Paying for it in Minnesota
26 Minnesota funding resources and 3 federal or nationwide resources currently listed, grouped by the question you are asking.
Funding in Minnesota
26 published state entries across 6 money questions.
Medicaid waivers and home-based supports
Is there a waiver that pays for support at home instead of in a facility?
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Brain Injury (BI) Waiver
The Brain Injury Waiver funds home and community-based services for children and adults with an acquired or traumatic brain injury who need nursing-facility or neurobehavioral hospital-level care. As the state explains, services can be delivered in a family's home so a child can stay close to family instead of in a facility. A screening process decides eligibility.
Apply through: Your local county agency or tribe
Next step: Contact your local county agency or tribe to apply and begin screening.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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CADI Waiver (Community Access for Disability Inclusion)
The CADI Waiver funds home and community-based services for Minnesota children and adults who would otherwise need nursing-facility-level care. As the state describes it, services can be delivered in a family's own home so a child with a disability can stay living with the people who love them instead of in an institution. A county or tribal screening decides eligibility.
Apply through: Your local county agency or tribe
Next step: Contact your local county or tribal agency to start the eligibility screening.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Community Alternative Care (CAC) Waiver
The CAC Waiver funds home and community-based services for chronically ill or medically fragile children and adults who need hospital-level care. The state says it lets a person choose care in the community instead of a hospital. Eligibility is decided through a county or tribal screening process.
Apply through: Your local county agency or tribe
Next step: Contact your local county agency or tribe to apply and begin screening.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Developmental Disabilities (DD) Waiver
The DD Waiver pays for home and community-based services for children and adults with a developmental disability or related condition who need the level of care an Intermediate Care Facility for Persons with Developmental Disabilities (ICF/DD) provides. The state says it helps a person live as independently as possible instead of in an institution. Screening through the county or tribal agency determines eligibility.
Apply through: Your local county agency or tribal nation
Next step: Contact the county agency or tribal nation where you live to begin the screening process.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Respite Care Through Minnesota Waivers
Respite care is a service available through Minnesota home and community-based waiver programs that provides short-term care so a primary caregiver can have relief. The Community-Based Services Manual describes the service, and the amount authorized is set through the person support plan.
Next step: Ask your waiver case manager to add respite to your support plan and to explain your county's approved respite providers.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
Paying for a caregiver or a support budget
Who pays for someone to help care for my child, including me?
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Community First Services and Supports (CFSS)
CFSS is the Minnesota health care program that is replacing personal care assistance and the Consumer Support Grant. It pays for help with daily activities, health-related tasks and household tasks, and it adds options such as paying a spouse or the parent of a minor, a worker training budget, and a personal emergency response system. Minnesota began implementing CFSS on October 1, 2024, and states that extended PCA ends September 30, 2026.
Apply through: Consultation services provider and your lead agency assessment process
Next step: If you do not already use PCA or CSG, contact your county, Tribal nation or managed care organization and ask for a CFSS assessment.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Consumer Directed Community Supports (CDCS)
CDCS is a way to receive waiver services that lets a family design and direct the supports themselves, including hiring their own workers. Minnesota describes it as giving people more choice, flexibility and responsibility. A person must already be eligible for one of the disability or elderly waivers, or Alternative Care, before choosing CDCS.
Apply through: Your lead agency, which is your county, tribal nation or managed care organization
Next step: Contact your county or Tribal nation (or your health plan member services if you are 65 or older in managed care) and ask to use CDCS with your waiver.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Home Care Services Under Minnesota Medical Assistance
Minnesota describes home care as medical and health-related services plus help with day-to-day activities delivered to people with disabilities in their home. It can be short term after a hospital stay or ongoing. Services must be medically necessary, ordered by a physician, and set out in a written service plan.
Apply through: Your local county or tribal agency
Next step: Contact your local county agency or Tribal nation to ask which home care services your child's Medical Assistance can authorize.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Personal Care Assistance (PCA) in Minnesota
Personal care assistance is the Minnesota health care program that provides hands-on help in a person home or in the community so seniors and people with disabilities can stay independent. Minnesota states that extended PCA ends September 30, 2026, and that people who have not transitioned to CFSS by then may continue to receive state plan PCA.
Next step: Contact your county, Tribal nation or managed care organization to request an assessment. If you already use PCA, your lead agency will discuss CFSS at your next reassessment.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
Health coverage and medical bills
How do we get medical care and equipment covered?
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Appealing a Health Plan Decision on SNBC or PMAP in Minnesota
If your child is in a Minnesota managed care plan, you must use the plan's own complaint process first — then you can ask the state for a hearing.
Apply through: Your health plan's complaint system, then the Minnesota Department of Human Services state hearing process
Next step: Ask your plan in writing for its complaint process and keep the date you filed — the 30-day plan clock runs from it.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Medical Assistance (Minnesota Medicaid)
Medical Assistance is Minnesota's Medicaid program, covering children, families, and people who are blind or have a disability with low incomes. As the state explains, it's the base coverage that the CADI, DD, BI, and CAC waivers and MA-EPD all build on top of. Most people apply through MNsure, though people with disabilities can use a different application path.
Apply through: MNsure, or a different application path for seniors, people with disabilities, and youth formerly in foster care
Next step: Apply online through MNsure, or in a different way if you are a senior, person with a disability, or youth formerly in foster care.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Medical Assistance for Employed Persons with Disabilities (MA-EPD)
MA-EPD lets Minnesotans with disabilities keep Medical Assistance health coverage even while working and earning more than regular MA limits allow. As the state describes it, there's no income limit and, since January 2024, no asset limit — most people just pay a monthly premium. It's meant to help someone stay employed without losing their health coverage.
Apply through: Your local county human services agency
Next step: Fill out the Minnesota Health Care Programs Application for Certain Populations, DHS-3876, and send it to your county human services agency.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Medical Assistance Under the TEFRA Option for Children With Disabilities
Minnesota describes the TEFRA option as helping children with disabilities qualify for Medical Assistance even when family income is too high, because only the child income is counted. The child must be under 19, live with a parent, be certified disabled by Social Security or the State Medical Review Team, and need an institutional level of care to stay at home.
Apply through: MNsure, or your county or tribal office
Next step: Apply through MNsure or your county or tribal office, and ask specifically about Medical Assistance under the TEFRA option.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Non-Emergency Medical Transportation (NEMT) Under Minnesota Medical Assistance
Minnesota Medical Assistance covers rides to covered medical appointments for people who do not need an ambulance. State law sets the covered modes of transport, mileage limits of 30 miles to a primary care provider and 60 miles to a specialty provider without extra authorisation, and puts an administrative agency in charge of assessing which mode a person gets.
Next step: If your child is in a health plan (PMAP or SNBC), call member services on the insurance card and ask for non-emergency medical transportation. On fee-for-service Medical Assistance, call your county or tribal human services agency.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Special Needs BasicCare (SNBC)
Special Needs BasicCare is a voluntary Minnesota managed care program for people certified disabled by Social Security or the State Medical Review Team, ages 18 through 64, who have Medical Assistance. Enrollees get their Medical Assistance benefits through a health plan, plus a care coordinator or navigator and a 24-hour nurse line.
Next step: Use the SNBC directory for your county, or contact Disability Hub MN to talk through whether SNBC fits.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
Monthly benefits and cash support
Is there money that comes to our family every month?
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Hospital Financial Assistance and Charity Care in Minnesota
Nonprofit hospitals and health systems generally publish a financial assistance or charity care policy describing how a family can ask for help with medical bills. Families with high therapy, equipment or specialty care costs can request the policy directly from the billing office.
Next step: Ask the hospital billing office in writing for its charity care policy and application, and say you want the account held while your application is pending.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Minnesota Consumer Support Grant Program
The Consumer Support Grant lets an eligible person use grant funds instead of certain in-kind personal care or waiver services, so they can purchase goods and services or hire and pay their own support workers, including a spouse or parent. The state is moving people from this grant to a newer program called Community First Services and Supports (CFSS), so anyone new to these services can no longer choose CSG. Your county or tribal nation manages access and eligibility.
Apply through: Your local county agency or tribal nation
Next step: Contact your local county agency or tribal nation to request an assessment; people new to PCA or CSG services are being enrolled in CFSS instead.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Minnesota DNR Accessible Outdoors: Parks, Trails and Disability Permits
The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources publishes an Accessible Outdoors section covering accessibility in DNR-managed spaces, special hunting, fishing and camping programmes, and the permits and licences available to people with disabilities — including permanent angling applications and reduced-price state park permits and camping rates.
Next step: Before your next trip, check the accessibility page for the specific park or trail, and download the permit application your family qualifies for — several are permanent, so you apply once.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Minnesota Family Support Grant
The Family Support Grant is a Minnesota cash grant that helps families of children with certified disabilities pay for extra costs related to the child's disability. The state says its goal is to prevent or delay out-of-home placement and support family well-being. Money can go directly to a family, as a voucher, or as a payment to a vendor. Your county or tribal nation handles applications and can tell you if your family qualifies.
Apply through: Your local county agency or tribal nation
Next step: Contact your local county agency or tribal nation to ask about eligibility and start an application.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Minnesota STAR Program (Assistive Technology)
The Minnesota STAR Program, housed in the Minnesota Department of Administration, helps Minnesotans with disabilities find and get the assistive technology they need for daily living, learning, work and play. The state says the program is federally funded through the Administration for Community Living under the 21st Century Assistive Technology Act. Families can browse an online lending library, watch how-to videos, and read Minnesota's Guide to Assistive Technology, which centralizes information from state programs.
Next step: Visit mn.gov/admin/star to browse the online lending library at MN.AT4all.com or Minnesota's Guide to Assistive Technology, or contact the STAR Program directly.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
Savings accounts and tax help
How do we save money without losing benefits, and what can we claim on taxes?
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Minnesota ABLE Plan
The Minnesota ABLE Plan is a tax-advantaged savings and investment account for eligible people with disabilities. Money in an ABLE account can be used for qualified disability expenses, and ABLE savings are treated differently from ordinary savings when public benefits are tested. Minnesota established the plan under Minn. Stat. chapter 256Q.
Next step: Open savewithable.com/mn and read the current plan disclosure booklet before you open an account, because fee and contribution figures change each year.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Minnesota K-12 Education Subtraction and Credit
Minnesota has two tax relief programs for families with a child in kindergarten through 12th grade: the K-12 Education Subtraction and the K-12 Education Credit. As the state explains, both can lower your taxes or increase your refund when you file Form M1, based on qualified education expenses you paid for your child, which can include costs tied to a child's education needs. You can't use the same expenses for both programs, and you'll need receipts to prove what you paid.
Next step: Save your receipts and complete Schedule M1ED (for the credit) or Schedule M1M (for the subtraction) when filing Form M1.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
Help with fees, bills and travel costs
We already have a bill or a fee. Is there help with it?
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Finding Transport Outside the Twin Cities (Greater Minnesota Transit Providers)
There is no single statewide dial-a-ride number. MnDOT publishes who serves each county.
Apply through: Your local transit provider, listed by county
Next step: Look up your county on the MnDOT page and phone the provider to ask how rides are booked and what they cost.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Metro Mobility (Twin Cities ADA Paratransit)
Shared-ride transport for people who cannot use regular buses and trains because of a disability — Twin Cities metro only.
Apply through: Metro Mobility Service Center, 651-602-1111 (TTY 651-221-9886), Monday to Friday 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Next step: Call the Metro Mobility Service Center and ask for the certification application.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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Parental Fees for Minnesota Disability Services
Minnesota previously charged some parents a monthly parental fee when a child under 18 received Medical Assistance through a disability program. Following a change to Minn. Stat. 256B.14, Minnesota states that parental fees are no longer assessed for children enrolled in the home and community-based waivers or under the TEFRA option, effective July 1, 2023.
Next step: If you were previously billed a parental fee, contact your county or tribal agency to confirm your current status.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
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The Arc Minnesota Financial Assistance and Scholarships
The Arc Minnesota is a statewide disability advocacy organization that publishes information about financial assistance and scholarship opportunities for people with disabilities and their families. Specific programs, amounts and deadlines must be read from The Arc Minnesota own current pages.
Next step: Open the scholarships and microgrants page, then call The Arc Minnesota to ask which of these is open right now and what your region offers.
Run by this state, so the rules and the people you contact are state-specific.
Federal and nationwide programs
These apply in every state, though the office you apply through is usually local.
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IRS Publication 907: Tax Highlights for Persons With Disabilities
IRS Publication 907 explains federal tax rules that matter to people with disabilities and their families, including impairment-related work expenses, the Credit for the Elderly or the Disabled, and ABLE accounts. As the IRS explains, ABLE accounts let people with disabilities save money without losing certain public benefits, with an annual contribution limit that is adjusted each year. This is federal guidance that applies nationwide, not just in Minnesota.
Next step: Read the sections relevant to your situation (Impairment-Related Work Expenses, Credit for the Elderly or the Disabled, or ABLE Account) before filing federal taxes.
Applies in every state, though the office you apply through may be local.
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Supplemental Security Income (SSI) for Children
SSI provides monthly cash payments to children (and adults) with disabilities who have little or no income or resources. As the Social Security Administration explains, the payment amount depends on income, living situation, and other factors, and recipients must report changes in income and resources each month. This is a federal, nationwide program, not specific to Minnesota.
Apply through: ssa.gov
Next step: Use SSA's online tool to find out if you might be eligible, then apply.
Applies in every state, though the office you apply through may be local.
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What Social Security Changes at 18: The Adult Disability Definition and the End of Parental Deeming
Social Security says that when a child receiving SSI turns 18, it evaluates impairments using the definition of disability for adults instead of the childhood standard. Parental income and resource deeming is described as applying to a child under 18, so the household income test that kept many teenagers off SSI works differently once they are an adult.
Next step: If your child was denied SSI because of your household income, reapply as they approach 18 — the adult test does not count parent income the same way.
Applies in every state, though the office you apply through may be local.
Keep going in Minnesota
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