Over half of the state-based programs are administered by departments of aging. Contrary to popular belief, caregiver programs are not just for the older population. Well over half of the programs consider both the person with a disability and the family caregiver to be clients of the program. Programs serving a population with cognitive, as opposed to physical, impairments more often see the family caregiver as eligible for program services. Medicaid funding appears to be associated with client designation as five of the seven programs focused on the person with disability have Medicaid support.
Programs offer a range of services and service options for caregivers.
For respite assistance, which 30 programs offer, service definitions, eligibility, mode of delivery and funding vary widely across programs and within states. Half of the programs offering respite allow a family member to receive payment for providing respite care. The number of persons served annually ranges from 300 for North Dakota's Family Support Services to more than 147,000 by California's Regional Centers and is related to level of funding, scope of services and state population. The limits vary substantially, reflecting differences in services delivered and overall program budgets. Twelve programs in nine states have cost caps and six programs have utilization caps, typically for respite services.