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IHSS in San Mateo County
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.
Peninsula families navigating IHSS in San Mateo County: forms, the home visit, and who can be paid after enrollment.
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
San Mateo County is the Peninsula county that runs the local IHSS case under statewide CDSS and Medi-Cal rules. Families file SOC 295 with the office on the CDSS list, complete the home visit, and enroll a provider before the State can issue a check.
Who decides
San Mateo County IHSS and Medi-Cal decide eligibility, authorized tasks, and who can be paid. California Home Help explains the forms and can help you organize them.
What to do next
Find San Mateo County on the CDSS county IHSS office list, confirm Medi-Cal, and submit SOC 295 for the person who lives on the Peninsula in this county.
Peninsula IHSS through San Mateo County social services
San Mateo County is the Peninsula county between San Francisco and Santa Clara County. Families here often have a parent in one city and a job in another, and they try to file where the commute is easier. IHSS does not follow your workplace. It follows the recipient’s home. San Mateo County social services owns the case when that home is in San Mateo County.
Statewide eligibility still requires California residence, a Medi-Cal determination, living at home, SOC 873 or accepted alternative documentation, and an in-home assessment. A hospital or licensed community care facility is not “own home,” including a facility just over the San Francisco line.
How Peninsula families find the San Mateo office
Open the CDSS county IHSS office list and find San Mateo County. Use that listing. This guide will not invent a street address or a phone number. A San Francisco city-county window is the wrong door for a San Mateo County resident, even when the drive is short.
Ask the listed office how to deliver SOC 295. If the parent lives in San Mateo County and you live in San Francisco or Santa Clara County, you still file in San Mateo County. If you only have a city name on the Peninsula, confirm the city is actually in this county before you pick a CDSS row.
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Questions people ask
- Can I file in San Francisco if I work there?
- No. File in the county where the person who needs care lives. A San Mateo County resident uses the San Mateo County entry on the CDSS list.
- Which forms matter most before the home visit?
- SOC 295 starts the IHSS application. SOC 873 is the Health Care Certification, unless the county accepts alternative documentation. Medi-Cal must be determined before IHSS can finish.
- Who can be paid after enrollment?
- Adult children, other relatives, friends, and neighbors are commonly allowed. Someone from the county Public Authority list is also possible. A spouse or a parent of a minor depends on the IHSS sub-program.
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.