Some states make Medicaid waiver funds available so that a small number of people with disabilities may live in their own homes, not nursing homes. The waiver funds pay for attendant services, assistance with a range of activities of daily living such as transferring from bed to wheelchair, shopping for and preparing meals, grooming, and toileting.

National average annual cost to taxpayers of providing Medicaid Personal Care to one disabled American in her own home: $9,692*

*This figure includes both people who require 24-hour support and people who require fewer services.