The Community Alternatives Program for Disabled Adults (CAP/DA) is North Carolina's Medicaid 1915(c) home- and community-based services waiver for adults 18+ who need a nursing-facility level of care but want to remain at home. It covers up to 18 in-home and community-based services, including adult day health, in-home aide services, home modifications and equipment, meal preparation, respite care, personal emergency response systems, and consumer-directed care that lets the beneficiary hire and supervise their own caregiver.
The detail behind the program
For an Apex family trying to keep a parent in their own home rather than moving to a facility, CAP/DA is the relevant NC Medicaid program — but it's worth being precise about what it does and doesn't fund. It's designed for people living in their own home or community setting, not in an adult care home or nursing facility, so it does not pay room and board of any kind. What it can fund is a fairly wide menu of practical in-home supports, from a wheelchair ramp or bathroom grab bars to a paid in-home aide, and the consumer-directed care option lets a family in western Wake County choose and manage their own caregiver rather than being assigned one through an agency, which many families find gives them more control and continuity.
Related questions
- Will NC Medicaid pay for the room-and-board cost of an assisted living community in Cary?
- How do I actually apply for CAP/DA if my mother lives in Raleigh?
- Is CAP/DA the same thing as Medicaid paying for assisted living in Wake County?
- What is State/County Special Assistance, and is it a Medicaid waiver?
- Did North Carolina's 2023 Medicaid expansion change anything about nursing home coverage for my father in Durham?
- What are the asset limits to qualify for nursing facility Medicaid in North Carolina in 2026?
- What's the income limit to qualify for nursing home Medicaid in North Carolina?
