Is CDPAP Available in Michigan? What Families Need to Know

No, CDPAP is not available in Michigan. CDPAP (Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program) is a New York State Medicaid program. Michigan’s equivalent is the Home Help program, run by MDHHS, which lets a Medicaid beneficiary choose a family member or friend as their paid caregiver. The MI Choice Waiver adds a second self-directed option for people who need more care.

On this page

1. What is CDPAP, and why do Michigan families search for it?
2. Michigan’s equivalent: the Home Help program
3. The MI Choice Waiver: Michigan’s second self-directed option
4. How to enroll in Michigan’s CDPAP equivalent
5. Common mix-ups in “CDPAP Michigan” searches
6. Frequently asked questions

What is CDPAP, and why do Michigan families search for it?

CDPAP is New York’s consumer-directed Medicaid program. It allows a Medicaid recipient to hire, train, and schedule their own personal assistant, who can be an adult child, another relative, or a friend. The assistant is paid through a fiscal intermediary rather than a traditional agency. As of 2025, New York consolidated the program under a single statewide fiscal intermediary.

Because CDPAP has been advertised heavily for years, the name has become shorthand for “get paid to care for a family member.” Michigan families hear it from relatives in New York, see it on social media, and type “CDPAP Michigan” into Google. The good news is that the thing they are looking for does exist here. It just has a different name.

Michigan’s equivalent: the Home Help program

Home Help is Michigan’s consumer-directed personal care program. It is funded by Medicaid and administered by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS). Like CDPAP, it puts the person receiving care in charge of who provides it.

Here is how the two programs line up:

Feature	CDPAP (New York)	Home Help (Michigan)
Who runs it	New York State Medicaid	MDHHS (Michigan Medicaid)
Who chooses the caregiver	The consumer	The client
Can family be paid	Yes, except spouses and some legal representatives	Yes, except spouses
How caregivers are paid	Through a fiscal intermediary	Directly by Medicaid as an individual provider, or through an agency
Caregiver enrollment	Fiscal intermediary paperwork	CHAMPS provider enrollment plus EVV
How hours are set	Managed care plan assessment	MDHHS in-home assessment of ADLs and IADLs
Medical training required	No	No

Who qualifies for Home Help

• Active Michigan Medicaid
• A need for hands-on help with at least one activity of daily living, such as bathing, dressing, toileting, or transferring
• A medical needs form signed by a doctor or other medical professional
• Living in a private home rather than a nursing facility or licensed adult foster care home

There is no age requirement. Adults under 65 with a disability qualify on the same terms as older adults. Our checklist on who qualifies for Home Help in Michigan goes through each rule.

Who can be the paid caregiver

Almost anyone the client trusts: an adult child, grandchild, sibling, niece or nephew, friend, or neighbor. The caregiver must be at least 18, pass an MDHHS background check, and be legally able to work in the United States. The one relationship Home Help will not pay is a spouse. No CNA license or medical certification is needed, which is the same as CDPAP.

How Home Help pay works

MDHHS sets an hourly rate for individual providers and authorizes a monthly number of hours based on the assessment. The caregiver clocks in and out with an EVV app and is paid for verified hours. Caregivers who live with the client may qualify to exclude that pay from federal income tax under IRS Notice 2014-7 (details at irs.gov). For current figures, see how much family caregivers get paid in Michigan.

The MI Choice Waiver: Michigan’s second self-directed option

If your loved one needs more support than Home Help provides, the MI Choice Waiver is the next step. It serves adults 65 and older, and adults 18 and older with a disability, who meet a nursing-facility level of care but want to stay at home.

MI Choice is applied for through regional waiver agencies, usually your Area Agency on Aging. Its self-determination option lets participants direct their own care budget and hire their own workers, including many family members, through a fiscal intermediary. That structure is the closest thing Michigan has to CDPAP’s model. MI Choice also covers services Home Help does not, such as respite, home-delivered meals, personal emergency response systems, and home modifications.

Two things to know: MI Choice uses a higher income limit than regular Medicaid, and most regions keep a waiting list. Our MI Choice Waiver page and the comparison post Home Help vs MI Choice vs CDPAP explain how to decide between the two programs.

How to enroll in Michigan’s CDPAP equivalent

1. Confirm Medicaid. The person receiving care needs active Michigan Medicaid. If they do not have it, apply through MI Bridges first. Our free eligibility check tells you which category to apply under.
2. Request Home Help. Call your local MDHHS office and ask for adult services. Say your loved one needs help with daily activities and that a family member is ready to provide the care.
3. Complete the assessment. An MDHHS adult services worker visits the home, scores each activity of daily living, and sets the authorized hours. Have the signed medical needs form ready.
4. Enroll the caregiver in CHAMPS. The caregiver creates a MiLogin account, completes the CHAMPS individual provider application, and passes the background check. Our CHAMPS enrollment guide covers every screen.
5. Set up EVV and start logging hours. Once the provider is linked to the client’s case, the caregiver clocks in and out with the state’s EVV system and is paid for verified visits.

Supportive Solutions Homecare handles this process for families across Michigan, including Detroit, Dearborn, Warren, Sterling Heights, Ann Arbor, Flint, Lansing, and Grand Rapids. We help with the Medicaid application, the Home Help referral, and the CHAMPS and EVV setup, and we offer support in English, Arabic and Spanish. Start on our CDPAP in Michigan page or read how to become a paid caregiver.

Common mix-ups in “CDPAP Michigan” searches

• “CDPAP agencies near me.” There are none in Michigan. Look instead for Home Help agencies or agencies that help families enroll as individual providers.
• “CDPAP pay rate Michigan.” The number you want is the MDHHS Home Help individual provider rate, which is set by the state and updated periodically.
• “CDPAP requirements Michigan.” Use the Home Help requirements: Medicaid, an ADL need, a medical needs form, and a private home.
• “Does Medicare have CDPAP?” No. Neither CDPAP nor Home Help is a Medicare benefit. Both are Medicaid programs.

Frequently asked questions

Is there CDPAP in Michigan?

No. CDPAP stands for Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program, and it is run by New York State Medicaid. Michigan does not offer CDPAP. The closest Michigan equivalent is the Home Help program, run by MDHHS, which lets a Medicaid beneficiary choose a family member or friend as their paid caregiver. The MI Choice Waiver also has a self-directed option.

Can a family member get paid to be a caregiver in Michigan?

Yes. Under Home Help, an adult child, sibling, grandchild, other relative, friend, or neighbor can enroll as an individual provider and be paid by Medicaid for the hours MDHHS authorizes. The main exception is a spouse, who cannot be a paid Home Help provider. The caregiver must be 18 or older and pass a background check.

How much does a live-in caregiver get paid in Michigan?

Home Help pays by the hour, not by the day, so a live-in family caregiver is paid for the authorized hours of hands-on care, not for being present around the clock. The rate is set by MDHHS and updated periodically. Live-in caregivers may also be able to exclude their Home Help pay from federal income tax under IRS Notice 2014-7.

Will Medicare pay me for taking care of my mother?

No. Medicare does not pay family members to provide personal care at home, and it does not cover long-term help with bathing, dressing, or meals. Medicaid does, through Michigan’s Home Help program and the MI Choice Waiver. If your mother has Medicare only, the first step is to find out whether she also qualifies for Michigan Medicaid.

What disqualifies you from being a caregiver in Michigan?

For Home Help, the most common disqualifiers are being the client’s spouse, being under 18, and having certain criminal convictions that show up on the MDHHS background check. Providers must also be legally able to work in the United States and cannot appear on the federal or state lists of excluded Medicaid providers. A CNA license is not required.