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The County Public Authority Registry for IHSS Providers
Updated September 16, 2026. Reviewed September 16, 2026 against public CDSS, DHCS, Medicare.gov, VA, and CareScout 2025 California tables. County wages, hours, and wait times still change. Official .gov pages decide.
How a Public Authority list can help a recipient find a provider if a family member is not available, without promising local wait times.
About 4 minutes to read. Based on CDSS and DHCS public program pages retrieved 2026-09-16. County offices apply these rules. Hourly rates, hour totals, and wait times are local and change.
Short answer
Each county’s Public Authority can keep a registry of IHSS providers so a recipient can look for an individual provider when a family member or friend is not available. The recipient still hires and supervises that person. The registry does not replace enrollment, and it does not come with a statewide wait time.
Who decides
The recipient chooses whom to hire. The county IHSS office and Public Authority run the local registry and enrollment steps. Medi-Cal and the county still decide the authorized hours.
What to do next
Call the county IHSS office or Public Authority on the CDSS county list and ask how their registry referrals work, while the IHSS case itself stays with the social worker.
The registry is a finding list, not the IHSS case
CDSS says providers may include someone from a county Public Authority list after enrollment. That list exists because not every recipient has an adult child, sibling, or friend who can take on bathing and transfers. The Public Authority is the local organization that supports IHSS providers and recipients. One of its jobs is a registry: a way for a recipient to look for an individual provider.
The registry does not assess need. The county social worker still authorizes tasks and hours. The registry does not issue the check. The State does, after timesheets. The registry does not become the employer. The recipient is the employer of the person they hire from the list.
When families usually call
Call when the recipient wants help finding a person, or when a family member or friend can cover only part of the authorized plan. Do not wait to apply for IHSS until a registry name appears. The application, SOC 873, and assessment run on the recipient’s case whether or not a provider has been named. Start provider enrollment for whoever will give the care as soon as that person is known.
If an adult child will be the provider, you usually skip the registry and go straight to orientation and forms. If that adult child later cannot continue, the registry is how many recipients look for the next person without starting from a blank page.
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Questions people ask
- Do I have to use the registry if my adult child will be the provider?
- No. A family member, friend, or neighbor the recipient already wants to hire enrolls as an individual provider. The registry is a finding tool when that person is not available.
- Does being on the registry mean someone is already payable?
- Registry practice is local. Some people on a list are mid-enrollment. The State pays after that person’s enrollment and the recipient’s authorized hours are both in place.
- Can the Public Authority assign a provider the recipient must take?
- The individual-provider model leaves hiring with the recipient. Some counties also offer contracted providers or homemakers as a different option. Ask which model they are describing.
Official sources for this guide
Related pages on California Home Help
Reviewed 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.