Can I Get Paid to Care for My Mom or Dad in Georgia?

Yes, in many cases an adult child can be paid to care for a mom or dad in Georgia through Structured Family Caregiving (SFC). SFC is part of Georgia's Elderly and Disabled Waiver Program (EDWP), a Medicaid program. It supports a family caregiver who lives in the same home as the person who needs care.

Two things decide whether it works for your family. Your parent must qualify for EDWP. And you must be a caregiver the rules allow, living under the same roof. This guide walks through both, from a son's or daughter's point of view.

Getting paid to care for a parent at a glance

• Program: Structured Family Caregiving, a service inside Georgia's EDWP Medicaid waiver
• Who can be paid: an adult son or daughter, or another eligible relative, who lives with the parent
• Who cannot be paid: your parent's spouse (including your other parent) and your parent's legal guardian
• Where you live: together, in your parent's home or yours
• Your parent needs: Georgia Medicaid (or to qualify for it through the waiver) and a nursing-home level of care
• First call: Georgia's Area Agency on Aging line, 866-552-4464

Does my mom or dad qualify for a paid family caregiver?

Start with your parent, not with you. SFC is only open to people enrolled in EDWP. Georgia.gov lists the basic EDWP rules. Your parent must:

• Be eligible for Georgia Medicaid. DCH says a person can also be potentially eligible after admission to EDWP.
• Be 65 or older, or younger than 65 and meet the program's disability rules.
• Need a nursing-home level of care, approved by a doctor.
• Choose care at home instead of a nursing home.
• Be in only one Medicaid waiver at a time.

SFC adds one more test. In its SFC notice, DCH describes the service as being for members who need significant help with activities of daily living, such as bathing, dressing and eating. The in-home assessment measures this. If you are unsure what that level of need looks like, read what nursing home level of care means in Georgia.

Not sure yet? A1-GA's short eligibility form asks the key questions and lets our team follow up.

Can an adult child be the paid caregiver for a parent?

Yes. Georgia's waiver describes SFC as support for a family caregiver who lives with the member. It describes the member and caregiver as related by birth or by marriage. A grown son or daughter fits that description.

The waiver also names who cannot be paid. It leaves out legally responsible people, such as spouses and parents of minor children. It also excludes a member's legal guardian. Here is how that plays out in a typical family.

What if my other parent still lives at home?

This is common. Dad may be the one doing most of the care for Mom. He cannot be paid as her SFC caregiver, because he is her spouse. But an adult child who lives in the same home can be the paid caregiver instead. For the full spouse rules, see whether a spouse can be paid as a caregiver in Georgia.

The full list of caregiver checks, including the background screening, is in our SFC requirements checklist.

Do I have to live with my parent to get paid?

For SFC, yes. DCH's SFC notice ties the service to a live-in family caregiver. But the move can go either way. Georgia's waiver says the family member may live in the member's home, or the member may live in the family member's home.

Georgia's Medicaid policy agrees. The DFCS Medicaid manual says an EDWP member may live in their own home or in another person's home. So Mom can move in with you, or you can move in with Dad.

What if my parent lives alone across town?

Then SFC does not fit as things stand. Your parent can still get help through EDWP. An agency aide can visit through Personal Support Services in Georgia. Georgia's waiver also lets some relatives ask DCH, case by case, to be approved to provide personal support. Our guide on how to get paid to take care of a family member in Georgia covers those non-live-in options.

What does a paid caregiver for a parent actually do?

You keep doing the daily care you may already give. That can include help with bathing, dressing, meals, moving around the home and getting to appointments. What changes is the structure and support around you.

• Daily care

  Hands-on help with your parent's everyday needs, based on the care plan

• Daily notes

  A short electronic note each day about how your parent is doing and any changes

• A health coach

  Ongoing phone or online support from the SFC provider's health coach

• Nurse access

  A Georgia-licensed registered nurse the provider makes available for health questions

• Yearly training

  Caregiver training each year, shaped around the skills your parent's care needs

These pieces come from DCH's SFC notice and Georgia's waiver. They are there to help you, not to test you. The daily notes also help the health coach spot changes early.

How does a son or daughter get paid through SFC?

Medicaid pays the SFC provider agency, and the agency pays you. With A1-GA, caregivers are paid by direct deposit every two weeks; the amount is set by the loved one's assessed level of care. We do not quote figures, because the state sets and changes the rate. Our explainer on how SFC pay is set in Georgia shows where to check it.

How do I start getting paid to care for my mom or dad?

Your parent applies for EDWP first. SFC is chosen inside that process. Here is the order most metro Atlanta families follow.

1. 1

   Talk with your parent

   Make sure your mom or dad wants care at home from you, and agree where you will both live.

2. 2

   Call for a screening

   Call 866-552-4464, Georgia's Area Agency on Aging line. In metro Atlanta, the Atlanta Regional Commission handles intake. Staff screen your parent by phone.

3. 3

   Wait for an opening

   EDWP is a budgeted program with limited spaces. Eligible people may go on a waiting list until funding opens.

4. 4

   Have the in-home assessment

   A care coordinator visits, confirms the level of care and builds a care plan with you and your parent. Ask about SFC here.

5. 5

   Enroll with an SFC provider

   The provider screens you as the caregiver, sets up training, daily notes and your health coach, then services begin.

If your parent does not have Medicaid yet, DCH says to apply at your local DFCS office. Our step-by-step guide on how to apply for Structured Family Caregiving in Georgia goes deeper on each stage.

Questions to settle as a family before you call

• Which adult child will be the live-in caregiver?
• Whose home will you share, and is it safe for your parent?
• Does anyone hold court-appointed guardianship over your parent?
• Does your parent have Medicaid, or do you need to apply through DFCS?
• Who can step in when the main caregiver is sick or needs a break?

How A1-GA Healthcare Agency helps

A1-GA Healthcare Agency is a Georgia DCH-approved Medicaid home care provider in Norcross. We have provided in-home care since 2008 and staffed caregivers since 2004. Through Structured Family Caregiving in Atlanta, we support sons and daughters who care for a parent at home.

We can explain where your parent is in the EDWP process and what SFC would ask of you. If SFC is not the right fit, we will say so. Start with our SFC eligibility form, or call us.

• Phone: 678-446-1832
• Hours: Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm
• Email: [email protected]
• Office: 4505 Peachtree Industrial Blvd, Suite K, Norcross, GA 30092