How do I apply for the Medi-Cal institutional deeming waiver?

Once the Regional Center refers your child for Medi-Cal’s HCBS-DD waiver, you will receive a thick packet of paperwork in the mail. Ordinarily, families filling out this paperwork need to establish that their income falls below a certain threshold in order to qualify for the program. However, because only families with excess income can qualify for the waiver, the main purpose of this application for families above the income threshold is to establish that the child doesn’t qualify for Medi-Cal on an income basis. This means it’s usually not necessary to provide a detailed list of all your assets. Some Regional Centers have a designated Medi-Cal specialist who can set up an appointment with you to help you fill out this paperwork. Ask your child’s service coordinator whether this option is available to you.

If you have been waiting several weeks to a month to receive your application since the Regional Center referred you, you could go to the BenefitsCal website to put in an application and upload a copy of the waiver. If you don’t have the waiver, you can write a letter saying that the waiver was sent and upload a picture of the letter. You will still have to upload all of your income information because they need to know if you would qualify based on income before they apply the waiver.

For more information about this waiver, see our article Medi-Cal’s Institutional Deeming Waiver 101.