging or call local nursing homes or assisted living places to see if they offer it.
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Lassie,
Having a bad day? No need to be snippy. "Beknighted?" Personally, I'd choose to live in Alabama over at least 13 other states I can easily name.
Get a clue yourself, dear.
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DKuser, this is what Medicare will pay for regarding in-home services.
www.medicare.gov/coverage/home-health-services.html To get the services listed, your Mom's primary doctor would need to write a script. Services are limited to a certain number of days, then they stop.

As for Medicaid [which is different from Medicare], it is less expensive for Medicaid to place a love one in a skilled nursing facility where they would get 24 hour care. Room, board, and care are paid for by Medicaid. Now if Mom owns a house, and there is equity on the house, then Medicaid could place a lien on the house so that they can get some type of reimbursement for Mom care. Note that Medicaid is funded by the taxpayers.
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Commuter....I think you're mixing me up with someone else's comment....I never said anything about AL...
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Contact your town's Council on Aging.
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Grammyteacher - hahahahaha!! That foolish auto-correct, it is one of those things that you have to both love AND hate! I usually refer to it as the auto-mangler. When reading the comments, I noticed 'numerologist' in your comment right away and was thinking hmmm, do THEY have capabilities like doctors? I don't think so... Then your second message popped up.

For everyone who is not aware of this:
If you hit 'Post Answer' and see a mistake like this (have had it happen to me!), there is an EDIT capability. I don't recall if it shows up at the top or the bottom, but it was on the right side for my comment. Once you correct the oops, there is a post edit button. It does appear that perhaps this functionality is only available for a while, as I checked one of my comments in another thread and the edit doesn't show up now.

HAH! now that I posted, there it is - upper right corner, a little pencil image and 'Edit', while below the comment is now a white 'Cancel' button (in case you decide not to edit!) and a blue 'Apply Edits'!!
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DKuser - when we had our mother assessed, the nurse indicated that had mom agreed to "personal care", such as assistance with bathing, etc, then Medicare would pay for some services (like their aides.) We never got farther into this discussion because she refused and help. It would be best to contact Medicare (or look up on the Medicare website), but other agencies suggested by others here can probably provide this information as well. I believe that the number of hours were limited and am not sure that this would go on. There are other ways to get assistance - if she has very low income via SS, there is Supplemental income that she might qualify for, which could help offset hiring help or finding a "day care" for her. Medicaid could also be an option based on income as well.

You should check the day cares out - just like any AL/MC/NH, they are not all alike. Some are great, some are okay and some are not a place you want your LO. You would also want to ensure that she is in a place with others who are at or above her level (there will likely be those who are less capable or mentally aware, but if the ratio seems good, and the facility clean, care-givers attending appropriately, then go for it. Socializing with others is a good thing for people with dementia!) Although a place our mom picked for dad was quite nice, the level of the clients was way too far gone for him - he hated the place and would not go!
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I suggest contacting an Elder Care attorney. They know all the laws and the best course of action for you to take. An attorney was a Godsend for me. They are more affordable than you would think. I would contact one and find out up front what sort of fees and arrangements to make for his/her assistance. Like me, you might be surprised at how affordable and how much help and advice they give.
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Barb - rotflmao! Thanks.
Could be AL in AL..... not likely, but that would be a new one!

So DK, your in state of AL, right? I really do not see any fed or state program paying for 35 hours of in home 1-on-1 care as it’s just not cost effective unless it’s an exceptional very high cost of living situation like NYC is. Medicaid in southern states reimburse NH 5k-6k per month for 24/7 NH care, roughly $7.50 - $9 hr paid for a resident to live 24/7 in a fully staffed skilled nursing facility. Based on what folks have posted on this site, for states with some sort of IHHS (In Home Health Support/Services), average is 18/20 to 22/24 hrs at most. If they need more than that, they or their family need to hire caregivers on their own.

Mom may be able to get Medicare’s at home hospice benefit. I’d suggest you speak with her MD as to writing orders for a hospice consult. Hospice, if she’s qualified medically, can be set up in home within a couple of days. Usually it’s 2-4 times a week for 3-4 hrs blocks. Hospice can order in all sorts of equipment as well, like pneumatic mattress and specialty bed.
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Wish I could get a numerologist to come out and help me pay the rent!
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