IHSS for Children in California

Same core eligibility, a different payment conversation

CDSS publishes IHSS for children because families need a clear path when the recipient is a minor. The child still must live in California, have a Medi-Cal eligibility determination, live at home or an abode of their choosing, return SOC 873 or acceptable alternative documentation, and complete a county in-home assessment. Those pieces match the adult eligibility list.

What changes most often is who can be paid. Adult children helping a parent are commonly allowed after enrollment. A parent of a child under 18 is more restricted. That restriction comes from federal and state funding rules, not from a judgment about whether the parent is a good caregiver.

The four funding sub-programs families hear about

CDSS describes four funding sub-programs: CFCO, PCSP, IPO, and IHSS-Residual (IHSS-R). Families do not pick a sub-program from a menu. Medi-Cal and the county place the child. The name on the file matters for parent pay.

• PCSP: a parent cannot be the paid provider when the recipient is a minor. That is a federal rule (including 42 CFR 440.167 and related state citations).
• CFCO, IPO, or IHSS-R: after ACL 23-106, a parent who finishes provider enrollment may be paid.
• Ask the county which program applies. Do not assume the letters on a friend’s case.

ACL 23-106 is the all-county letter families cite when they ask whether a parent can be paid. It does not erase enrollment. Orientation, provider forms, and a background check where required still apply. It does not erase the assessment. Hours still come from the social worker.

What a provider may be paid to do for a minor

Welfare and Institutions Code section 12300(e) limits what a provider may be paid to do for a minor. Ordinary childcare and ordinary parenting tasks are not the same as authorized IHSS. Protective supervision for a child is only for the child’s functional limitations when the county authorizes it as IHSS, not as a substitute for routine childcare.

Describe what the child cannot safely do because of disability or illness, compared with what any child that age would need. The worker applies Annotated Assessment Criteria and Hourly Task Guidelines. Who decides hours is the same office as in an adult case, with child-specific rules on the worksheet. This site does not invent hour caps.

SOC 873 still comes first

A licensed health professional must complete the Health Care Certification, or the county must accept alternative documentation, before services are authorized. Pediatric clinics sometimes need a plain explanation of the form. Carry the county’s current SOC 873. Do not substitute a school IEP or a therapy progress note unless the county said that page is acceptable alternative documentation.

Medi-Cal remains the foundation. If the child’s Medi-Cal is pending, some counties will still take SOC 295. IHSS still cannot complete without the Medi-Cal determination. Medi-Cal and IHSS together is the same logic as in a parent’s case.

A calm order for families

1. Confirm the child lives at home in California and has Medi-Cal or is applying.
2. Submit SOC 295 to the county IHSS office.
3. Return SOC 873 from a licensed health professional.
4. Ask which sub-program the child is in before you plan a parent paycheck.
5. If a parent will seek payment and the county says CFCO, IPO, or IHSS-R applies, start provider enrollment.
6. Read the Notice of Action. Record only authorized time.

Official children’s sources

Start with CDSS IHSS for children and the general IHSS page. If you want help organizing the child packet, you can ask for help.