New Hampshire Family Caregiver Support Program: Respite Grants, Eligibility & How to Apply

You're Probably Eligible for Help You Haven't Claimed

Most adult children caring for a parent with dementia in New Hampshire have never heard of the Family Caregiver Support Program — even though it's specifically designed for them. The program is administered by the Bureau of Elderly and Adult Services (BEAS) and delivered locally through the same ServiceLink network that acts as the state's front door for every other aging service. It won't transform your situation, but it can pay for respite, fund training, and connect you to counseling — at no cost to you.

Here's what the program actually offers, who qualifies, and how to access it without getting lost in the system.

What the Family Caregiver Support Program Provides

The New Hampshire Family Caregiver Support Program (FCSP) is the state's implementation of the federal National Family Caregiver Support Program under the Older Americans Act. It's aimed at people providing uncompensated care to a loved one at home — exactly the situation of most families managing early-to-mid-stage dementia.

The core benefits:

• Respite grants. Short-term funding so someone else can provide care while you rest, work, or handle your own medical appointments. This is the benefit most caregivers actually want, and it's specifically targeted at families providing intensive, around-the-clock care.
• Information and counseling. Free, unbiased options counseling through ServiceLink's Person-Centered Options Counselors — covering Medicare, long-term care settings, and Medicaid eligibility.
• Caregiver education and training. Practical instruction on dementia care tasks: safe transfers, managing wandering behaviors, medication routines.
• Supplemental services. On a limited basis, things like home modifications or assistive devices that make caregiving safer.

One underused companion resource: ATinNH (Assistive Technology in New Hampshire) runs an equipment-lending library where caregivers can borrow safety and mobility aids — wandering alarms, communication devices, transfer equipment — free of charge to test before buying.

Who Qualifies

Eligibility is broader than most people assume. You generally qualify if you are an unpaid caregiver for:

• An adult aged 60 or older, or
• An adult of any age with Alzheimer's disease or a related dementia (this matters — early-onset dementia caregivers are covered), or
• A grandparent or older relative (55+) raising a grandchild.

There is no strict income test for the caregiver for most FCSP services — the program prioritizes caregivers by need rather than excluding by wealth. The person you're caring for does not need to be on Medicaid, and you don't need to be their legal guardian or hold power of attorney.

If you're also looking at subsidized in-home services for your parent directly, two related programs worth asking about in the same phone call:

• Older Americans Act Title III services — visiting nurse, personal care, homemaker help, and home-delivered meals for people 60+, prioritized by economic and social need.
• Social Services Block Grant (Title XX) — adult day care, in-home care, and chore services for adults 60+ (or chronically ill adults 18–60). This one does have an income test: effective January 1, 2026, the gross monthly income limit is $1,645 per person.

How to Actually Access It

Everything runs through ServiceLink, the state's network of Aging and Disability Resource Centers. There are about ten offices statewide — Manchester, Nashua, Keene, Laconia, Concord, and others — plus a toll-free line (1-866-634-9412) that routes you to your local center.

The practical sequence:

1. Call ServiceLink and say you're an unpaid caregiver for a parent with dementia and want a caregiver assessment for the Family Caregiver Support Program. Ask for respite specifically — that's where the money is.
2. Get the options counseling session. This is free and genuinely useful: the counselor will screen your parent for programs you didn't ask about (Title III meals, Title XX day care, the CFI waiver).
3. Ask about the CFI self-directed option if your parent might qualify for Medicaid. Under the Choices for Independence waiver's participant-directed services, eligible seniors can sometimes pay a family member to provide their care — a real answer for exhausted caregivers who've cut their work hours. CFI has capped enrollment and a waitlist, so apply early even if you're not sure you need it yet.
4. Contact the Alzheimer's Association New Hampshire Chapter in parallel. Their support groups and 24/7 helpline complement the state program and often move faster.

For a full directory of ServiceLink offices and what each one handles, see our ServiceLink New Hampshire guide. If respite is your immediate need, respite care options in New Hampshire covers the non-FCSP routes too.

The Bigger Picture for Dementia Caregivers

The FCSP helps you sustain home care — it doesn't solve the legal and financial exposure underneath it. Three things worth handling while your parent still has capacity:

• Legal authority. A durable financial power of attorney (RSA 564-E) and advance directive (RSA 137-J) cost nothing with statutory forms. Without them, losing capacity means probate-court guardianship under RSA 464-A — where incapacity must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt, at $3,000–$7,000+ in legal costs.
• Medicaid planning. If care eventually costs more than home support can cover, the 2026 limits ($2,982/month income cap, effectively $7,500 in countable assets for a single applicant) and the 60-month lookback make early planning valuable.
• The Caregiver Child exception. If you've lived in your parent's home for at least two years providing care that delayed institutionalization, you may be able to receive the home without a transfer penalty — but it requires two medical affidavits and precise documentation.

Our New Hampshire Dementia & Memory Care Guide walks through the full sequence — caregiver programs, legal documents, Medicaid eligibility, and memory-care transitions — in the order families actually hit them. Start with ServiceLink this week; it's the one call that opens every other door.

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