Is there a limit on how many hours a family caregiver can be paid?

For Health First Colorado services, yes. HCPF is phasing in a weekly limit per caregiver, per member, that applies to every delivery model, including CDASS and IHSS: 84 hours from July 1, 2026, 70 hours from January 1, 2027 and 56 hours from July 1, 2027. HCPF also takes exception requests, so ask your case manager how the limit applies to you.

Can a family member be a paid caregiver in Colorado?

In several of the programs on this page, yes. Health First Colorado's CDASS option lets a member choose family members, friends or others, with some restrictions, as paid caregivers, and IHSS lets a member select and supervise their own attendants including family members. The VA's Veteran-Directed Care page says the workers a veteran hires might include their own family member or neighbor. Rules about who can be paid, and about paying a spouse, differ by program, so check the rules of the one you are applying to.

Does Colorado CareAssist hire or pay family caregivers?

No. We are a home care agency, not an employer of family caregivers. The programs on this page pay family members through the government or through an agency or fiscal intermediary, not through us. What we offer a family caregiver is respite: a scheduled block of hours where one of our caregivers looks after your parent so you can have a break.

Which of these can I get without being on Medicaid?

The VA programs do not require Medicaid. Veteran-Directed Care is for enrolled Veterans who are eligible for community care and meet the clinical criteria, and the VA Caregiver Support Program is for caregivers of Veterans enrolled in VA health care. CDASS and IHSS are Health First Colorado programs, so they require Health First Colorado membership. The National Family Caregiver Support Program reaches caregivers through the Area Agencies on Aging rather than through Medicaid.

How long does it take to get approved?

Each program sets its own timetable and none of the official pages we cite publishes a fixed number of weeks, so we are not going to invent one. What we can say is that the VA tells applicants to submit a joint application and then take part in evaluations including a veteran assessment and a home-care assessment in the veteran's home, which is several steps rather than one. Start with the case manager or social worker named on the program's page rather than waiting on a date.

Do these programs pay for respite too?

Yes, several of them name respite as one of the services. The VA lists respite care among the Caregiver Support Program services. The Elderly, Blind and Disabled waiver lists respite among its services. And the Colorado National Family Caregiver Support Program lists respite care to let a caregiver be temporarily relieved of their caregiving duties.

I am the caregiver and I am also burning out. What do I do first?

Ask for respite before anything else, and ask your case manager, social worker or Area Agency on Aging what is available in your area. You can book respite privately through a home care agency as well, which is what we do. Either way, respite is the one item on this page that does not require an application, a waiver slot or an eligibility decision.

Family caregivers

Getting Paid as a Family Caregiver in Colorado

About one million Coloradans are caregivers. Several Colorado and federal programs can pay a family member for the care they already give. Here is each one, who may qualify, what it covers, and where to apply.

By Jason Shulman, Founder & CEO · Last reviewed: October 4, 2026

Talk With a Care Manager

Who this is for

Caring for Someone at Home, and Wondering Who Pays You

Colorado's Department of Health Care Policy and Financing estimates that about one million adults, or 22% of adult Coloradans, are caregivers. Most of that care is given by family members with no income attached to it. The state and the VA both run programs that can change that, and most families never hear about them.

Here is what we found, program by program. Every who, what and how below comes from the official page linked on that card, which we read before writing it. Where a program publishes no dollar figure, we say so rather than guess.

One thing to be clear about from the start: Colorado CareAssist does not hire or pay family caregivers. We are a home care agency. The programs below pay family members through the government or through an agency, never through us. What we do offer a family caregiver is respite, and we cover that at the end.

The programs

Five Colorado and VA Programs for Family Caregivers

The first four can pay a family member for care. The fifth pays for respite, training and support rather than wages. None of these is automatic: each has its own eligibility test, its own paperwork and its own waiting time. Colorado is also phasing in a weekly limit on paid caregiving hours for Health First Colorado services. Start with the one whose who-may-qualify answer sounds most like your situation.

Health First Colorado: CDASS

Who may qualify

Health First Colorado members who meet the Community First Choice eligibility rules: an assessed need for personal care, homemaker or health maintenance activities, an institutional level of care, and service planning with a Case Management Agency. HCPF notes that if you are already on an HCBS waiver you automatically meet the institutional level of care.

What it covers

You hire, train and supervise your own attendants. Colorado's HCPF says members can choose family members, friends or others, with some restrictions, as paid caregivers, and can set work schedules and tasks. A Financial Management Services provider helps you manage the service budget.

How to apply

If you are enrolled in Health First Colorado, contact your local Case Management Agency. Not enrolled yet? Apply to Health First Colorado first.

HCPF — CDASS ↗

Health First Colorado: IHSS

Who may qualify

What it covers

Same services as CDASS — personal care, homemaker and health maintenance activities — with an agency added behind you. HCPF says you select and supervise your own attendants, including family members, and choose an IHSS-approved home health agency as your provider. Skilled and unskilled care come under one coordinated plan.

How to apply

Contact your local Case Management Agency to apply. They can also help you plan what care you need.

HCPF — In-Home Support Services ↗

VA Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers (PCAFC)

Who may qualify

Family caregivers of Veterans who are enrolled in VA health care, or of a service member on active duty undergoing a medical discharge. The VA publishes a detailed eligibility factsheet and notes the program includes a service-connected disability threshold, so read the criteria before you apply.

What it covers

The VA lists education and training, health insurance for a caregiver who is otherwise uninsured, mental health counseling, a monthly financial stipend, respite care and other services. VA caregivers may also qualify for the Program of General Caregiver Support Services (PGCSS), which the VA says is open to caregivers of Veterans enrolled in VA health care who served in any era.

How to apply

Apply online with VA Form 10-10CG, or by mail or in person with the same form. To check eligibility first, use the VA's caregiver eligibility check, or find your local Caregiver Support Program team.

VA Caregiver Support Program ↗

VA Veteran-Directed Care

Who may qualify

All enrolled Veterans who are eligible for community care, meet the clinical criteria for the service, and where the service is available. The VA states plainly that this program is only offered in certain locations, so availability is the real gate.

What it covers

A budget for services, managed by the veteran or the veteran's representative rather than by an agency. With help from a counselor, the veteran hires their own workers. The VA is explicit that those workers might include a family member or a neighbor, and lists bathing, dressing, grooming, eating, toileting, moving around and grocery shopping as the kinds of tasks the budget can cover.

How to apply

Talk with your VA social worker about Veteran-Directed Care and find out whether it is available where you live.

VA Geriatrics — Veteran-Directed Care ↗

National Family Caregiver Support Program (Colorado)

Who may qualify

Caregivers who provide assistance to an older adult, and grandparents over age 60 raising grandchildren. Colorado's State Unit on Aging funds 16 local Area Agencies on Aging to deliver it to people aged 60 and over and their caregivers.

What it covers

CDHS lists five categories: information about available services; help getting access to supportive services; counseling, support groups and training; respite care that lets a caregiver be temporarily relieved; and, on a limited basis, supplemental services such as home modifications, assistive technologies, emergency response systems and equipment or supplies.

How to apply

Contact your local Area Agency on Aging. CDHS also publishes a Colorado AAA regions map and contact list, and a state caregiver support line.

CDHS — Caregiver support ↗

Not a government program

And check your own long-term care insurance policy

Long-term care insurance is not a government program, so there is no public page that describes what it pays — the answer lives in your contract. Some policies pay for a family member providing care rather than only for an agency, and some pay only for agency-delivered services. Policies usually carry a daily or monthly benefit maximum and an elimination period before benefits begin. Read your benefit summary and ask the carrier three questions: does my policy pay a family caregiver, what is my benefit maximum, and is there an elimination period? We bill long-term care insurance companies directly, so once you know your benefits we can file the claim against your policy.

Does Insurance Cover Home Care in Colorado?

Where Colorado CareAssist fits

Respite Care, So You Can Have a Break

We are not one of the programs above, and we do not hire or pay family caregivers. Colorado CareAssist is a home care agency and a VA Community Care Network provider: we bill long-term care insurance companies directly, and we bill the VA directly for authorized care, so families receive no invoice from us for those hours. We do not bill Medicaid. What we can do for a family caregiver is give you a break. Respite care is a scheduled block of hours where one of our caregivers looks after your parent so that you can sleep, see your own family, run an errand or simply stop for a few hours. You stay the caregiver; we cover the shift.

Respite care for families

What respite care is, how many hours a family usually books, and how to plan the first one.

All of our home care services

Personal care, companionship, dementia care and live-in care, with regional rates on one page.

The bigger picture

Paying for Someone Else's Care

Paying a family caregiver is one route. Paying any home care provider is another, and the two are often separate decisions made by different people. Our guide to paying for home care in Colorado compares the four funding routes a Colorado family can act on — VA Aid and Attendance, VA homemaker and home health aide care, long-term care insurance, and Health First Colorado home and community-based services — with the official page that sets each one's rules.

If a veteran is in the picture, our Colorado veterans guide covers the VA side in more detail, and our VA Community Care guide explains how an authorized referral turns into care in the home.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there a limit on how many hours a family caregiver can be paid?: For Health First Colorado services, yes. HCPF is phasing in a weekly limit per caregiver, per member, that applies to every delivery model, including CDASS and IHSS: 84 hours from July 1, 2026, 70 hours from January 1, 2027 and 56 hours from July 1, 2027. HCPF also takes exception requests, so ask your case manager how the limit applies to you.
Can a family member be a paid caregiver in Colorado?: In several of the programs on this page, yes. Health First Colorado's CDASS option lets a member choose family members, friends or others, with some restrictions, as paid caregivers, and IHSS lets a member select and supervise their own attendants including family members. The VA's Veteran-Directed Care page says the workers a veteran hires might include their own family member or neighbor. Rules about who can be paid, and about paying a spouse, differ by program, so check the rules of the one you are applying to.
Does Colorado CareAssist hire or pay family caregivers?: No. We are a home care agency, not an employer of family caregivers. The programs on this page pay family members through the government or through an agency or fiscal intermediary, not through us. What we offer a family caregiver is respite: a scheduled block of hours where one of our caregivers looks after your parent so you can have a break.
Which of these can I get without being on Medicaid?: The VA programs do not require Medicaid. Veteran-Directed Care is for enrolled Veterans who are eligible for community care and meet the clinical criteria, and the VA Caregiver Support Program is for caregivers of Veterans enrolled in VA health care. CDASS and IHSS are Health First Colorado programs, so they require Health First Colorado membership. The National Family Caregiver Support Program reaches caregivers through the Area Agencies on Aging rather than through Medicaid.
How long does it take to get approved?: Each program sets its own timetable and none of the official pages we cite publishes a fixed number of weeks, so we are not going to invent one. What we can say is that the VA tells applicants to submit a joint application and then take part in evaluations including a veteran assessment and a home-care assessment in the veteran's home, which is several steps rather than one. Start with the case manager or social worker named on the program's page rather than waiting on a date.
Do these programs pay for respite too?: Yes, several of them name respite as one of the services. The VA lists respite care among the Caregiver Support Program services. The Elderly, Blind and Disabled waiver lists respite among its services. And the Colorado National Family Caregiver Support Program lists respite care to let a caregiver be temporarily relieved of their caregiving duties.
I am the caregiver and I am also burning out. What do I do first?: Ask for respite before anything else, and ask your case manager, social worker or Area Agency on Aging what is available in your area. You can book respite privately through a home care agency as well, which is what we do. Either way, respite is the one item on this page that does not require an application, a waiver slot or an eligibility decision.

Take the Next Step

Caring for a parent or spouse at home?

We can cover the shift so you can rest, and we will walk you through the benefit routes your family may qualify for. No obligation, and we will tell you plainly when a program is not the right fit.

Get a Free Consultation (303) 757-1777