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Hawaii · checked September 2026
How Hawaii helps pay for long-term care, who to call when you need help or something's wrong, and how to check a facility before you sign.
The first question
Yes, for the care. QUEST Integration long-term services and supports (home and community-based services) helps pay for care in assisted living. Rent and meals are usually still paid by the resident, often from Social Security.
Hawaii's Medicaid rules for long-term care, and the programs that pay for care outside a nursing home.
Ask the state Medicaid office
Hawaii has no hard income cap for nursing home Medicaid: nearly all income goes toward the cost of care, keeping a small personal needs allowance. For home and community care, confirm the current income limit with the state Medicaid office.
$2,000
2026
Single applicant. Confirm with the state Medicaid office before relying on it.
Hawaii doesn't use a hard cap. People over the limit can qualify by paying most of their income toward their care (a spend-down).
Apply for Med-QUEST (QUEST Integration)
Hawaii Department of Human Services, Med-QUEST Division
Hawaii's Medicaid health plans (QUEST Integration) cover long-term care for people whose doctor certifies they need a nursing home level of care. Covered services include assisted living services, care in Expanded Adult Residential Care Homes (E-ARCH) and Community Care Foster Family Homes (CCFFH), adult day care, personal care and respite. Medicaid pays for the care, not rent and meals. Long-term care applicants file extra forms with the regular application.
Waitlist: No waitlist information found on Med-QUEST pages.
State program that places SSI and Medicaid-eligible adults in licensed residential care homes. Ask the Med-QUEST or Aging and Disability Resource Center staff about it if a parent cannot live alone and has low income.
Hawaii adds a state supplement to SSI only for people living in foster care or domiciliary care homes. In 2026 the combined federal and state payment is $1,823 a month in an adult foster care home or a small care home (5 or fewer residents) and $1,931 in a larger one. The amount shown is the combined total, not the supplement alone.
Free, and on your side. Start with the aging office if you don't know where to begin.
The state's aging office and its local agencies explain your options, screen for programs and help with applications.
A free, independent advocate for residents of nursing homes and assisted living. Call about any problem with care, rights, billing or a discharge.
You don't need proof to report. If someone is in immediate danger, call 911.
Call to confirm hours. Call 911 if someone is in immediate danger.
Unbiased Medicare help from counselors who don't sell anything: plans, bills, appeals, and programs that lower costs.
Help spotting and reporting Medicare fraud, billing errors and scams.
In Hawaii, assisted living is licensed as: Assisted Living Facility; smaller homes are Adult Residential Care Homes (ARCH, Type I and II), Expanded ARCH (E-ARCH, for nursing-home-level residents) and Community Care Foster Family Homes (CCFFH). Read inspection reports before you sign anything.
Look up any licensed community and read its inspection reports online.
File a complaint
Medicare rates every nursing home on staffing, inspections and quality, with full inspection reports.
State veterans homes are often far cheaper than private care for eligible veterans and, in many states, their spouses.
Hawaii Office of Veterans' Services
Free legal help for older adults on issues like benefits, housing, powers of attorney and elder abuse.
Can a family member be paid to provide care?
The state's Kupuna Caregivers program pays agencies, not family members. Ask your QUEST Integration health plan whether self-directed personal care is available and whether a family member can be paid to provide it.
For family caregivers who work at least 30 hours a week and care for someone 60+. It pays service providers (not the caregiver) for things like adult day care, respite, personal care and meals. When launched it covered up to $70 a day in services; ask the ADRC for the current amount.
State-funded home and community services for older adults who are not in a nursing home: personal care, homemaker and chore help, home-delivered meals, adult day care, transportation and case management. Start with the Aging and Disability Resource Center.
Statewide dementia effort run by the Executive Office on Aging. Its website lists caregiver support groups, dementia education and a caregiver resource directory; call the ADRC for local help.
Yes, for the care part. In Hawaii, QUEST Integration long-term services and supports (home and community-based services) can pay for care in assisted living. Rent and meals are generally paid by the resident.
$2,000 for a single person (2026). Single applicant. Confirm with the state Medicaid office before relying on it.
The Hawaii Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program: (808) 586-7268. It's free and independent.
Researched from 27 sources, official pages first. Last checked .