Respite Care Tennessee: Options for Caregivers Who Need a Break

You've been your parent's primary caregiver for two years. You haven't taken a vacation. You've declined family gatherings, given up hobbies, and rearranged your work schedule around their needs. The stress is affecting your health, your relationships, and your job — and you know that if you break down, there's no backup plan for your parent.

Caregiver burnout is one of the leading reasons older adults end up in nursing facilities prematurely. Respite care — temporary relief for family caregivers — is the intervention that keeps the arrangement sustainable.

Here's what's available in Tennessee.

What Is Respite Care?

Respite care is temporary, short-term care for your parent that gives you, the primary caregiver, a break. It can take many forms:

• A few hours each week of in-home help so you can run errands or rest
• A full weekend away while a trained substitute caregiver stays with your parent
• A one- to two-week stay in a short-term residential facility so you can take a real vacation
• Adult day center attendance that provides daily breaks

The goal is caregiver relief, not just gap coverage. Respite that's viewed as an emergency backup misses the point — it works best when built into a regular care schedule as preventive maintenance.

Respite Through TennCare CHOICES

If your parent is enrolled in TennCare CHOICES Group 2 (home and community-based services), respite care is an authorized service under the program. It's included in the standard CHOICES service array and can be authorized in your parent's care plan.

CHOICES respite covers temporary substitute care when the primary caregiver is unavailable due to:

• Illness or injury
• Planned time away (vacation, family events)
• Work conflicts
• Emotional or physical exhaustion

Respite under CHOICES can be delivered:

• In-home (a CHOICES-contracted agency or consumer-directed worker provides care in your parent's home)
• Out-of-home (short-term stay in an adult day center or residential respite facility)

The number of authorized respite hours is set by the MCO care manager and reflects your parent's assessed needs and the primary caregiver's situation. Ask specifically about respite during your parent's annual care plan review, or request a mid-year review if caregiver needs have changed.

Respite Through the OPTIONS Program

If your parent is on the OPTIONS for Community Living program (state-funded, age 60+, no hard income limit), respite may also be available as part of their OPTIONS service plan.

OPTIONS is administered through Tennessee's regional AAADs. Contact your regional AAAD at 1-866-836-6678 and ask specifically about caregiver respite services within the OPTIONS program.

OPTIONS service caps are lower than CHOICES ($5,000–$7,000 annually), so OPTIONS-funded respite is more limited in scope.

National Family Caregiver Support Program

Tennessee's AAADs administer the National Family Caregiver Support Program (NFCSP), funded through Title III-E of the federal Older Americans Act. This program specifically targets the caregiver — not just the care recipient.

NFCSP services available through Tennessee AAADs include:

• Information and referral for caregivers
• Individual caregiver counseling
• Caregiver support groups
• Respite care — temporary in-home or out-of-home relief for the caregiver
• Supplemental services (supplies, modifications) to support the care situation

Eligibility: you must be a caregiver for an adult age 60+ (or any age with Alzheimer's or related dementia) or a grandparent/relative caregiver of a child.

There is no income test for NFCSP. However, funding is limited and respite services may have waitlists. Contact your regional AAAD to learn what's currently available.

Lifespan Respite Coalition of Tennessee

The Lifespan Respite Coalition of Tennessee is a statewide network that coordinates and advocates for respite resources across the state. They can help connect caregivers to respite options they might not find through standard agency channels, including faith-based respite programs, community volunteer programs, and specialized respite for caregivers of people with dementia.

Short-Term Residential Respite

For a week or two of truly uninterrupted respite — so you can travel, recover from illness, or simply rest — short-term residential placement is the option. This means your parent temporarily stays in:

• An assisted living facility that accepts short-term respite stays
• A skilled nursing facility (if Medicare-covered rehabilitation is ending and a transition period is needed)
• An adult family home

Not all facilities accept short-term respite admissions, and those that do may have minimum stay requirements. Call ahead and book early — short-term respite beds fill quickly.

If your parent is on TennCare CHOICES, ask the MCO care manager whether short-term facility respite can be authorized under the care plan. Coverage for out-of-home respite under CHOICES is possible but requires prior authorization.

Adult Day Centers as Built-In Respite

Tennessee's adult day health centers provide structured daytime programming for older adults and those with dementia or disabilities. Attending a few days a week gives your parent social engagement, meals, and supervised activities — and gives you predictable free hours to work, run errands, or simply recover.

Adult day care in Tennessee costs approximately $78 per day for private-pay clients ($1,733/month at 5 days/week). For TennCare CHOICES members, adult day health is a covered service.

From a caregiver sustainability standpoint, regular adult day attendance is one of the most effective respite tools available — it's structured, predictable, and provides your parent with social connection and engagement they may not otherwise get.

Emergency Respite: When There's No Plan

If you're in a caregiver crisis — illness, injury, family emergency — and have no coverage in place, contact:

1. Your parent's TennCare MCO — emergency respite authorization can sometimes be expedited
2. The regional AAAD (1-866-836-6678) — they may have emergency respite resources
3. Your parent's physician or hospital social worker — if hospitalization is imminent, they can trigger discharge planning support
4. Local faith communities — many churches and synagogues have informal caregiver support networks

The lesson is to establish respite resources before you need them urgently. A relationship with an agency, an AAAD care coordinator, or a respite facility that knows your parent is infinitely more useful than a cold call during a crisis.

Sustainable home care in Tennessee requires planning for the caregiver as much as for the person being cared for. The Tennessee Home Care & Aging in Place Guide covers TennCare CHOICES services, caregiver support programs, and practical strategies for building a home care plan that doesn't depend on one person running themselves into the ground.

See more Tennessee guides →