Get Paid to Care for Your Elderly Parent in Louisiana
Louisiana's Community Choices Waiver includes a self-direction option that lets a participant hire an adult child or other relative (not a spouse) as a paid personal-care worker, with a financial management agency handling payroll. The companion LT-PCS program uses licensed agencies and does not allow participant-hired family caregivers.
This guide covers what Louisiana family caregivers need to know: the program structure, pay rates, who can be paid, eligibility, how to apply, and other programs that may supplement your income.
Louisiana pays family caregivers $11–$16 per hour through the Community Choices Waiver, Self-Direction option within the Community Choices Waiver (CCW). Your parent must meet a nursing-facility level of care but prefer to remain at home.
Louisiana's Main Program: Community Choices Waiver, Self-Direction
Community Choices Waiver, Self-Direction is a self-directed option within Louisiana's Community Choices Waiver (CCW), which provides home and community-based care for seniors and adults with disabilities who meet a nursing-facility level of need. Under self-direction, your parent (or you as their authorized representative) can hire, train, schedule, and supervise the personal-care attendant, and that attendant can be you, an adult child.
What the Program Pays For
Authorized self-directed services typically include:
- Personal care: bathing, grooming, dressing, oral hygiene
- Toileting assistance and incontinence care
- Mobility help: transferring, positioning, ambulation support
- Meal preparation and feeding assistance
- Light housekeeping directly related to health and safety
- Medication reminders (not administration, which requires a nurse)
- Supervision for individuals with cognitive impairment, including dementia
Pay Rates Across Louisiana
| Region | Typical Hourly Rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| New Orleans Metro | $12–$16/hr | Self-directed CCW personal care; rates vary by approved plan-of-care budget |
| Baton Rouge | $11–$15/hr | Hire an adult child or relative through financial management services |
| Shreveport / North LA | $11–$15/hr | Apply via Louisiana Options in Long Term Care intake |
Rates are set within the participant's approved plan-of-care budget and the state's limits; the figures above are typical ranges, not guarantees.
Who Can Be Paid
An adult child or other relative may be hired as a paid caregiver, but a spouse cannot be paid under the Community Choices Waiver self-direction option. Always confirm the current rules with Louisiana Department of Health, Bureau of Health Services Financing (Medicaid) before you count on a specific arrangement.
Eligibility Requirements
Your Parent Must:
- Be enrolled in full Louisiana Medicaid (not just a savings program)
- Meet the clinical criteria for a nursing-facility level of care
- Be enrolled in the Community Choices Waiver (CCW) (or its self-directed option)
- Live in Louisiana in a community setting (not a nursing home)
- Be able to direct their own care, or have a legal/authorized representative who can
You (the Caregiver) Must:
- Be 18 years of age or older
- Meet the program's relationship rules (see above)
- Pass a criminal background check and registry search
- Complete any required caregiver orientation and training
- Be legally authorized to work in the United States
- Submit timesheets through a financial management services agency
How to Apply: Step-by-Step
- Apply for Louisiana Medicaid. Apply online at sspweb.lameds.ldh.la.gov or call 1-888-342-6207. Your parent must meet income and asset limits.
- Request a long-term-services assessment. Contact your local Medicaid or aging office to request a comprehensive functional assessment that determines whether your parent qualifies for the Community Choices Waiver (CCW).
- Enroll in the waiver. Once deemed eligible, your parent is enrolled in the Community Choices Waiver (CCW) and assigned a case manager or care coordinator.
- Request the self-directed (CCW) option. During care planning, ask specifically for the consumer/self-directed service model and state that you, the adult child, want to be the hired caregiver.
- Enroll with a financial management services agency. Complete enrollment paperwork, W-4, I-9, and background authorization, so payroll, tax withholding, and timesheets are handled for you.
- Complete orientation. Finish any state-required caregiver orientation covering personal-care techniques, emergency procedures, and reporting.
- Begin care and submit timesheets. Provide care per the authorized plan and submit electronic timesheets; payroll is processed on a regular cycle with taxes withheld.
Check Your Parent's Eligibility
Our free Benefits Checker helps identify whether your parent qualifies for Louisiana's caregiver-pay programs and other benefits.
Check Eligibility NowOther Programs That May Pay Louisiana Family Caregivers
VA Veteran-Directed Care & PCAFC
If your parent is a veteran enrolled in VA healthcare, the Veteran-Directed Care program provides a monthly budget that can pay family caregivers, and the Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers (PCAFC) offers a monthly stipend for eligible primary caregivers. Contact the caregiver support coordinator at your parent's VA medical center or call 1-855-260-3274.
Personal Care Agreement (Private Pay)
If your parent does not qualify for Medicaid, a formal written Personal Care Agreement lets them pay you from their own funds at fair-market rates. Drafted with an elder-law attorney, it must be prospective and reasonable, and it keeps payments from being treated as "gifts" during the Medicaid 5-year look-back.
State Respite & Caregiver Support
Through the National Family Caregiver Support Program, Louisiana's Area Agencies on Aging fund respite, training, and counseling. These rarely pay ongoing wages but reduce your out-of-pocket costs. Find your local agency through the Eldercare Locator (1-800-677-1116) or 1-877-456-1146.
Tax Implications for Family Caregivers
- W-2 wages: The financial management agency issues you a W-2; federal income tax, Social Security, and Medicare are withheld.
- IRS Notice 2014-7: If you live in the same home as your parent (the Medicaid waiver participant), your self-directed wages may be excludable from federal gross income. Consult a CPA before filing, see IRS guidance on Medicaid waiver payments.
- Earned Income Tax Credit: These wages count as earned income and may qualify you for the EITC.
Maintain daily logs of services provided, date, time in, time out, and a brief description. Medicaid audits self-directed arrangements, and accurate records protect both you and your parent.
What Louisiana Caregivers Are Actually Earning
At 30 hours per week and about $13 per hour, you would earn roughly $1,690 per month. At 40 hours per week and $16 per hour, earnings reach about $2,773 per month, around $33,280 per year before taxes.
For comparison, a nursing home costs far more per year, and agency home care runs roughly $30–$40 per hour. A self-directed arrangement lets your parent receive care from someone they trust, while you earn income that partially replaces what you may have given up to provide care.
Contact Information
- Louisiana Department of Health, Bureau of Health Services Financing (Medicaid): ldh.la.gov/medicaid | 1-888-342-6207
- Apply for Medicaid: sspweb.lameds.ldh.la.gov
- State aging services: goea.louisiana.gov | 1-877-456-1146
- Eldercare Locator (find local help): eldercare.acl.gov | 1-800-677-1116
- Medicaid (federal): medicaid.gov
Frequently Asked Questions
Under the Community Choices Waiver self-direction option, family caregivers are typically paid roughly $11–$16 per hour, depending on the participant's approved care budget. Exact rates are set in the waiver plan and managed by a financial management agency.
The Community Choices Waiver (CCW) is Louisiana's Medicaid HCBS waiver for the elderly and adults with disabilities who meet a nursing-facility level of care. Its self-direction option lets participants hire and manage their own caregivers, including relatives.
No. Under the Community Choices Waiver self-direction option a spouse cannot be paid, though an adult child or other relative can be hired and paid.
The Community Choices Waiver (CCW) with its self-direction option lets family members such as adult children be paid. Standard LT-PCS personal care must go through a licensed agency instead.
Call Louisiana Options in Long Term Care at 1-877-456-1146 to be screened for the Community Choices Waiver, and apply for Medicaid online through the LA Medicaid Self-Service Portal or by phone at 1-888-342-6207.
Yes. A parent with dementia who qualifies for the Community Choices Waiver at a nursing-facility level of care can self-direct services and hire an adult child as a paid caregiver.
Related Guides
- How to Get Paid to Care for Your Parent (National Overview)
- How to Apply for Medicaid for an Elderly Parent
- Caregiver Tax Deductions 2026
- VA Benefits for Elderly Parents
- Power of Attorney for an Elderly Parent
- Medicaid Spend-Down Rules
This guide is general information, not legal or financial advice. Program names, pay rates, and eligibility rules change and vary by county, confirm details with Louisiana Department of Health, Bureau of Health Services Financing (Medicaid). Sources: ldh.la.gov · goea.louisiana.gov.