PASSPORT Program
PASSPORT is Ohio's in-home alternative to nursing home care. It helps low-income (Medicaid) older adults remain safe and independent in their homes. It can delay or prevent nursing home placement. PASSPORT is available statewide.
Program benefits include: home-delivered meals, personal care, home medical equipment, and transportation, to name a few. Enrollment in PASSPORT entitles you to other Medicaid benefits, including lower prescription and out-of-pocketmedical expenses. You also get a care manager who will answer your questions, make sure you have the right services, and coordinate care you may be receiving from family and friends.
PASSPORT is an Ohio Medicaid waiver program that started in 1987 to prevent unnecessary nursing home placement.
Services include:
- Personal care: a trained aide helps with bathing, dressing, grooming
- Homemaker service: light cleaning, laundry, shopping
- Home-delivered meals and nutritional counseling
- Minor homemodification: repairs and safety upgrades such as ramps, grab bars, dead-bolt locks
- Adult day services: structured programs providing a secure and stimulating environment
- Transportation: to medical and social service appointments
- Chore service: pest control, major house cleaning, waste removal
- Home medical equipment and supplies: health or safety related equipment such as a bath bench, cane orwalker
- Emergency response system: 24-hour protection and help with medications
- Independent living assistance: help with benefit applications or organizing personal records; regular phone contact
- Care management: a registered nurse or social worker coordinates your care and responds to your questions or concerns
Additionally, PASSPORT participants receive other Medicaid benefits that can help lower or eliminate out-of-pocket prescription and other health care costs.
PASSPORT is flexible: If you enroll, you will not have to change doctors or specialists (as long as they accept Medicaid). Your services can be adjusted if your needs change. And, if you have to go to a nursing home while you're on PASSPORT, you can remain on the program (for up to 60 days) and return home without having to re-enroll.
To qualify for PASSPORT, you must:
- Be age 60 or older
- Be eligible for Medicaid (low-income)
- Require skilled or intermediate level of care
- Be assured you can be cared for safely in a home setting
- Receive your doctor's approval for your care plan
How much does PASSPORT cost?
Your care is free of charge, or set at an affordable level depending upon your income and assets. PASSPORT is provided by the state of Ohio through Council on Aging.
How is PASSPORT different from the Elderly Services Program (ESP)?
To qualify for PASSPORT, clients must be low-income (Medicaid eligible) and severely disabled. Council on Aging works with area Departments of Job and Family Services to determine Medicaid eligibility.
In contrast, the Elderly Services Program is for seniors who do not qualify for Medicaid (not as low income). Also, PASSPORT clients are often more frail than clients on the Elderly Services Program and may need more help. PASSPORT clients must need a nursing home-level of care, as determined by a Council on Aging in-person assessment. Elderly Service Program clients are unable to live on their own without help, but do not necessarily need a nursing home level of care in order to receive services. Other than differences in income and disability qualifications, PASSPORT and ESP offer many of the same in-home care services, including housekeeping, personal care, medical transportation and home-delivered meals.
Signing up for PASSPORT:
You'll answer a few questions over the phone and a Council on Aging staff member will visit with you to determine your eligibility and care needs. Before the visit, you'll receive a list of information you will need to provide, including documents to verify your income, assets, household and medical expenses. If you qualify, your care manager will work with you, your family, and your doctor to determine which services you need.
How to Enroll:
For more information or to find out if you qualify:
(513) 721-1025
(800) 252-0155