Applicants must meet the following 5 criteria for qualification:

1. The person must be a resident of the state of Indiana.

2. The person must reside in a community setting (i.e., assisted living residence, adult foster care home, home of a family member, or one’s own home) instead of in a nursing home.

3. The person must be assessed and found to require at least the level of care provided in nursing homes, also known as nursing facility level of care. Nursing facility level of care can be met in several different ways:

• Requiring assistance with 3 or more activities of daily living, such as personal hygiene, bathing, and ambulation.

• Having an unstable and complex medical condition, which requires direct assistance from others to manage the following symptoms: comatose condition, management of severe pain, or decubitus ulcers.

• Needing direct assistance from others for medical equipment, such as suctioning, tube feeding, or ventilator.

• Needing direct assistance from others for special routines or prescribed treatments, such as acute rehabilitation or the administration of continuous oxygen. 

• Needing regular medical observation and physician assessment due to a changing and unstable physical condition.

4. The applicant's income must fall within the financial guidelines for Indiana Medicaid long-term care.

5. The applicant's countable resources must fall within current state guidelines. As of 2023, a single applicant’s countable assets must not exceed $2,000 in value. However, some assets are exempt from being factored into the $2000 limit. Exempt assets include equity in one's primary home up to $595,000, one's primary vehicle, home furnishings, and personal items.

To apply for waiver services, contact your local Area Agency on Aging. Area Agencies on Aging are currently the only entities authorized to perform initial assessments of new waiver applicants. You can find contact information for your local Area Agency on Aging here: Indiana Area Agencies on Aging