Care Plan Checklist Elderly Parent Alaska

Why You Need a Care Plan Before Anything Else

A care plan is not a wish list — it is a structured document that maps your parent's clinical needs to specific services, funding sources, and responsible parties. Without one, you end up reacting to crises instead of managing them, and the state's public funding programs will not authorize services until you can demonstrate a documented clinical need.

Alaska's care coordination system is split across four agencies: Senior and Disabilities Services (clinical assessments and waiver management), the Division of Public Assistance (financial eligibility), regional Aging and Disability Resource Centers (options counseling and intake), and the Long-Term Care Ombudsman (resident advocacy). A care plan is the document that ties all four together.

Week 1: Safety Assessment and Legal Documents

Evaluate immediate risks. Walk through your parent's home and assess for fall hazards, medication management problems, nutritional neglect, and cognitive safety issues. Alaska's extreme winter conditions — icy walkways, short daylight hours, isolated properties — create risks that do not exist in most other states. If you identify evidence of abuse, neglect, or exploitation, file a Report of Harm with Adult Protective Services immediately.

Execute legal documents while capacity exists. If your parent can still understand and communicate decisions, have them sign a Durable Power of Attorney and an Advance Health Care Directive. The POA must include durable language — "this power of attorney shall not be affected by my subsequent incapacity" — and be acknowledged before a notary public. Under Alaska Statutes AS 13.26.332, banks and financial institutions are legally required to honor a properly executed statutory POA.

Contact the regional ADRC. Schedule a Person-Centered Intake interview. The ADRC will provide options counseling and connect you with certified care coordinators who can help build the formal care plan.

Weeks 2–3: Clinical Assessment and Care Coordination

Select a care coordinator. After the Person-Centered Intake, the ADRC provides a list of certified private care coordinators. The coordinator compiles your parent's clinical application packet and helps you navigate the waiver system.

Schedule the functional assessment. The care coordinator submits a clinical application to the SDS Assessment Unit. Gather your parent's medical diagnosis records, physician history reports, and current medication lists before the assessment. The evaluation can happen in person or via video teleassessment, and it takes up to two hours.

The legacy Consumer Assessment Tool (CAT) scored five core activities of daily living — bed mobility, transfers, locomotion, eating, and toilet use — on a scale from 0 (independent) to 4 (totally dependent). Under its standard rubric, scoring 3 or 4 on at least three of these five activities meets the nursing facility level-of-care criteria, one part of eligibility for institutional Medicaid or the Alaskans Living Independently waiver. Alaska is transitioning to the interRAI Home Care Tool during the 2026–2031 waiver cycle, so confirm current criteria with SDS.

Weeks 3–6: Financial Restructuring and Medicaid Application

Check income against the $2,982 monthly cap. Alaska is an income-cap state — if your parent's gross monthly income exceeds this threshold, they cannot qualify through standard spend-down. They need a Miller Trust: an irrevocable qualified income trust with a dedicated bank account that routes all monthly income through the trust.

Inventory countable assets. The limit for a single applicant is $2,000. Countable assets include checking and savings accounts, CDs, investments, and the applicant's retirement accounts. The primary residence is exempt if equity does not exceed $752,000. If your parent has a spouse in the community, spousal impoverishment protections allow the community spouse to retain up to $162,660 in joint countable assets.

Submit the Medicaid application. File Form MED 04 or Form GEN 50C with the Division of Public Assistance, along with 60 months of bank statements, proof of monthly income, and identity verification. DPA has up to 30 days to process the application.

Weeks 6–8: Facility Evaluation and Placement

Verify facility licensing. Check each prospective assisted living home's licensing status with the Division of Health Care Services, Residential Licensing Unit. Confirm whether the license is standard or probationary, and review any past citations or plans of correction.

Apply to the Pioneer Home waitlist. If you are considering a state Pioneer Home, submit a chronological waitlist application with a completed clinical History and Physical Report Form. Wait times vary by location and care level.

Coordinate with tribal health systems. For Alaska Native or American Indian elders, contact the regional tribal health organization — SEARHC, YKHC, Tanana Chiefs Conference, or Maniilaq — to check elder home availability and Purchased and Referred Care eligibility.

After Placement: Ongoing Monitoring

Review the assisted living plan. Within 30 days of admission, the facility must complete a written plan detailing how your parent's ADL needs and preferences will be addressed. State regulations require quarterly reviews if health-related services are provided, and annual reviews otherwise.

Track the care plan against actual care. The plan your care coordinator drafted is the authorized baseline. If the facility is not delivering the services documented in the support plan, contact the OLTCO at 1-800-730-6393.

The Alaska Care Decision Guide includes printable versions of this full checklist, plus a financial snapshot worksheet and facility tour scorecard, so you can track every step without losing details between calls and appointments.

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