What IHSS can cover
Personal care, meals, household help tied to staying home, and other categories a county social worker may authorize after an in-home visit.
What help looks likeCalifornia Home Help
California’s IHSS program may pay a family member to provide authorized care for an eligible parent or relative.
California Home Help is how Sevah’s home care team helps families stay home and navigate IHSS and Medi-Cal paperwork. Your county IHSS office and Medi-Cal decide eligibility, hours, and who can be paid.
Short answers first. Official program pages and the county file still decide the case. Open a guide when you want the longer version.
Personal care, meals, household help tied to staying home, and other categories a county social worker may authorize after an in-home visit.
What help looks likeAdult children and many other relatives can often enroll as the provider. A spouse or a parent of a minor depends on the IHSS sub-program.
Caregiver rulesCalifornia resident, a Medi-Cal determination, living at home, Health Care Certification, and a county assessment.
Eligibility basicsYou gather Medi-Cal status, SOC forms, and the assessment visit. The county authorizes hours and who can be paid.
Read the parent checklistCDSS and county filing order: Medi-Cal, SOC 295, SOC 873, the home visit, and the Notice of Action. The county still decides.
Read the apply stepsLocal family guides for all 58 counties and the official CDSS office list. File where the parent lives. We do not quote wages.
Open county guidesSee CareScout 2025 California medians for home care, assisted living, memory care, and nursing homes, then open the live calculator. IHSS wages are set by county.
Open the cost of care hubSide-by-side education for staying home with help versus a licensed community. Planning tables, not a ranking. Counties still decide IHSS.
Compare care optionsDirect yes-or-no answers on home care, assisted living, IHSS, VA Aid and Attendance, and insurance, with official .gov links.
Open pay and coverage answersA 2026 sample of county hourly rates. The rate follows the county where the care recipient lives. Confirm the current figure on the CDSS wage page.
See sample county ratesDementia, stroke, Parkinson’s, fall risk, and respite, with IHSS and protective supervision education.
Browse condition pagesResumen de IHSS, Medi-Cal y cómo pedir ayuda con el papeleo. El resto del sitio sigue en inglés.
Abrir la guía en españolLicensed agencies
California Home Help also publishes a registry of Home Care Organizations from Community Care Licensing open data. Use that list for license numbers and cities. IHSS stays on this site.
Open the California Home Care RegistryIHSS basics
A 2026 plain-language guide to what IHSS is in California: who it is for, what it can pay for at home, and how a county case usually starts. The county decides.
Read the guideHelping a parent
Step-by-step how to apply for IHSS in California: Medi-Cal, SOC 295, SOC 873, the county visit, and the Notice of Action. CDSS cites. The county decides.
Read the guideForms
Cards for official CDSS IHSS PDFs: SOC 295, SOC 873, and related provider forms. Download from cdss.ca.gov only. The county files the packet and decides the case.
Read the guideCounty guides
Find your county IHSS wage on the official CDSS wage-rate page only. This hub does not invent or reprint hourly rates. County offices confirm the current number.
Read the guideWho can be paid
How IHSS can pay an adult child for authorized care so a parent can stay home in California, after county and enrollment steps finish. We do not quote wages.
Read the guideAfter a hospital stay
Family checklist for hospital discharge to home care in California: home with help, skilled home health, rehab, a skilled nursing stay, or hospice. County and Medicare decide.
Read the guideHelping a parent
A practical adult-child path: Medi-Cal status, SOC 295, SOC 873, the home visit, and starting provider enrollment when you will give the care.
Read the guideEligibility
The statewide IHSS criteria CDSS publishes, and why a county social worker and Medi-Cal staff still complete the determination for each person.
Read the guideReviewed against CDSS, DHCS, Medicare.gov, and CareScout public pages. We do not quote IHSS wages. County IHSS offices and Medi-Cal decide eligibility, hours, and pay. For current county wage rates, use the official CDSS wage page. CDSS county IHSS wage rates.
Official program pages: CDSS: In-Home Supportive Services, CDSS: IHSS for children, County IHSS offices, CDSS: IHSS providers, CDSS: county IHSS wage rates, CDSS: provider orientation, CDSS: Electronic Visit Verification, CDSS: Electronic Services Portal, DHCS: Medi-Cal, Apply for Medi-Cal, BenefitsCal, CDSS: hearing requests, CDSS: forms catalog, CDSS: IHSS overtime and workweek, DDS: regional centers.
FAQ
California Home Help is a private service operated by Sevah Robotics, Inc. Sevah’s home care team helps families stay home and navigate IHSS paperwork. Your county IHSS office and Medi-Cal decide approvals, hours, and payments.
Your county IHSS office and Medi-Cal decide eligibility, authorized hours, and provider enrollment. A Sevah coordinator can help you get the paperwork ready so they can review a complete file.
Check whether they already have Medi-Cal. If they are still applying, start that application on BenefitsCal or with the county. Then submit the IHSS application (SOC 295) to the county IHSS office and get SOC 873 to a licensed health professional. SOC 873 is the medical piece to return, unless the county asks for a specific extra page. Your county decides eligibility and hours.
Often yes, once you finish provider enrollment. Adult children, other relatives, friends, and neighbors are commonly allowed. A spouse, or a parent of a child under 18, can be paid under some IHSS sub-programs. PCSP generally leaves those roles unpaid. Check with the county which program applies.
Timing varies by county. Medi-Cal (if it is still pending), the wait for a social worker, and provider enrollment are the usual slow stretches. Confirm the packet is complete, then wait for the scheduled visit unless the county asks for something else. Your county office can tell you what is typical locally.
The State issues the provider check for authorized hours. If the recipient has a Medi-Cal share of cost, CDSS says unpaid share of cost can be deducted from that check and the recipient then pays the provider. Ask the county whether a share of cost applies. Your county Medi-Cal office can confirm the amount.
IHSS is in-home personal and household help for people who can live at home. Skilled nursing and therapy are different Medi-Cal or Medicare benefits.
Send the pages the county asked for. The medical piece IHSS asks for is SOC 873, or acceptable alternative documentation. Keep hospital records, lab results, and a diagnosis dump for later unless the county asked for a specific page. On the California Home Help form, a name and a way to reach you is enough. Keep medical records and Social Security numbers for the county packet.
A name, a way to reach you, your county if you know it, and whether you are an adult child helping a parent, the caregiver, or the person who needs care. Keep medical records and diagnoses for the county forms. A Sevah coordinator will follow up about the paperwork and, if you want, care at home.
Working with Sevah
California Home Help is how Sevah’s home care team helps families stay home and navigate IHSS. When you want a quieter kind of support, a coordinator can sit with you on the paperwork and talk through what care at home might look like. Some families work with Sevah while a family member stays the day-to-day helper. Your county still decides eligibility and hours.
Talk with SevahCalifornia Home Help is a private service operated by Sevah Robotics, Inc. Sevah’s home care team helps families stay home and navigate IHSS paperwork. Your county IHSS office and Medi-Cal decide approvals, hours, and payments.
Your county IHSS office and Medi-Cal decide eligibility, authorized hours, and provider enrollment. A Sevah coordinator can help you get the paperwork ready so they can review a complete file.
Check whether they already have Medi-Cal. If they are still applying, start that application on BenefitsCal or with the county. Then submit the IHSS application (SOC 295) to the county IHSS office and get SOC 873 to a licensed health professional. SOC 873 is the medical piece to return, unless the county asks for a specific extra page. Your county decides eligibility and hours.
Often yes, once you finish provider enrollment. Adult children, other relatives, friends, and neighbors are commonly allowed. A spouse, or a parent of a child under 18, can be paid under some IHSS sub-programs. PCSP generally leaves those roles unpaid. Check with the county which program applies.
Timing varies by county. Medi-Cal (if it is still pending), the wait for a social worker, and provider enrollment are the usual slow stretches. Confirm the packet is complete, then wait for the scheduled visit unless the county asks for something else. Your county office can tell you what is typical locally.
The State issues the provider check for authorized hours. If the recipient has a Medi-Cal share of cost, CDSS says unpaid share of cost can be deducted from that check and the recipient then pays the provider. Ask the county whether a share of cost applies. Your county Medi-Cal office can confirm the amount.
IHSS is in-home personal and household help for people who can live at home. Skilled nursing and therapy are different Medi-Cal or Medicare benefits.
Send the pages the county asked for. The medical piece IHSS asks for is SOC 873, or acceptable alternative documentation. Keep hospital records, lab results, and a diagnosis dump for later unless the county asked for a specific page. On the California Home Help form, a name and a way to reach you is enough. Keep medical records and Social Security numbers for the county packet.
A name, a way to reach you, your county if you know it, and whether you are an adult child helping a parent, the caregiver, or the person who needs care. Keep medical records and diagnoses for the county forms. A Sevah coordinator will follow up about the paperwork and, if you want, care at home.