Skip to Content

Elderly and Disabled Services

Nursing Homes

What is a nursing home?

 

A nursing home is a place that provides a room, meals and help with activities of daily living. Most people in a nursing home have physical or mental problems that keep them from living on their own. To be able to go into a nursing home you must be eligible for Medicaid.

 

How to find a nursing home in Tennessee?

 

Go to Tennessee Department of Health's Nursing Home Locator.

 

Forms

 

A Pre-Admission Evaluation (pdf, 35kb), normally called a PAE, is a form that the nursing home, doctor, or hospital fills out on a person and sends to the TennCare Long Term Care office. This form explains that the person is in need of care in a nursing home or in a Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) program. This form must be approved by the nurses in the Long Term Care office.

 

 

PreAdmission Screening and Resident Review: PASRR (pdf, 49kb). Federal Nursing Home Reform Law of 1987 require that a PASRR screen be completed on all individuals prior to admission to a NF, regardless of payor source, and regardless of the level of reimbursement for NF services—Level I (Intermediate) or Level II (Skilled). The PASRR “screen,” intended to identify persons known or suspected to have mental illness and/or mental retardation, is sometimes referred to as a “level 1” PASRR, which refers to the level of PASRR review and not to the level of reimbursement for NF services.

 

 

Transfer Form (pdf, 69kb), is a form that the Nursing Home or Area Agency on Aging and Disability (AAAD) fills out on a person and sends to the TennCare Long Term Care office. This form can only be used for a person who has as active PAE, AND has already established financial Medicaid eligibility at DHS. This form allows the person to be able to transfer from 1) Nursing Home to HCBS Waiver, 2) HCBS Waiver to Nursing Home, or 3) Nursing Home to Nursing Home without having to complete a new PAE. Please see the Transfer Form Memo (pdf, 31kb) for more information and additional documentation requirements.

 

Who can someone get in touch with if they have additional questions?

 

For further information about Nursing Homes in Tennessee, please contact Pat Santel at Pat.A.Santel@tn.gov or 1-877-224-0219.

Statewide Elderly and Disabled Home and Community Based Services Waiver (E&D HCBS)

What is the Statewide Elderly and Disabled (E&D) HCBS Waiver?

 

The Statewide E&D HCBS Waiver is for people who qualify for Medicaid and who would qualify for nursing home care but want to receive more cost-effective care at home instead. It offers 13 different kinds of home care services based on the needs of each person.

 

What services are available through the Statewide E&D HCBS Waiver?

 

The kinds of Home and Community-Based Services or HCBS provided are based on the needs of each person. These are the kinds of care a person may receive if their doctor orders them in their care plan:

 

  • Adult Day Care - A place where you can go during the day to spend time with others.
  • Assisted Living* - A place where you can go live that will help you with personal care needs, homemaker services, and taking your medicines correctly. *Medicaid cannot pay for your room and board.
  • Assistive Technology - Certain devices that help you with activities of daily living, such as grabbers or big handled eating utensils.
  • Case Management - A case manager to visit you at least once a month to be sure you get the care you need.
  • Home Delivered Meals - One healthy meal per day delivered to your home.
  • Homemaker - Someone to help with household chores or errands like laundry, sweeping or grocery shopping.
  • In-Home Respite - Someone to come and stay with you in your home for a short time so your caregiver can get some rest.
  • Inpatient Respite - Short stay in a nursing home or assisted care living facility so your caregiver can get some rest.
  • Minor Home Modifications - Certain devices or changes to your home to make it easier and safer for you to be in your home, such as ramps or grab-bars.
  • Personal Care Attendant - Someone to help with activities of daily living for longer periods of time or to go with you to doctor’s visits or other appointments.
  • Personal Care Services - Someone to help with activities of daily living such as bathing, dressing, preparing and eating meals, toileting or transfers.
  • Personal Emergency Response System (PERS) - A call button you wear that works through your telephone so you can call for help in an emergency.
  • Pest Control - Someone to come to your home a few times a year to spray for bugs or get rid of mice and rats.

 

How does someone qualify for the Statewide E&D HCBS Waiver?

 

To qualify for the Statewide E&D HCBS Waiver, an individual must:

 

  • Live in Tennessee.
  • Be 65 years of age and older OR be an adult 21 years of age and older with a physical disability.
  • Receive SSI payments or qualify for Medicaid through your local Department of Human Services (DHS) office. To qualify, an individual’s monthly income can’t be more than $2,022 (unless you set up an income trust) and the individual’s resources (the things you own not counting the house you live in) can’t be more than $2,000.
  • Need the level of care that one would get in a nursing home, but want to get care at home instead.
  • Have a safe home where waiver services can be provided.
  • Have someone that will agree to check on them, or care for them, when they are not receiving waiver services. *Note: People who receive home care must be independent for most of the day, or have family and other caregivers that help meet their needs. None of these programs offer around-the-clock care.

    • And, to qualify for the Statewide E&D HCBS Waiver:

  • We must be able to safely and effectively meet the individual’s needs at home.
  • The total cost of each individual’s care at home can’t be more than nursing home care. That includes the cost of any nursing or home health care, as well as HCBS Waiver services.

 

How does someone apply for the Statewide E&D HCBS Waiver?

 

Access to these services is through the local Area Agency on Aging and Disability (AAAD) that can be reached through a statewide toll-free number: 1-866-836-6678. Please see the AAAD Contact List for additional information. You may also contact the Operating Agency, the Tennessee Commission on Aging and Disability, at 615-741-2056 for more information.

 

Who can someone get in touch with if they have additional questions?

 

For further information about the Statewide E&D HCBS Waiver, please contact Richard Strecker at Richard.Strecker@tn.gov or 1-877-224-0219.

 

Brochures for the Statewide E&D HCBS Waiver

 

Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE)

What is PACE?

 

PACE is a community based adult day care program whose purpose is to serve the frail elderly residents of Chattanooga and Hamilton County. Please see the PACE Website for a list of services PACE provides as well as eligibility requirements.

 

Who can someone get in touch with if they have additional questions?

 

For further information about PACE please contact Alexian Brother PACE Program at 1-423-698-0802 or you may visit the PACE Center.