The Elderly Waiver (EW) is Minnesota's Medicaid home- and community-based services waiver for seniors 65+ who are Medical Assistance eligible and assessed via MnCHOICES as needing a nursing-facility level of care. It covers personal care assistance, homemaker services, home health aide, case management, adult day services, respite care, home-delivered meals, and — inside licensed assisted living — 'customized living' or '24-hour customized living' service packages, but it never pays room and board.
The detail behind the program
A common misconception among Twin Cities families is that the Elderly Waiver works like a rent subsidy for an assisted living apartment — it doesn't. EW pays only for the care services layered on top of housing, so a resident in an Eden Prairie or Woodbury assisted living community would still owe the facility's room-and-board charge out of pocket or from other income, even after EW approval covers their care plan. The waiver is also not setting-specific: the same program funds services at home, in adult foster care, or inside licensed assisted living, so a family doesn't need to apply for a different program depending on where a parent ends up living.
Related questions
- What is Alternative Care and how is it different from the Elderly Waiver?
- How do I apply for Medical Assistance long-term care or a waiver in the Twin Cities?
- Does Medicaid pay for the full cost of assisted living in Minnesota?
- What are Minnesota's income and asset limits for nursing home Medical Assistance in 2026?
- How much can a healthy spouse keep if their partner needs Medicaid-covered nursing home care in Minnesota?
- What is Minnesota's Medical Assistance Estate Recovery Program, and can the state take my parent's house?
- What is Minnesota Senior Health Options (MSHO) and who qualifies?