Medi-Cal’s Asset Limits for People with Disabilities

2026 updates

As of January 1, 2026, the Medi-Cal asset limit for individuals is $130,000. If your child is on a Medi-Cal waiver, like the HCBA waiver or the HCBS-DD waiver for Regional Center clients, only your child’s income and assets in their name are counted. You can learn more in our blog post here.

A California law that went into effect on July 1, 2022, increased the asset limit for Non-Modified Adjusted Gross Income (Non-MAGI) Medi-Cal program eligibility. This helped expand Medi-Cal access for elderly people and people with disabilities, including children. 

Historically, Medi-Cal used the same financial eligibility criteria as Supplemental Security Income (SSI), which set specific income caps depending on family size. These rules also included an asset limit of $2,000 ($3,000 for married couples), with specific exemptions for the family home and a vehicle, among others. (Note that there is no asset limit for recipients of SSDI.) 

Under the Affordable Care Act, California expanded Medi-Cal access by using new Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) calculations to assess eligibility. This approach removed the asset limit for most applicants. However, the change did not apply to programs designed for elderly people and people with disabilities, who therefore remained subject to strict asset caps. 

The 2022 law allowed elderly people and people with disabilities in California to save more for the future without losing their health care benefits. In 2022, the asset limit was set to $130,000 for individuals (it increases with family size).

What this means for children with disabilities will vary. In order to access Medi-Cal’s institutional deeming waivers, families already have to demonstrate that they cannot qualify for Medi-Cal based on household income. At that point, only the child’s income and resources are considered. Previously, this meant that children with disabilities couldn’t hold any significant assets in their own name since their personal savings had to be below $2,000. Thanks to the change in the law, children's assets just need to be below the $130,000 limit.

An even more significant impact may come later as kids transition to adulthood and parents make decisions regarding the best ways to save for their children’s futures. Families may still want to take advantage of financial planning options like special needs trusts and ABLE accounts, but they will have the freedom to allow their child to maintain a regular savings account as well, if SSI benefits are not of concern. 

Note that this change only impacts Medi-Cal, and does not apply to SSI benefits, which follow federal regulations and retain the original asset limits. Because this is a California law, these rule changes will not apply for families moving out of state and seeking to establish Medicaid eligibility in their new state of residence.

Because the scope of this legislative change is limited, we recommend that you consult with a financial planner to help you make the best decisions for your child’s future given all the considerations at both the state and federal levels.