When You Need Help

WA Cares Benefits Available July 1, 2026

Group of five construction workers standing outside a glass building, smiling and looking at the camera. They are wearing safety gear including helmets, vests, and work boots.

Applications are open for Washingtonians enrolled in WA Cares who need assistance with at least three or more activities of daily living for more than 90 days.

Long-term care differs from regular health care, urgent care or shorter-term rehabilitation and recovery.

When a person needs help with at least 3 essential activities of daily living for longer than 90 days to maintain their quality of life, that’s long-term care.

WA Cares benefits are not for shorter-term needs, such as a few weeks of immobility during recovery from a surgery.

Should you apply for WA Cares benefits?

If in doubt, ask! Call 844-CARE4WA(844-227-3492). A WA Cares assessor will determine if you need help with at least 3 activities of daily living for longer than 90 days. 

What are activities of daily living?

Two women sitting at a table looking at a laptop screen displaying furniture products, in a brightly lit room with large windows.

Activities of daily living, or ADLs, is a term used to describe the basic essential things we need to do each day – things like getting in and out of bed, on and off the toilet, taking medication on time, making meals or feeding yourself, taking a bath or shower and getting dressed safely.

To qualify for WA Cares benefits you must need help with at least 3 activities of daily living in any category.

WA Cares will count any activities that you need supervision (like monitoring, cueing or set-up assistance) to complete.

Activities of daily living can include:

  • Need Help With Moving: This means needing assistance getting around inside and outside of your home - such as using stairs, moving on uneven ground, or getting over curbs. 

  • Need Help With Bed Mobility: This means needing someone to help you move to and from a lying position while on the couch, recliner, or bed. 

  • Need Help With Transferring: This means needing a hand to get in and out of a chair, couch, bed, or other furniture, or to get in or out of a wheelchair. 

  • Need Help With Toileting: This includes needing help moving to the toilet, using the toilet or wiping, changing pads or briefs, getting up and down off the toilet, emptying a catheter bag, or accessing a bed pan or bedside commode. 

  • Need Help With Personal Hygiene: This includes needing someone to help you with shaving, washing your hair, getting dressed or undressed, putting on socks or shoes, brushing your teeth, denture care, or other daily hygiene activities. 

  • Need Help With Bathing: This means needing assistance with taking a bath, shower, or sponge bath and includes getting in and out of the tub or shower. 

  • Need Help with Fixing Meals: This includes needing help planning and preparing food, cooking, serving yourself or feeding yourself.

  • Need Help With Housework: This includes needing assistance with doing dishes, vacuuming, cleaning bathrooms, taking out the garbage, and laundry.

  • Need Help With Managing Medication: This includes needing assistance with tracking taking daily medications, blood pressure, blood sugar, and other regular needs.

  • Need Help With Shopping: This includes needing help with getting and putting away food and medication.

  • Need Help With Transportation: This includes needing assistance with traveling to and from health care providers.

  • Need Help With Cognition: This covers how you are able to use information, make decisions, and ensure your daily needs are met. This includes when you require supervision or cueing due to disorientation to person, place or time, short-term or long-term memory problem, impaired decision making, or wandering.

Learn more

Should They Apply For WA Cares Benefits?

  • Linda, a 49-year-old accountant, was in a bad car accident. Doctors expect her recovery will be limited and she will need help for at least 8 months. Her husband wants to take time off of work to care for her, but they can’t afford the loss in his income after his Paid Family Leave runs out.

    She needs help with:

    • Walking up even a few stairs

    • Putting on shoes and socks

    • Getting in and out of the bathtub or shower

    • Getting off and on the toilet

    • Carrying groceries and putting them away

    • Standing at the stove to cook

    Answer: Yes, Linda needs support with more than three daily activities of daily living (ADLs) for more than 90 days.  WA Cares may pay a home caregiver to come in and help her or it can pay her husband to be a family caregiver while she’s recovering.


  • Timothy, a 55-year-old bus driver who lives alone, was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's that is causing cognitive impairment, and his glaucoma will eventually cause blindness. He forgets to eat, take his medication, and sometimes he wanders outside and gets lost. He and his daughter, who visits every day, want him to stay safely at home as long as he can.

    He requires help with:

    • Managing medications

    • Bathing 

    • Shaving and putting on clothes

    • Getting to and from doctors appointments

    • Preparing meals

    Answer: Yes, Timothy needs support with more than three ADLs to live safely at home for more than 90 days.

    WA Cares may pay for a home caregiver to visit and help him, or pay his daughter to be his family caregiver, as well as pay for home modifications like a ramp, safety equipment, or wall guides.

  • Jose, a 34-year old software engineer, has Multiple Sclerosis. He works from home and lives alone, and his family lives on the other side of the country. MS is causing numbness, loss of balance, and mobility issues for Jose. He wants to stay in Seattle, close to his employer.

    He needs help with:

    • Moving around

    • Housekeeping

    • Shaving

    • Getting in and out of the bathtub

    • Cooking meals

    Answer: Yes, Jose needs help with more than three ADLs for more than 90 days. 

    WA Cares may pay for a home caregiver to help him with meals, housekeeping, and bathing and shaving.


  • Natasha, a 28-year-old security officer, was told by her doctor to stay on strict bed rest for the last two months of her pregnancy. She can get up and go to the bathroom, but that’s about it. Her partner works long shifts and can’t be home to help.

    She requires help with:

    • Carrying groceries and putting them away

    • Cooking and feeding herself during the day

    • Moving more than a few steps without help

    • Getting in and out of the bathtub

    • Getting to and from doctors’ appointments

    Answer: Probably not. While Natasha needs help with 3 or more ADLs, her care needs are for less than 90 days and do not qualify as long-term care.


How to apply for WA Cares
A smiling older man with glasses sitting on a motorized scooter, interacting with a young boy wearing a reflective safety vest and carrying an orange Halloween pumpkin bucket, on a city sidewalk.