CHCPE: the Connecticut Home Care Program for Elders
Connecticut’s program for people 65 or older who need help at home to stay out of a nursing home. Here’s who qualifies, what it covers and who to contact.
- Age
- 65+
- Applicants must be 65 or older.
- Residency
- CT
- A Connecticut resident.
- State-funded copay
- 9%
- Paid by clients on the state-funded portion.
- The law
- P.A. 15-5
- The copay took effect July 1, 2015.
CHCPE, the Connecticut Home Care Program for Elders, is the state program that helps eligible people 65 or older keep living at home instead of moving to a nursing home; it's run by the Department of Social Services, not by Endurance Home Care.
We don't take Medicare, Medicaid or VA benefits as payment. Families pay privately, or claim the cost back from a long-term care insurance policy. CHCPE may still be worth applying for, and here’s how it works.
What CHCPE is for
CHCPE is run through the Connecticut Department of Social Services. It’s there so that someone who would otherwise need a nursing home can stay in their own home with the right help. That’s why one of the eligibility tests is about the risk of nursing home placement, and not about a particular diagnosis.
At home
What the program is there to make possible.
Nursing home placement
What someone has to be at risk of for the program to apply.
CHCPE is one way to pay for help at home, and most households end up combining two or three. You can compare it with the others in our guide to every way to pay for home care in Connecticut.
Four things decide who qualifies for CHCPE.
- Age
- 65 OR OLDER
- Residence
- CT RESIDENT
- Need
- AT RISK
- Finances
- DSS CRITERIA
To be eligible, an applicant must be 65 or older, be a Connecticut resident, be at risk of nursing home placement, and meet the program’s financial eligibility criteria.
Being at risk of nursing home placement means needing assistance with critical needs such as bathing, dressing, eating, taking medications and toileting. If your mother or father already needs help with some of those every day, it’s worth asking. The Department of Social Services makes the decision, so it’s the place to start.
What CHCPE can cover
Services may include care management, adult day health, companion services, home delivered meals and homemaker services. The program decides which of these each person is approved for.
Care management
A Care Manager holds the plan and coordinates what the program approves, keeping the services on track.
Adult day health
Days spent at an adult day program, away from home.
Companion services
Company and conversation, and someone in the house during the hours that are hardest to cover.
Home delivered meals
Meals brought to the door on a schedule.
Homemaker services
Help keeping the house running, such as laundry and light housekeeping.
Two things to know before you apply
Neither is a reason not to apply, and both are good to know while you plan.
01
Can a family member be paid for the help they already give?
Almost never. Family members aren’t eligible to be paid as personal care attendants for relatives, with very rare exceptions. The help a daughter or husband already gives stays unpaid, and the program’s paid services come from someone else. If you’re weighing other ways to pay, it helps to know Medicare's home care rules and the veterans benefits that fund home care hours.
02
Is CHCPE free?
For some clients there’s a copay. Since July 1, 2015, clients on the state-funded portion of CHCPE are required to pay a 9 percent copay under Public Act 15-5, and the financial eligibility criteria apply when you enroll. Nine percent of an authorized care plan is smaller than a private schedule, but it isn’t zero. It’s worth planning for the copay from the start.
How CHCPE and private care differ
Companion and homemaker services are on the CHCPE list, and they’re also part of the help Endurance provides privately. Here’s how the two compare.
CHCPE
Endurance Home Care
The Connecticut Department of Social Services.
A private home care agency holding Connecticut License HCA.0002450.
An application to the program, decided by the state.
A call with our care team, then a visit from a registered nurse who writes the care plan with you.
The state decides eligibility and which services are approved.
We have no part in CHCPE eligibility. With us, your family chooses the hours and the help.
Services including companion services and homemaker services.
Companion care and hands-on personal care, by the hour, overnight, live-in or around the clock.
Applications move at the program's pace.
Help can be arranged privately in the meantime.
If your family needs help at home now, you can apply to CHCPE and talk with us about private care at the same time, so there’s help in the house while the application moves.
Connecticut License HCA.0002450 · New Jersey License HP0435100 · Connecticut DPH License 9915786 (Endurance Home Health). Client Support Line (203) 936-6847.
Questions families ask about CHCPE
What is CHCPE Connecticut?
CHCPE is the Connecticut Home Care Program for Elders, run through the Department of Social Services to help eligible clients continue living at home instead of going to a nursing home. Applicants must be 65 or older, Connecticut residents, at risk of nursing home placement, and meet the program's financial criteria. Covered services can include care management, adult day health, companion services, home delivered meals, and homemaker services.
Does CHCPE pay family members to provide care?
Almost never. The program states family members are not eligible to be paid as personal care attendants for relatives, with very rare exceptions. Families usually combine informal family help with paid hours from a registered homemaker companion agency.
Is there a cost to be on CHCPE?
For the state-funded portion, yes. Since July 1, 2015, clients on the state-funded portion of CHCPE are required to pay a 9 percent copay under Public Act 15-5. The program's financial eligibility criteria also apply when you enroll.
Help at home while you apply
Tell us what’s become hard at home, and we’ll talk through private care and long-term care insurance with you, from an agency registered with the state of Connecticut. The first conversation is free, and nothing starts until you say so.