MI Choice Waiver in Michigan: Eligibility, Services and How to Apply

The MI Choice Waiver is a Michigan Medicaid program that pays for in-home and community services for adults who qualify for nursing-home level care but want to stay home. It covers personal care, respite, adult day services, home modifications, and more, and it lets participants hire family members as paid caregivers. You apply through your regional waiver agency.

On this page

1. What is the MI Choice Waiver?
2. Who qualifies for the MI Choice Waiver?
3. What services does MI Choice cover?
4. Is there a waiting list for MI Choice?
5. How to apply for the MI Choice Waiver
6. Can I be paid through MI Choice to care for a loved one?
7. Home Help vs MI Choice: what is the difference?
8. MI Choice support across Michigan
9. Frequently asked questions

What is the MI Choice Waiver?

MI Choice is Michigan’s Medicaid waiver for home and community-based services. The word waiver means the federal government has allowed Michigan to use Medicaid money that would normally pay for a nursing home to pay for care in a person’s own home or community instead.

The program is overseen by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) and delivered by regional waiver agencies across the state. In most areas the waiver agency is the local Area Agency on Aging, though some regions use other nonprofit or health system agents.

Each participant is assigned a care team, usually a registered nurse and a social worker, who assess needs, write a person-centered service plan, and arrange the services. The team checks in regularly and adjusts the plan as needs change.

MI Choice is often confused with the Home Help program. Both are Michigan Medicaid programs that pay for care at home, but they serve different levels of need and are applied for through different offices. The comparison later on this page explains the differences.

Who qualifies for the MI Choice Waiver?

There are three tests: age, functional need, and finances. You must meet all three.

Age and residency

• Age 18 or older
• A Michigan resident
• Either 65 or older, or age 18 to 64 with a disability

Functional need: nursing facility level of care

The applicant must need the kind of care that would otherwise be provided in a nursing home. The waiver agency uses a standard MDHHS assessment tool to decide this. Common ways to meet it include:

• Needing hands-on help with several activities of daily living, such as bathing, dressing, toileting, eating, or transferring
• Needing daily supervision because of dementia, memory loss, or a cognitive condition that creates safety risks
• Needing skilled nursing tasks, such as wound care or tube feeding, on a regular basis
• A recent hospital or nursing facility stay with ongoing needs at discharge

The level-of-care bar is higher than Home Help’s. A person who needs help only with bathing a few times a week would qualify for Home Help but probably not MI Choice.

Financial eligibility

MI Choice uses the Medicaid long-term care financial rules rather than the standard Medicaid rules. As of 2026 the key limits are:

• Income: monthly income up to 300 percent of the federal SSI benefit rate, which MDHHS updates each January. Applicants over this amount may still qualify by directing excess income into a qualified income trust, sometimes called a Miller trust.
• Assets: countable assets of no more than about $2,000 for a single applicant. The home, one vehicle, personal belongings, and certain burial funds are usually not counted.
• Married applicants: spousal impoverishment rules let the spouse who stays at home keep a protected share of income and assets.

Because these rules are complex, do not assume you are over the limit. Our Medicaid eligibility check gives a quick read, and our post on Michigan Medicaid income and asset limits for home care explains what counts and what does not.

What services does MI Choice cover?

The waiver pays for a menu of services chosen to keep the participant safely at home. The care team selects from the list based on the person-centered plan. Covered services include:

• Personal care and homemaker services: help with bathing, dressing, meals, laundry, and housekeeping
• Respite care: a substitute caregiver so the family caregiver can rest, in the home or in a facility
• Adult day services: supervised daytime programs with meals and activities
• Home-delivered meals
• Personal emergency response systems: a wearable button to call for help
• Environmental modifications: ramps, grab bars, walk-in showers, stair lifts, and doorway widening
• Specialized medical equipment and supplies not covered by regular Medicaid
• Non-medical transportation to appointments, shopping, and community activities
• Private duty nursing for people with skilled needs
• Chore services: heavy cleaning, snow removal, and similar tasks
• Community living supports and counseling
• Community transition services: help with deposits, furnishings, and setup when leaving a nursing facility

Participants also keep their regular Medicaid coverage for doctor visits, hospital care, and prescriptions. Families that mainly need respite care or home modifications often find MI Choice is the only Medicaid program that covers them.

Is there a waiting list for MI Choice?

Sometimes. MI Choice has a limited number of funded slots in each region, set by the state budget. When a waiver agency’s slots are full, new applicants who qualify are placed on a waiting list and served as openings appear.

How long you wait depends on your region and your priority level. Agencies give priority to people leaving a nursing facility, people at immediate risk of placement, and adult protective services cases. Others may wait longer. Some regions have no wait at all.

Three practical points for families:

• Apply even if you expect a wait. Your place is set by application date, and needs can change quickly.
• Ask the waiver agency what the current wait looks like in your county. They will tell you.
• Use Home Help while you wait. The Michigan Home Help program has no waiting list and can pay a family caregiver for personal care right away.

How to apply for the MI Choice Waiver

Unlike Home Help, you do not apply at the county MDHHS office. MI Choice applications go through the waiver agency for your region.

1. Find your regional waiver agency. Call the Area Agency on Aging for your county or the statewide aging and disability resource line and ask for MI Choice intake. In Detroit that is the Detroit Area Agency on Aging; western Wayne County is served by The Senior Alliance; Oakland, Macomb, and Washtenaw counties by AgeWays; Genesee County by the Valley Area Agency on Aging; Ingham County by the Tri-County Office on Aging; and Kent County by the Area Agency on Aging of Western Michigan.
2. Complete a phone screening. An intake worker asks about daily needs, health conditions, living situation, income, and assets. The screening decides whether a full assessment is scheduled.
3. Apply for Medicaid if needed. If the applicant does not already have Medicaid, apply through MI Bridges. The waiver agency can tell you which Medicaid category to request and what documents to gather.
4. Complete the in-home assessment. A nurse and social worker visit the home to confirm nursing facility level of care and build the person-centered service plan. Have medication lists, diagnoses, and recent hospital records ready.
5. Enroll or join the waiting list. If a slot is open, services begin once the plan is approved. If not, you are placed on the list and can start Home Help in the meantime.
6. Choose your caregivers. Decide whether you want agency staff, your own hired workers through self-determination, or a mix. Supportive Solutions Homecare can serve as your agency provider and help enroll family caregivers.

For a deeper walkthrough, including documents to prepare and what the assessment looks for, read our MI Choice Waiver guide.

Can I be paid through MI Choice to care for a loved one?

Yes. MI Choice includes a self-determination option that lets the participant, or their representative, hire and direct their own caregivers instead of using agency staff. Adult children, other relatives, and friends are commonly hired this way.

Under self-determination, the participant has an individual budget based on the service plan. A fiscal intermediary handles payroll, taxes, and background checks, and the caregiver is paid for the hours in the plan. The care team still monitors quality and adjusts the plan.

Whether a spouse or legal guardian can be paid depends on the waiver agency’s policy and the person-centered plan, so ask directly during intake. This is one area where MI Choice can be more flexible than Home Help, which does not pay spouses.

If you want to be the paid caregiver, see our page on how to get paid to care for a family member in Michigan, or begin enrollment at become a paid caregiver.

Home Help vs MI Choice: what is the difference?

Both programs pay for care at home through Michigan Medicaid. The differences come down to level of need, breadth of services, and where you apply.

Feature	Home Help	MI Choice Waiver
Program type	Medicaid state plan benefit	Medicaid home and community-based waiver
Where to apply	County MDHHS office, Adult Services	Regional waiver agency or Area Agency on Aging
Minimum need	Hands-on help with one ADL	Nursing facility level of care
Age	Any age	18 and older
Financial rules	Standard Medicaid eligibility	Long-term care Medicaid limits, with spousal protections
Waiting list	No	Possible, by region
Services	Personal care and household tasks	Personal care plus respite, adult day, meals, equipment, home modifications, nursing, transportation
Paid family caregivers	Yes, not spouses or parents of minors	Yes, through self-determination
Care coordination	Adult Services Worker, periodic review	Nurse and social worker care team, ongoing

Many people receive both. The waiver agency coordinates Home Help personal care hours alongside waiver services so nothing is duplicated. If you are unsure which to pursue, start with Home Help because it is faster, then add MI Choice when the extra services are needed.

MI Choice support across Michigan

Supportive Solutions Homecare works with families in Detroit, Dearborn, Warren, Sterling Heights, Ann Arbor, Flint, Lansing, and Grand Rapids. We can serve as your MI Choice provider agency, help a family member enroll as a self-determined caregiver, and coordinate with your waiver agency care team. Our staff speak English, Arabic and Spanish.

Frequently asked questions

What is the income limit for the MI Choice Waiver?

MI Choice uses Michigan’s long-term care Medicaid limits. As of 2026, monthly income must be at or below 300 percent of the federal SSI benefit rate, and countable assets must be no more than about $2,000 for a single applicant. People over the income limit may qualify by using a qualified income trust. Married couples have spousal protections.

Is there a waiting list for MI Choice?

In some regions, yes. Each waiver agency has a set number of funded slots, and eligible applicants are placed on a waiting list when those slots are full. Priority goes to people leaving nursing facilities and those at immediate risk. Wait times vary by county, so ask your waiver agency. Home Help has no waiting list and can cover personal care in the meantime.

How do I apply for the MI Choice Waiver?

Contact the waiver agency for your region, usually your Area Agency on Aging, and ask for MI Choice intake. You will complete a phone screening, apply for Medicaid through MI Bridges if needed, and have an in-home assessment by a nurse and social worker. If a slot is open, services start once your care plan is approved.

What is the MI Choice Waiver and who is eligible?

MI Choice is Michigan’s Medicaid waiver that pays for in-home and community services instead of nursing home care. You are eligible if you are 18 or older, a Michigan resident, meet nursing facility level of care based on an MDHHS assessment, and meet the long-term care Medicaid income and asset limits.

Can I be paid through MI Choice to care for a loved one?

Yes. The MI Choice self-determination option lets the participant hire their own caregivers, including adult children, relatives, and friends, with a fiscal intermediary handling payroll. Whether a spouse or legal guardian can be paid depends on the waiver agency’s policy, so ask during intake. Supportive Solutions Homecare can help you enroll as a caregiver.