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

Stair lift assistance in Tennessee: CHOICES minor home modification caps ($6,000 a project, $20,000 lifetime), Group 2 vs Group 3, and THDA's $24,999 grant.

By ElderHearth Editorial Team · July 8, 2026 · Updated September 18, 2026 · 6 min read

A home staircase in Tennessee, 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.

Tennessee publishes the number that decides a request for stair lift assistance in Tennessee, and it is smaller than the lifetime figure. TennCare's CHOICES program pays for minor home modifications up to $20,000 over a member's lifetime, but no single project may cost more than $6,000. A straight stair lift can come in under that line; a curved one will not. The second thing worth knowing before anyone calls is that Tennessee has a state repair grant for homeowners over 60 that lists accessibility work among its eligible repairs, with a lifetime maximum of $24,999 and no Medicaid requirement. This page walks through both, then the phone numbers.

The three caps on a CHOICES minor home modification

TennCare's CHOICES Benefit Table, last updated March 2026, describes the service in one sentence: "Changes to your home that will help you get around more easily and safely like grab bars or a wheelchair ramp." The limits column reads "$6,000 per project; $10,000 per calendar year (January 1-December 31 each year); and $20,000 per lifetime (Not counted as part of overall service limit for CHOICES 3 members.)" Neither the table nor TennCare's CHOICES page names a stair lift, so the request goes in as a change to the home that helps the member get around safely, and it rests on the care coordinator's assessment. TennCare's CHOICES page states the general condition: "All services and supports must be determined medically necessary prior to approval and provision."

The per-project figure is the one to plan around. Installed price ranges for straight and curved lifts are in our guide to help paying for a stair lift; a straight rail on a standard staircase often quotes under $6,000, and a curved rail does not. Two other lines in the table matter for the years after installation. Assistive Technology, defined as low-cost items such as grabbers, is capped at $900 a calendar year, and Enabling Technology, meaning sensors and remote support devices, at $5,000 a year; neither is a stair lift fund, but both cover the smaller purchases that tend to arrive with one. The lifetime cap is shared with every other modification the house will need, so a bathroom done first leaves less for the stairs.

Group 2 or Group 3: which door the lift comes through

CHOICES has three groups, and the benefit table marks minor home modifications for Groups 2 and 3; Group 1 is nursing home care. TennCare's CHOICES page defines the two: "CHOICES Group 2 is for adults (age 21 and older) with a physical disability and seniors (age 65 and older) who qualify to receive nursing home care but choose to receive home care services instead." And: "CHOICES Group 3 is for adults (age 21 and older) with a disability and seniors (age 65 and older) who don't qualify for nursing home care but still need care to delay or prevent the need for nursing home care."

Group 3 is where a parent who is still mostly independent, but no longer safe on the stairs, may be screened, and it has a ceiling. Per the same page, Group 3 requires that the applicant "Be receiving SSI (Supplemental Security Income) payments or qualify for Medicaid Long-Term Services and Supports", and "As of October 1, 2022, based on current appropriations, there is an enrollment target of 1,750 for non-SSI recipients". The target, as the page words it, is for non-SSI recipients, so a parent who qualifies only on the Medicaid financial test is the one competing for a limited number of places. The difference between the two groups, and how the level of care assessment works, is the subject of our TennCare CHOICES eligibility guide.

The 2026 financial test, and who to call

TennCare's CHOICES page puts the money rules in three numbered lines. Income: "Your income can't be more than $2,982 per month for 2026 (three times the SSI Federal Benefit limit; changes annually)", with the note that if it is, "you may be able to set up a Qualifying Income Trust". Assets: "The total value of things you own can't be more than $2,000 (The home where you live doesn't count)". And the look-back: "You can't have given away or sold anything for less than what it's worth in the last five (5) years." The house is exempt; savings, and any gift or below-value sale in the last five years, are what the application asks about.

Where to apply depends on whether the parent already has TennCare. For someone who does not, the page says "The Area Agencies on Aging and Disability (AAAD) can assist applicants not currently enrolled in TennCare in the application process", and gives one number: "Call 1-866-836-6678 from anywhere in the state to be automatically directed to your nearest Area Agency." Current TennCare members apply through their health plan instead: BlueCare at 888-747-8955, UnitedHealthcare Community Plan at 800-690-1606, or Wellpoint at 833-731-2153. Whichever door, say on the first call that the stairs are the risk and that a lift is the request, because the level of care assessment and the care plan that follows are what the modification has to be written into. If a family member will provide the daily care, CHOICES Consumer Direction lets the member hire them; see how to get paid to care for a parent in Tennessee.

THDA's repair grant, for an owner who is not on TennCare

The Tennessee Housing Development Agency's Emergency Repair Program is aimed at older homeowners, and its eligible list includes accessibility work. The program "exists to correct, repair, or replace an essential system and/or critical structural problem that poses an immediate danger to life, safety, or health of low-income homeowners who are elderly (60+) or disabled." Among the eligible repairs is "Accessibility Improvements: Where necessary for a homeowner with age-related limitations or a physical disability to access and use the home for one or more major life activities." Money, from the same page: "Assistance is made available to eligible, individual homeowners in the form of a grant that does not have to be repaid", "No liens are placed against the property, and there is no minimum compliance period", and "The lifetime maximum grant amount per homeowner is $24,999."

The qualifications are stricter than the CHOICES ones in two places and looser in one. Per THDA, the applicant "Must have lived in the home for at least three years prior to applying", "Must have an ownership interest in the property being repaired", and "Must be current on the payment of local property taxes." Income limits apply and vary by county. There is no Medicaid test and no level of care assessment. The route is local: "THDA does NOT accept applications from homeowners for this program"; the application goes to the ERP agency for the county, which THDA lists on that page. Funding is finite, "$2.7 million is allocated state-wide every year", and each agency may add its own criteria, so the question to ask the local agency is whether accessibility requests are being funded this cycle and whether a stair lift has been approved as one before. A parent behind on property taxes should look at Tennessee's property tax relief for seniors first, since that condition can be fixed.

One program to set aside: THDA's Home Modifications and Ramps program, run by United Cerebral Palsy of Middle Tennessee, is a ramp program. UCP's Home Access page says it "serves Tennesseans with any disability that results in mobility impairment and the need for a wheelchair ramp", and that "due to funding limitations, there are waiting lists for this program." It is the right call for an entry ramp, not for a staircase. The rest of the state's programs for ramps, grab bars and bathrooms are in our guide to home modification grants for seniors in Tennessee.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Medicaid cover stair lifts in Tennessee? TennCare's CHOICES program can pay for one as a minor home modification for a member in Group 2 or Group 3, if the care coordinator finds it medically necessary and writes it into the care plan. The limits are $6,000 per project, $10,000 per calendar year and $20,000 per lifetime, and the benefit table's examples are grab bars and wheelchair ramps rather than stair lifts.

What counts as a TennCare CHOICES home modification? The benefit table defines it as changes to the home that help the member get around more easily and safely, with grab bars and wheelchair ramps as its examples, and requires that it be found medically necessary before approval. The per-project cap of $6,000 is the practical limit on any single item.

Can I get a free stair lift in Tennessee without Medicaid? A homeowner who is 60 or older or has a disability, has owned and lived in the home for three years, is current on property taxes and meets the county income limit can apply to THDA's Emergency Repair Program through the local ERP agency. It is a grant with no lien, accessibility improvements are on its eligible list, and the lifetime maximum is in the THDA section above. A veteran with a service-connected disability should also ask the VA about its Specially Adapted Housing and Special Home Adaptation grants, which have no state income test; the current figures are in help paying for a stair lift.

Who do I call to apply for CHOICES in Tennessee? If your parent is not on TennCare, call 1-866-836-6678 to reach the Area Agency on Aging and Disability for their county. If they already have TennCare, call their health plan: BlueCare, UnitedHealthcare Community Plan or Wellpoint.

Which number to get first

Get the installer's quote before either application, because the quote is what tells you which door fits: under $6,000 for a single project and the CHOICES route is open if your parent qualifies; over it, the THDA grant and the veterans' grants are the two doors on this page that reach a curved rail. Our honest stair lift comparison is for choosing the model once the money is settled, and does Medicare cover stair lifts? answers the relative who is sure Medicare will. The stair lift is one item in the aging-in-place plan for the house, and the rest of the state's programs are collected in our Tennessee senior care resources. If you want a second reader on the quote or the care plan, write to us.

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