Senior and Long Term Care

Program Providers

Below are the programs and grants SLTC coordinates.  Choose the appropriate program to view all related information. Contacts for each program are also included in each section.

Community First Choice/Personal Assistance Services

The Community First Choice and Personal Assistance Services (PAS) Programs are entitlement programs designed to provide long term supportive care in the home setting. These programs enable thousands of elderly and disabled citizens to remain in their homes. The type of care authorized is tailored to each individual in a person centered manner and dependent upon their needs, living situation, and availability of caregivers.

Services available through the CFC/PAS Program include the Activities of Daily Living: bathing, dressing, grooming, toileting, eating, medication assistance, ambulation and exercising. Medical escort is also available. Under the PAS program there is additional time for limited grocery shopping, housekeeping and laundry. Under the CFC program there is also additional time for community integration, yard hazard removal for the purpose of providing safe access and entry to the home, correspondence assistance and personal emergency response system.

The CFC/PAS Program does not pay for tasks such as yard work other than authorized task to assure health and safety, household repair or modifications, major cleaning, shopping for non-essential items, escort to non-medical services, pet care, or general transportation. Some of these tasks are allowed through the waiver program depending upon an individual’s needs and required level of care.

Self-Direct Service Options

There two options under which CFC/PAS eligible individuals can choose to receive their services: Agency Based CFC/PAS (AB-CFC/PAS) or Self-Direct CFC/PAS (SD-CFC/PAS). The SD-CFC/PAS program was developed for consumers who wish to direct their own care. The consumer or their Personal Representative is responsible for hiring, training, and managing their Personal Care Attendants (PCA). Under the SD-CFC/PAS program only, individuals can be authorized by their health care professional to receive the above mentioned services provided by their PCA as well as any of the following four skilled services: bowel program, catheter care, medication assistance, or wound care. Anytime a consumer chooses Self-Direct CFC/PAS, they must obtain authorization from their health care professional. The consumer or their personal representative must also meet capacity, which means they can demonstrate a thorough understanding of the program requirements.

Eligibility

Eligibility requirements for both AB-CFC/PAS and SD-CFC/PAS include: 1) consumer has a health condition that limits their ability to perform activities of daily living, 2) consumer must participate in the screening process and 3) the consumer must be eligible for Medicaid. In order to qualify for the CFC program a consumer must also meet level of care.

Contact Information

Abby Holm, Program Manager

1100 North Last Chance Gulch
PO Box 4210
Helena MT 59604-4210
406-444-4564
406-444-7743 Fax
1-800-551-3191

Regional Program Officers

Regional Program Officers can assist with policy clarification, general eligibility questions and provide information on the process for referring an individual to the Community First Choice/Personal Assistance Program.

Program Manuals

Montana Big Sky Waiver Program

The Big Sky Waiver Program allows people, who would otherwise be institutionalized, to live in their own home and community. The services are made available through the Senior and Long Term Care Division (SLTC) with the Department of Public Health & Human Services (DPHHS).

Big Sky Waiver

Case Management Teams (CMT) consist of a nurse and social worker and provide a holistic approach to care planning. They look at each individual’s medical and psycho-social needs and then develop a plan of care based on the person’s needs and choices. Each Case Management Team has a fixed number of individuals they can serve per year. The following are examples of services that may be available through the Big Sky Waiver Program:

  • Adult Residential Living
  • Adult Day Health
  • Case Management
  • Chemical Dependency Counseling
  • Dietician
  • Environmental Adaptations
  • Habilitation Services
  • Homemaker Services
  • Nutrition
  • Personal Assistance
  • PERS (Personal Emergency Response System)
  • Private Duty Nursing
  • Psycho-social Consultation
  • Respiratory Therapy
  • Respite Care
  • Special Child Care
  • Transportation
  • Therapies (OT, PT, Speech)
  • Specially Trained Attendant
  • Specialized Medical Equipment and Supplies
  • Services for Individuals with Traumatic Brain Injury

Eligibility

To qualify for the Big Sky Waiver Program, a recipient must be financially eligible for Medicaid and meet the minimum level of care requirements for nursing facility placement. Individuals must have an unmet need that can only be resolved through a Big Sky Waiver Program service in order to qualify for the program. Currently, there is a waiting lists for Big Sky Waiver Program services.

To make a referral for the Big Sky Waiver Program, contact the Mountain Pacific Quality Health at 1-800-219-7035.

Eligibility specialists at your County Office of Public Assistance (OPA office) can determine Medicaid eligibility.

Where do I find assisted living and other health care facilities? Licensure Bureau of Quality Assurance Division .

Contact Information

Community Services Bureau

1100 Last Chance Gulch
PO Box 4210
Helena MT 59604-4210

406-444-4077
1-800-551-3191

Regional Program Officers

Regional Program Officers can assist with policy clarification, general eligibility questions and provide information on the process for referring an individual to the Montana Big Sky Waiver Program.

Program Manuals

Home Health Program

Who is eligible?

To be eligible for home health services, a beneficiary must meet the following criteria:

  1. Be Medicaid eligible; and
  2. Have a medical necessity for home health services to be delivered in the beneficiary's residence, on his or her physician's orders as part of a written plan of care which is reviewed and renewed every 60 days.

What services are available?

Home health services include:

    1. Nursing services that are provided on a part-time or intermittent basis by a home health agency;
    2. Physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech pathology services provided by a home health agency or by a facility licensed by the State to provide medical rehabilitation services;
    3. Home health aide services, when aide services are not available through a Medicaid personal assistance program such as the Community First Choice Program; and
    4. Medical supplies, equipment and appliances.

Contact Information:

Micky Brown, Program Manager
1100 North Last Chance Gulch
PO Box 4210
Helena MT 59604-4210
406-444-6064
406-444-7743 Fax
1-800-551-3191

Regional Program Officers

Regional Program Officers can assist with general eligibility questions and provide information on the process for referring an individual to the Home Health Program.

Program Manual

Hospice

Hospice is a program of care and support for people who are terminally ill. Hospice's focus is on comfort, not curing and illness. Hospice is palliative care only (Children under the age of 21 years of age may continue curative treatment while receiving hospice services). A specially trained team of professionals and caregivers provide care for the "whole person," including his or her physical, emotional, social and spiritual needs. Services include physical care, counseling, drugs, equipment, and supplies for the terminal illness and related condition. Support is given to the individual and his or her family members.

Eligibility

A member is eligible for hospice services if he or she meets all of the following conditions:

  • the individual is eligible for Medicaid;
  • the individual's doctor and the hospice medical director certify that the individual is terminally ill; and has six months or less to live if the illness runs its normal course;
  • the individual signs a statement choosing hospice care instead of other Medicare-covered benefits to treat your terminal illness (Medicare will pay for covered benefits for any health problems that are not related to the individual's terminal illness); and
  • treatment is delivered by a Medicare-approved hospice program.

Contact Information

Micky Brown, Program Manager

1100 N Last Chance Gulch
PO Box 4210
Helena MT 59604-4210
406-444-6064
406-444-7743 Fax
1-800-551-3191

Regional Program Officers

Regional Program Officers can assist with policy guidance, general eligibility questions and provide information on the process of referring an individual to the Hospice Program.

Program Manuals

Montana's Money-Follows-The-Person (MFP) FACT SHEET

Residency Requirements:

  • Must have lived 90 consecutive days in a qualifying facility
  • Transition work may begin in advance of the 90th day

Medicaid Eligibility:

  • Must be Medicaid eligible for at least one day prior to transition
  • Transition work can begin without Medicaid eligibility

Program Eligibility:

  • Must be eligible for one of the following waiver or state plan programs
    • Big Sky Waiver (elderly and physically disabled)
    • Serious Disabling Mental Illness (SDMI) Waiver
  • Must live:
    • Home owned or leased by a participant or family member
    • Apartment with individual lease, secure access, as well as living, sleeping, bathing & cooking areas where a participant or family has control
    • Community-based residential setting such as a group home with a maximum of 4 unrelated people (excluding caregivers and personal attendants)

Make A Referral

Medicaid Rates

All Swing Bed Documents are now located on the Montana Medicaid Provider Website

Local Contact Agencies

All Swing Bed Documents are now located on the Montana Medicaid Provider Website

Facilities On Line Payments

Payment Portal

Please select a facility from the payment portal

  • Montana Chemical Dependency Center
  • Montana Developmental Center
  • Montana Mental Health Nursing Care Center
  • Montana State Hospital
  • Montana Veteran's Home