How to Become a CDPAP Caregiver
The Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP) program allows consumers that are elderly, sick, or physically disabled and need help at home to hire family members or friends they know and feel comfortable with to care for them. If you have a loved one who needs home care and assistance, read the article below on how to become a CDPAP caregiver or personal assistant.
The CDPAP Program
CDPAP is a New York State Medicaid program that allows eligible consumers who need long-term home care to choose, hire, and supervise their own caregivers and personal assistants who will be paid to look after them and assist them with activities of daily living (ADL).
CDPAP Eligibility Requirements for Patients
To become a recipient and receive care, a consumer must have Medicaid, have a stable medical condition, require long-term home care, and be eligible for medical assistance provided by a certified home health agency.
Self-Directing
The consumer must be able to self-direct care or have a legal guardian or designated representative to assist them and must be able to make informed choices.
Organizing and Coordinating
They must be able to arrange and coordinate services and keep payroll records. They must also be willing to terminate caregivers and personal assistants who are not up for the task and have a backup plan for help when necessary.
CDPAP Eligibility Requirements for Caregivers and Personal Assistants
If a patient requires more help than traditional home care can provide, a caregiver or personal assistant can step in.
Work Status and Age
Anyone with legal working status in New York State, of legal working age, and who has legal immigration status can get paid to be a caregiver or personal assistant in the directed personal assistance program. They can provide care to family members and friends, except for spouses, who cannot hire each other, and parents of children younger than 21 who require care.
Living Arrangements
If you have a sick, disabled, chronically ill, or elderly parent, sibling, or child over the age of 21, you can get paid to take care of them if you are not living with them.
Qualifications
The best news is you don’t need a special license or certification to be a caregiver or personal assistant in the directed personal assistance program, and the person you care for, or a legal guardian or designated representative, will supervise and train you to provide them with the care and assistance they need.
The CDPAP Application Process
Medicare Health Plan
If the patient has Medicare and Medicaid, they must enroll in one of the Managed Long-Term Care (MLTC) plans. To be eligible for the MLTC plan, your relative or friend must be older than 21 and need long-term home care for longer than 120 days.
As part of the application process, the patient must notify the New York State Medicaid program that they want to enroll in the CDPAP program, which is administrated by the health plan, and fill out an application form. The patient you wish to care for or a legal guardian or designated representative can also apply at your local Department of Social Service.
Health Assessment
Anyone older than 18 can benefit from the CDPAP program. To determine if they can participate in the CDPAP program, they must have a medical examination by a medical professional. If someone who needs help is younger than 18, their doctor must complete a mandatory DOH Form or Physician’s Order for Services.
The person you want to care for, a designated representative, or the doctor must submit the completed DOH Form to social services within 30 days after the medical examination. Social services will then complete a social and nursing assessment to determine whether the person can participate in the CDPAP program and receive consumer-directed personal assistance.
Assigning a Caregiver or Personal Assistant
Once the person has been approved, they can assign a caregiver or a personal assistant. They have to create a work schedule that suits them and a training plan to teach you everything you need to know about how to take care of them.
The Duties and Responsibilities of a CDPAP Caregiver or Personal Assistant
Activities of Daily Living (ADL)
You will help the person with personal hygiene, such as bathing, dressing, and grooming. You will plan and prepare meals and assist the person in eating if necessary.
Skilled Nursing Services
A caregiver or personal assistant can provide any services a registered nurse can perform, many of which a home health aide is not allowed to perform, including giving insulin shots, wound care, etc.
Work Schedule
Working hours differ between CDPAP caregivers and personal assistants because you’re working on a schedule created by the patient you’re looking after.
Flexible Hours
The CDPAP program allows patients to be flexible and decide if they want assistance a few hours a day or a week. Patients don’t have to follow a rigid schedule, but keep in mind that the specific Medicaid Managed Care plan the person belongs to has the final say on how many working hours are approved.
CDPAP Rates
CDPAP Caregivers and personal assistants are paid weekly through Medicaid-contracted companies that administer the program and process payments. The pay rate varies depending on many factors, but a caregiver or personal assistant can earn an average wage between $16.20 to $21.09 per hour and $24.30 to $31.63 per hour overtime. These rates don’t necessarily reflect the highest-paying rates of the CDPAP Fiscal Intermediary agencies.
The Advantages of CDPAP Home Care
The CDPAP program allows patients to receive consumer-directed personal assistance and hire their own caregivers or personal assistants of their choice, and Medicaid covers the costs.
The CDPAP program is a wonderful option for in-home health services for patients to get help from someone they know and can trust. If you want to become a caregiver or personal assistant and live in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx, or elsewhere in New York, call Parent Care at 718-486-7100 now for information about your eligibility and help with the CDPAP enrollment process and reap all the great CDPAP program benefits.
