Under Michigan’s Medicaid Home Help Program, an eligible member can generally choose their own caregiver, and that person can be an adult child, grandchild, sibling, other relative, friend, or neighbor. The two groups who generally cannot be paid are the member’s spouse and a parent caring for their own minor child. Every paid caregiver must be at least 18, legally authorized to work in the United States, enrolled as a provider in CHAMPS, and cleared through a criminal background screening. No certification or prior healthcare experience is required. Trinity Home Assistance helps caregivers in Southfield, Madison Heights, Farmington Hills, and across Oakland and Macomb counties work through those requirements.
Start with the rule that catches people off guard
A husband generally cannot be paid to care for his wife under Home Help. A wife generally cannot be paid to care for her husband. This is a program rule, and it is the single most common piece of bad news we deliver.
It is worth pausing on, because a lot of couples in Southfield and Madison Heights are in exactly this position: one spouse has become a full-time caregiver, has left work, and is looking for any form of support. Home Help is not it, at least not for the spouse directly.
What sometimes works instead: an adult child, a sibling, a grandchild, or a trusted neighbor becomes the paid caregiver for some or all of the approved hours. That does not solve everything, but it can bring real hours of relief into a household that currently has none.
The second exclusion
A parent generally cannot be paid under Home Help to care for their own minor child. Families with a disabled child should ask MDHHS about other Michigan programs rather than assuming Home Help is the only door.
Who typically can be paid:
- Adult children caring for a parent
- Grandchildren caring for a grandparent
- Siblings caring for a brother or sister
- Parents caring for an adult child
- Aunts, uncles, cousins, and other relatives
- Friends
- Neighbors
- Any other adult the member chooses who meets the program requirements
That last line is the one people skim past. The friend down the block who has been driving someone to appointments for two years is eligible to be considered. So is the neighbor who checks on someone every morning. Michigan’s program is built around the member’s choice, not around a bloodline.
The requirements every paid caregiver has to meet:
- Be at least 18 years old
- Be legally authorized to work in the United States, with a valid Social Security number or tax identification number
- Complete provider enrollment in CHAMPS, Michigan’s Medicaid provider system
- Pass a criminal background screening
- Complete the required program training
- Follow the MDHHS service plan and program rules
What is deliberately not on that list
There is no certification requirement. No CNA. No nursing license. No home health aide credential. No prior healthcare experience of any kind. Home Help is non-medical personal care, and Michigan does not gate it behind a credential.
We mention this in almost every first conversation because it is the assumption that stops the most people. Someone in Madison Heights who has been bathing and dressing their mother for three years assumes they are unqualified for a job they are already doing. They are not.
What about a criminal record?
CHAMPS initiates a criminal history screening through Michigan State Police records as part of enrollment. Not every record is disqualifying. The nature of the offense, its severity, and how long ago it happened all factor in. If you have something in your history, the useful move is to ask rather than to assume. The screening typically takes a few days to a few weeks.
Can more than one person be paid?
The service plan sets a number of approved weekly hours. Depending on the plan and how MDHHS structures it, those hours may be able to be shared. This is a question for your adult services worker, and it is a reasonable one to raise at the assessment if two family members are splitting the load. If a caregiver later moves away or becomes unable to continue, a replacement can be named, and that person goes through their own CHAMPS enrollment and screening.
What the caregiver is actually approved to do
The service plan lists specific tasks. Personal care covers bathing, dressing, grooming, eating, toileting, transferring, and mobility. Homemaking covers meal preparation, light housework, laundry, shopping, and medication assistance. Home Help does not cover skilled nursing or therapy, and it does not cover care for other household members even if they also need help.
Getting the requirements handled without losing months
Trinity Home Assistance works with caregivers across Southfield, Madison Heights, Farmington Hills, Warren, and the surrounding Oakland and Macomb County communities. We help with CHAMPS enrollment, coordinate the background screening and training, and can employ or contract the caregiver so payroll and tax documents are handled on our side rather than yours.
We cannot approve anyone and we will not tell you otherwise. MDHHS decides eligibility and hours. What we can do is keep you from losing six weeks to a form.
Download the free guide: How Family Members Can Get Paid to Care for a Loved One. It covers the whole process in plain language, with worksheets for the assessment and the paperwork.
Or talk to us. Call (248) 506-0968 or request a free eligibility conversation at trinityassist.com. Trinity Home Assistance serves Warren, Sterling Heights, Southfield, St. Clair Shores, Mount Clemens, Macomb, Madison Heights, Clinton Township, Utica, and Farmington Hills.
Trinity Home Assistance
32300 Northwestern Highway, Suite 215, Farmington Hills, MI 48334
Phone: (248) 506-0968 · Email: info@trinityassist.com · trinityassist.com
Serving Warren, Sterling Heights, Southfield, St. Clair Shores, Mount Clemens, Macomb, Madison Heights, Clinton Township, Utica, and Farmington Hills.
