The short answer: start with one call, then pick one door.
- A human navigator who can tell you what exists locally.
- Respite, training, and caregiver support so you are not carrying the whole role alone.
- Help at home such as personal care, adult day programs, transportation, meals, or safety modifications.
- Benefits, leave, or financial relief that may reduce the cost of caregiving.
This page is a 60-second starting map — not an eligibility decision. Official programs decide who qualifies. GiveCare can help you organize the search and point to programs worth checking; it does not decide eligibility.
For the longer walkthrough, see the wiki guide on what help you can get and the new caregiver guide.
If you need one first step
Call Eldercare Locator (1-800-677-1116) or search eldercare.acl.gov. Ask for your Area Agency on Aging or Aging and Disability Resource Center, then ask about respite, caregiver counseling, transportation, meals, benefits counseling, in-home help, and legal navigation.
If anyone is in immediate physical danger, call emergency services. If you are in emotional crisis or afraid of what you might do, call or text 988.
Four doors, one sentence each
Local navigation
Local programs are fragmented; a navigator who knows your county is usually the highest-leverage first move.
Respite and caregiver support
National Family Caregiver Support Program funding can support information, counseling, training, and respite through local aging networks — availability varies by area.
Help at home
Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services may cover personal care, adult day, homemaker help, and related supports so someone can stay at home; services and waitlists are state-specific.
Work and household benefits
Check leave rules, veterans caregiver programs, food or utility assistance, disability benefits, tax credits, and local nonprofit funds — start with the family caregiver benefits map and GiveCare Benefits.
If "getting paid" is the question, go to Can a Family Caregiver Get Paid in My State? rather than treating respite as payment.
What to gather before asking for help
Keep it short enough for one call:
- State and county
- Care recipient's age and main condition
- Whether they need help with bathing, dressing, medications, or supervision
- Coverage: Medicaid, Medicare, VA, private, or none
- What is breaking first: money, time, safety, paperwork, or your own health
Common mistakes
- Calling every number the same day instead of starting with Eldercare Locator or the Area Agency on Aging
- Treating respite as the same thing as getting paid to be a caregiver
- Skipping the Area Agency on Aging and jumping straight to federal websites
- Assuming one form or one program covers every kind of help
- Waiting until crisis before asking whether stress and load are already too high — see How Do I Know if Caregiver Stress Is Too High?
A practical order
Start with local navigation. Then check respite and caregiver support. Then check Medicaid or disability-related home care if the person needs hands-on help. Then check household benefits and leave rules — or the paid-caregiver path if income for care is the goal.
That order prevents a common trap: spending hours on a federal website when a local navigator could have told you which door applies in your county.
Related starting points
- Wiki: What help can I get?
- Wiki: New caregiver
- What benefits can family caregivers use?
- Can a family caregiver get paid in my state?
- How do I know if caregiver stress is too high?
- GiveCare Benefits