Companion Care in Michigan for Seniors and Adults at Home

Companion care in Michigan gives an isolated older adult or person with a disability a regular, friendly caregiver who visits for conversation, meals, errands, light housekeeping, and a watchful eye. Medicaid Home Help pays for the household and personal care tasks in these visits, and we offer private-pay companion visits when hands-on care is not yet needed.

On this page

1. What is included in companion care?
2. Is companionship covered by Home Help in Michigan?
3. Combining companionship with personal care
4. Can a family member provide this care and get paid?
5. Companion care across Michigan
6. Frequently asked questions

What is included in companion care?

Companion care is non-medical and hands-off. Our companions can:

• Visit on a set schedule for conversation, games, hobbies, or a walk.
• Prepare meals and eat with your loved one, which helps people who stop eating when alone.
• Do light housekeeping: dishes, laundry, tidying, changing bed linens.
• Run errands, pick up groceries and prescriptions, and accompany your loved one to appointments.
• Give medication reminders, notice changes in health, and report back to family.
• Provide supervision and reassurance for someone with early memory loss.

Is companionship covered by Home Help in Michigan?

Michigan’s Home Help program, run by MDHHS, pays for two kinds of tasks: activities of daily living (bathing, dressing, eating, toileting, transfers) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) such as meals, housework, laundry, shopping, and medication reminders.

Companionship on its own is not a listed Home Help service. But most of what a companion caregiver does during a visit is an IADL, and those hours are payable when your loved one also needs hands-on help with at least one activity of daily living. The caregiver who helps your mother bathe in the morning is the same person who cooks lunch and keeps her company, and Home Help pays for that visit.

MI Choice for higher needs

If your loved one qualifies for a nursing-home level of care, the MI Choice Waiver adds services Home Help does not cover, including respite and adult day programs. Apply through your local Area Agency on Aging.

Private pay for companion-only visits

If your loved one is independent with personal care but lonely or unsafe alone, you can hire a companion from us by the hour. Many families start here and move to Home Help when hands-on needs develop. Our free Medicaid eligibility check tells you whether Medicaid could pick up the cost.

Combining companionship with personal care

The best care plan usually blends the two. A typical Home Help visit for a senior in Dearborn looks like this:

1. Personal care first. Bathing, dressing, and grooming, the ADLs that qualify the visit.
2. Breakfast and medications. The caregiver cooks, eats with your loved one, and prompts morning pills.
3. Household tasks. Laundry, dishes, and tidying.
4. Companionship. A walk, a card game, or simply time together.

Because the caregiver is already there for personal care, the companionship costs nothing extra under Home Help. See personal care assistance and senior home care for the hands-on side.

Can a family member provide this care and get paid?

Yes, when the person you care for qualifies for Home Help. Michigan lets Medicaid recipients choose their own caregiver, including an adult child, sibling, grandchild, friend, or neighbor. The family caregiver enrolls through CHAMPS, passes a background check, and records visits with Electronic Visit Verification (EVV). MDHHS pays for the authorized hours, including the meals, housework, and time together that make up companion care.

Companionship-only care is not paid by Home Help. If you already keep your parent company every day, ask us for an assessment; many loved ones need more ADL help than families realize. Learn more at become a paid caregiver and in our guide to getting paid to take care of a family member in Michigan.

Companion care across Michigan

We provide companionship care in Detroit, Dearborn, Warren, Sterling Heights, Ann Arbor, Flint, Lansing, and Grand Rapids, and the surrounding areas. Caregivers are matched by language (English, Arabic or Spanish).

Frequently asked questions

Does Medicaid pay for companion care in Michigan?

Not by itself. Michigan Home Help pays for hands-on personal care and the instrumental tasks that go with it, such as meals, housework, laundry, and shopping. Pure social visits are not a covered service. If your loved one also needs help with bathing, dressing, or mobility, the companionship happens naturally during those paid hours, and the MI Choice Waiver can add more.

What is the difference between companion care and personal care?

Companion care is hands-off support: conversation, meals, light housekeeping, errands, and supervision. Personal care adds hands-on help with bathing, toileting, dressing, and transfers. Medicaid Home Help is built around personal care, so most Medicaid clients get a caregiver who does both. Private-pay clients can choose companion-only visits if they do not need hands-on help.

Can a family member be paid to provide companionship care?

A family member can be paid through Home Help when the person they care for needs hands-on help with at least one activity of daily living. In that case the relative enrolls as an individual provider through CHAMPS and is paid for the authorized personal care and household hours. Talking and eating together often happen during that time, but Home Help pays for the tasks, not the company or supervision. Companionship alone is not a paid Home Help service.

How often can a companion caregiver visit?

Private-pay companion visits can be scheduled as often as you like, from a few hours a week to daily. For Medicaid clients, visit frequency follows the monthly hours MDHHS authorizes at the Home Help assessment; those hours can be spread across the week however works best. We build the schedule with you and adjust it as needs change.

Is companion care a good fit for someone with early dementia?

Often, yes. In early dementia a caregiver who provides structure, gentle reminders, meals, and company can reduce anxiety and keep your loved one safely at home. As memory loss progresses and hands-on help with bathing or dressing becomes necessary, Home Help can begin paying for care.