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Stair Lift Assistance in Pennsylvania: Who Pays and How to Apply (2026)

Stair lift assistance in Pennsylvania: what the 2026 Community HealthChoices waiver says on stair lifts, the OPTIONS program for over 60s, and a 0% PATF loan.

By ElderHearth Editorial Team · July 4, 2026 · Updated September 14, 2026 · 9 min read

A home staircase in Pennsylvania, the kind a stair lift is fitted to

ElderHearth offers general information, not medical, legal, or financial advice. Program rules change; confirm current details with the agencies linked below.

Pennsylvania has three separate doors for stair lift assistance in Pennsylvania, and they are not interchangeable. Community HealthChoices, the state's Medicaid long-term care program, names stair lifts in its 2026 waiver as a covered home adaptation. The OPTIONS program, run through county Area Agencies on Aging, has no income test at all. And the Pennsylvania Assistive Technology Foundation lends up to $7,000 at zero interest, with stair glides on its list of what the money is for. Medicare is not one of the doors; it does not pay for stair lifts anywhere. Which door fits depends on your parent's income, their age, and how much help they need day to day, so this guide takes them in that order.

Does Medicaid cover stair lifts in Pennsylvania?

Yes, and the waiver says so by name. The Home Adaptations service in the Community HealthChoices waiver for the current year lists "Stair gliders and stair lifts. A stair lift is a chair or platform that travels on a rail, installed to follow the slope and direction of a staircase, which allows a user to ride up and down stairs safely" among the adaptations a plan may fund.

There is an order of payment, and it matters for how long approval takes. The waiver says the regular Medicaid benefit comes first: "The MA State Plan will cover home accessibility durable medical equipment, including but not limited to, wheelchair lifts, stair glides, ceiling lifts, and metal accessibility ramps, which are medically necessary to enter and exit the home or to support activities of daily living". The waiver's own Home Adaptations money is the backstop. Per the same document, "Home Adaptations may only be funded through the waiver when the services are not covered by a responsible third-party, such as Medicare or private insurance, and when all other payors and community resources have been exhausted." In practice that means the service coordinator will document a Medicare denial and check the State Plan route before the waiver pays, which is paperwork rather than a refusal.

Two more conditions apply before anything is installed. The request needs a professional evaluation, and the waiver specifies who: "the independent evaluation must be conducted by an occupational therapist or a physical therapist". And the plan can rent rather than buy: "Rent-to-purchase vertical lifts and stair glides may be rented provided the rental cost does not exceed the purchase price." If the need is expected to be short, say a recovery after surgery, expect a rental to be proposed.

Community HealthChoices home modifications: what the plan will not approve

The waiver is unusually specific about refusals, and it is better to know them before the evaluation than after. From the waiver text:

  • The house itself can disqualify the request. "Adaptations will not be approved if the home is in foreclosure, delinquent tax status, is not structurally sound, or the adaptation presents a safety concern based on applicable state and local building codes." Unpaid property taxes are the easy one to overlook.
  • Cheapest workable option wins. "Home adaptations must be obtained in the least expensive, most cost-effective manner." A curved rail will not be approved where a straight one and a small landing change would do.
  • Renters need the landlord in writing. For a rental property the waiver requires that "written permission is secured from the property owner for the adaptation" and that "the landlord will not increase the rent because of the adaptation."
  • It has to be a disability need, not a household upgrade. "Home Adaptations must be an item of modification that the family would not be expected to provide to a family member without a disability or specialized needs."
  • Not in a facility setting. "This service may not be provided to participants receiving Residential Habilitation or residing in Assisted Living Residences, Domiciliary Care Homes or other provider owned and operated settings." This is for a private home.

Who qualifies in Pennsylvania (2026)

Community HealthChoices is an adult program with its own entry rules. The state's CHC page describes it as "Pennsylvania's long-term services and supports managed care program for people eligible for both Medicaid and Medicare, as well as individuals 21 or older with physical disabilities." To get the long-term services that include home adaptations, your parent also has to be assessed as needing a nursing-facility level of care, which the enrollment broker arranges (next section).

The money limits come from the Department of Human Services page on Medicaid payment of long-term care:

  • Income. "For 2026, the individual income limit is $2,982." That figure is 300 percent of the federal SSI benefit rate and resets each January.
  • Countable resources. "If your income is below or equal to 300 percent of the FBR (currently $2,982), the resource limit is $2,000 with an additional $6,000 resource disregard." Read together, an applicant under the income line can hold about $8,000 in countable assets.
  • The house does not count, within a limit: the home is excluded "If the value of the home is less than or equal to $752,000 and you intend to return to the home or are residing in it". One vehicle and burial plots are also excluded.

If your parent's income is above $2,982, the same page describes a medically needy route where the anticipated cost of care is deducted from income, and that is an elder-law conversation rather than something to work out from a web page.

How to apply for stair lift help in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania routes long-term care applications through one contractor, the Independent Enrollment Broker, so there is one phone call to start.

  1. Call the PA IEB at 1-877-550-4227. The broker's site reads: "If you have questions about the PA IEB application process call the PA IEB Helpline at 1-877-550-4227 (TTY: 711)." Your parent's doctor will need to complete a Physician Certification Form, which the IEB site links.
  2. The assessment comes to you. According to the state's CHC page, "The IEB will schedule an in-person assessment for you, which is done in your home, in a hospital, or in a nursing facility". The same page adds, "The IEB will also help you complete a Medicaid application, which is sent to the county assistance office (CAO)." You do not need to have Medicaid first.
  3. Pick a plan, or one is picked for you. Per the state, "The MCOs are AmeriHealth Caritas, PA Health & Wellness, and UPMC Community HealthChoices." And: "If you do not make a selection, a CHC plan will be assigned to you. If you want to change your CHC plan, you may do so at any time."
  4. Ask the service coordinator for Home Adaptations by that name. The plan assigns a service coordinator who writes the person-centered service plan. The stair lift has to be in that plan, backed by the OT or PT evaluation above. Once enrolled, questions go to the CHC Helpline at 1-844-824-3655.

Over 60 but over the income line: the OPTIONS program

This door is easy to miss, because it is outside Medicaid and it is run county by county. The Department of Aging's OPTIONS page states that "The OPTIONS program provides assistance to Pennsylvania residents, age 60 and older who would like to stay in their home." On money: "There are no income requirements to participate in the program." The same page adds that a person may be asked to contribute to the cost of their services on a sliding co-payment scale that depends on their income.

Home modifications are on the OPTIONS list, but as a supplemental service, and the page is explicit that "Supplemental services may also be available based on the local Area Agency on Aging." So whether a stair lift is fundable depends on which county your parent lives in and what that AAA has budgeted this year. The way to find out is to call the county Area Agency on Aging directly, or the Department of Aging at 717-783-1550 to be connected to it, and ask two questions: does this AAA fund home modifications under OPTIONS, and is there a waiting list.

A zero-interest loan for the part nobody covers

Even with approval, families end up paying for something: a rental that ran past its term, a curved rail the plan would not fund, a lift for a parent whose income is a few dollars over the line. The Pennsylvania Assistive Technology Foundation, a nonprofit, exists for that gap.

PATF's loan page lists two products as of April 2026. The Mini-Loan runs from $100 to $7,000 at 0 percent interest; "Minimum monthly payment of $20. Maximum repayment term is 4 years." Above $7,000, a Low-Interest Loan through partner banks is listed at 3.75 percent. Stair glides appear on the foundation's own list of examples of what it lends for. On a straight lift priced at $4,000, the arithmetic at 0 percent over 48 months is about $83 a month.

There is also a small grant, but only alongside a loan. From the same page: "These grants are designed to reduce the loan amount by up to 50%, with a maximum grant of $1,000." Eligibility is income-tested: "Applicants must have a household income at or below 200% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines in almost all instances." PATF does not make grants on their own.

If your parent is a veteran

Before any of the three doors above, a veteran with a service-connected disability should apply for the VA's Specially Adapted Housing or Special Home Adaptation grant. The VA amounts are larger than anything the state pays and they are not income-tested, so a veteran who qualifies skips the IEB queue entirely. The current federal figures are in our national guide to help paying for a stair lift.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Medicaid cover stair lifts in Pennsylvania? Yes, through Community HealthChoices. The 2026 waiver lists stair lifts by name under Home Adaptations, but the plan pays only after Medicare, private insurance and the regular Medicaid equipment benefit have been checked, and an occupational or physical therapist has to evaluate the need first.

How do I get a free stair lift in Pennsylvania? For a parent under the Medicaid income and asset limits, call the Independent Enrollment Broker at 1-877-550-4227 and ask for a CHC assessment. For a parent over 60 who does not qualify for Medicaid, ask the county Area Agency on Aging whether OPTIONS funds home modifications this year. Neither route is guaranteed, and the OPTIONS answer varies by county.

What is the income limit for Medicaid long-term care in Pennsylvania in 2026? $2,982 a month for one person, with a $2,000 resource limit plus a $6,000 disregard. The home is not counted if its value is $752,000 or less and your parent lives in it or intends to return.

Does Community HealthChoices cover home modifications in a rented house? It can, but the waiver requires the landlord's written permission and a commitment not to raise the rent because of the adaptation. A month-to-month arrangement will be a harder case than a signed lease.

Which door, in which order

The order to try in Pennsylvania is the order above: the IEB if income is under the line, the county AAA if your parent is over 60 and it is not, and PATF for whatever is left. The person who does the CHC assessment is also the person who can tell you whether your parent's own care hours could be paid to a family member; that program is covered in how to get paid to care for a parent in Pennsylvania. The lift itself is the smaller decision; our honest stair lift comparison is where to go once the money is settled, and does Medicare cover stair lifts? answers the question every family asks first. If you would rather have the whole plan read through by someone who is not selling a lift, our inbox is open.

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