Medicaid Planning
Medicaid Waiver Waitlists: HCBS & Assisted Living (2026)
Why waiver waitlists exist, average wait times by state, and how to apply while waiting for nursing home Medicaid.
7 min readUpdated 2026-06-20
Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) waivers may cover care in assisted living or at home, but most states have waitlists. Nursing home Medicaid typically has no waitlist when financially and clinically eligible.
What to do while waiting
- Apply for waiver placement as early as possible — even before a move
- Keep financial documentation updated annually
- Ask communities which waivers they accept
- Consider nursing home Medicaid if crisis placement is needed
Waiver rules by state
- Texas
- Florida
- California
- New York
- Pennsylvania
- Ohio
- Illinois
- Georgia
- Arizona
- North Carolina
- Michigan
- New Jersey
- Washington
- Massachusetts
- Virginia
- Colorado
- Minnesota
- Wisconsin
- Missouri
- Tennessee
- South Carolina
- Indiana
- Maryland
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arkansas
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Mississippi
- Montana
- Nebraska
- New Hampshire
- North Dakota
- New Mexico
- Nevada
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Rhode Island
- South Dakota
- Utah
- Vermont
- West Virginia
- Wyoming
- District of Columbia
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