How can someone find out if he/she can receive MPC services?

If the person is a DDS client, then the DDD case/resource manager verifies financial eligibility and completes the Comprehensive Assessment to determine if the individual meets the personal care eligibility criteria.

• Home and Community Services (Aging and Adult Services) authorizes MPC for adults who are not DDS eligible.

• Children's Administration authorizes MPC for children who are not DDD eligible.

What services are provided through MPC?

MPC provides assistance (cueing and physical assistance) for personal care tasks and supervision. (See the personal care task definitions page.) Nursing tasks are included only if the provider is a relative or the provider is being directed by a DDS adult under "self-directed care" per the individual's MPC service plan.

What is the difference between one’s own home and a licensed adult family home?

One's place of residence needs to be licensed when the provider is caring for two or more unrelated adults and is also the landlord.

Does MPC have any required program oversight?

1. An RN visits at least once annually to evaluate the provision of services and is available to answer questions and provide training to the MPC provider, if needed.

2. The DDS case/resource manager must do an in-person, in-home reassessment at least annually or whenever there is a significant change in the person's medical condition.

3. DDS Quality-Improvement case managers also visit every adult family home with DDS residents at least once per year.

What are the rates for MPC services?

Can the client/family add to the rate paid to the provider?  

Who can be an individual provider for MPC?

• Medicaid rules do not allow payment to "legally responsible relatives" i.e. "spouses" and "parent, stepparent, or adoptive parent of a child" age 17 or younger. 
•  Providers must be at least 18 years of age.
• Individual providers must have a Criminal Background Clearance before the contract can be completed. Parent providers are exempted from the requirement. 
• Training is required for all providers of adults, not for providers of children.

Who employs the individual provider?

The family/adult client/legal guardian hires, fires, and manages the individual provider. Through the contracting process, DDS ensures that the person meets provider qualifications. DSHS, through an agreement with the IRS, pays the client's/employees share of the provider's FICA/FUTA taxes, withholds the providers share of the. Social Security Tax (FICA), and issues wage statements at the end of the year.

There is no L&I coverage for individual providers and there is no income tax withheld from the wages. 

What training is required for providers of adults?

Non-parent providers of adults must complete required training within 120 days of employment. This is the Fundamentals of Caregiving or the Modified Fundamentals training. 10 hours of continuing education is then required each calendar year thereafter.

DDS contracts with parent trainers to facilitate a 6-hour training for parent providers. Parents may choose to attend other trainings related to their specific caregiving issues.

Who pays for the training?

DDS pays the tuition for the required training.

Do providers get reimbursed for attending training?

Providers are paid wages at the MPC hourly rate.

Does DDD provide a replacement worker while the provider is in training?

Yes, DDS will authorize payment for another contracted provider.

For persons living in their own home or the home of a parent/relative/friend, where can MPC services be provided?

MPC services are provided in the person's home unless authorized in the written service plan.

• Relatives may provide MPC services in their home. Non-relatives may not.

• If authorized in the service plan, the personal care provider may provide MPC services in the community as a 1-on-1 support to the DDS person. For instance, this can occur in a daycare, a recreation program, or after school program if the provider is paid by DDS to provide services only to the eligible child and the MPC payment is made directly to the individual provider, not to a program.

Are there other program limitations or restrictions?

1. In households with two or more MPC recipients, payment is reduced for the additional persons for shared household tasks and supervision.  
   

2. Medicaid regulations prevent the MPC provider from performing tasks or supervision for other "non-MPC eligible" family members with MPC dollars. The family is allowed to pay the provider privately to do additional services.  
   

3. Unrelated providers cannot perform medical tasks requiring a licensed care professional i.e., sterile procedures, gastric tube or nasal gastric tube feeding, administration of. medications or oxygen, &/or injections.

• Even if the provider is a licensed medical person, these tasks cannot be performed while the provider is being paid through Medicaid Personal Care.

• Payment to unrelated providers for medical tasks can be done if authorized as self-directed care" on the service plan.

When can an individual MPC provider perform healthcare tasks such as a g-tube feeding, putting medication in the person’s mouth or g-tube, sterile wound care, or catheterization?

1. Relative providers can perform any healthcare task under MPC. 

2.  If you are at least 18 years of age, the law allows you to "self-direct" your individual care provider to do any healthcare task if the following criteria are met.