IHSS is a statewide program administered by each county to provide those with limited income who are disabled, blind or over the age of 65 with in–home care services to help them remain safely at home. To be eligible for IHSS, a person must be enrolled in Medi-Cal. Protective supervision is an IHSS service for people who, due to a mental impairment or mental illness, need 24 hours a day care to protect themselves from injuries, hazards or accidents. Eligible IHSS recipients who meet the requirements for Protective Supervision are eligible for the maximum number of monthly hours, either 195 or 283.

To qualify for protective supervision level hours of IHSS benefts, a person must have:

1. A “mental impairment” or “mental illness” that causes functional limitations in:

a. Memory (e.g. forgetting things, people, places, to start or fnish a task, etc.).

b.Orientation (e.g. inability to recognize and adapt to time, people, places, environment, surroundings etc., needed to live and

complete tasks.).

c. Judgment (e.g. making decisions which put the individual’s health and/or safety at risk).

2. The impairment must cause the individual to experience confusion and an inability to control behaviors so as to keep themselves free from harm or injury. Such severe impairments may occur with intellectual disabilities, autism, Alzheimer’s, dementias, and psychiatric disabilities.

For more information, Disability Rights California provides a helpful Self-Assessment worksheet: https://www.disabilityrightsca.org/system/files/ file-attachments/549301.pdf and a fact sheet with further details on Protective Supervision: https://www.disabilityrightsca.org/system/files/ fle-attachments/549301.pdf.

Page Last Modified: May 30, 2018