IHSS

Santa Clara County IHSS provides in-home assistance for eligible residents who need help with daily household and personal care tasks. This article explains who can receive In-Home Supportive Services, how to submit an application, what happens during the home assessment, and how recipients and caregivers manage approved services. It also covers provider enrollment, timesheets, work limits, and reporting changes so you can contact the appropriate office and avoid mistakes that affect care or payment.

Santa Clara County IHSS Services

The County of Santa Clara Social Services Agency administers IHSS for people who are blind, live with a disability, or are age 65 or older. The program helps eligible residents remain in their own homes as an alternative to nursing homes, board and care facilities, and other out-of-home care. A caregiver, called a provider, performs the household and personal care services authorized for the recipient.

The county’s In-Home Supportive Services program page explains the basic eligibility requirements and the kinds of assistance available. Services are free to county residents who are fully eligible for the program. IHSS does not provide housing assistance.

Recipients and providers have different roles. A recipient is the person approved to receive care. A provider is the person enrolled to perform that care. Providers are considered employees of the recipient, and a provider may be a family member, a friend, or another person who completes the required enrollment process through the Public Authority.

Household and Personal Care Tasks

IHSS can assist with specific daily activities. The county identifies the following examples of services the program can provide:

Light household chores, also called domestic services.
Meal preparation and cleanup.
Routine laundry.
Shopping for food.
Bathing and hygiene.
Dressing.
Bowel and bladder care.
Ambulation, or assistance with moving around.

These examples describe the program’s scope. The services approved for an individual recipient depend on the county’s assessment. A household should use the recipient’s authorization to determine which tasks the provider is expected to perform and how much time is allowed.

Tasks Outside the Program

IHSS does not cover every activity someone might need help completing. The county excludes paying bills, moving furniture, reading mail or documents to the recipient, watching television, fixing things in the home, outside entertainment, and caring for pets or service animals. It also does not provide care while the recipient is hospitalized.

This distinction matters when discussing duties with a caregiver. An arrangement to help with household needs does not make every task payable through IHSS. Recipients are responsible for ensuring that their providers perform authorized services, and providers must report only the hours they actually worked within the program’s rules.

Eligibility and Medi-Cal Coverage

To receive IHSS in Santa Clara County, you must be blind, live with a disability, or be age 65 or older. You must also live at home in Santa Clara County and have Medi-Cal. The county reviews your application and care needs before authorizing services.

Medi-Cal and IHSS involve separate decisions. Medi-Cal provides health coverage, while the IHSS process determines the in-home services and hours you need. A Medi-Cal approval does not identify your IHSS tasks or monthly care hours; those details appear in the IHSS authorization.

Medi-Cal Applications and Renewals

If you need health coverage, the county’s Medi-Cal application and coverage information explains how to apply. Medi-Cal has no annual sign-up period, so applications can be submitted at any time. A County Eligibility Worker determines eligibility, and paper documents may be required when information cannot be verified electronically.

Keeping coverage current also requires attention to renewal notices. Medi-Cal coverage may renew automatically when the county can verify all required information electronically. Otherwise, the county sends a renewal form that must be completed and returned with requested documents. Failing to return it on time can result in loss of coverage.

Keep Medi-Cal matters separate from IHSS care questions. Your County Eligibility Worker handles your Medi-Cal case. Your IHSS social worker handles changes in your care needs and contact information for your IHSS case. If you receive notices from both programs, read each one for the decision and action it concerns.

The IHSS Application Process

The county’s instructions for applying to receive IHSS care outline the application, health certification, home visit, approval, and provider hiring steps. Use the recipient application process when you are seeking care for yourself or helping someone apply. The provider enrollment process is for the person who will perform the paid services.

Information to Gather Before Applying

Have your contact information, date of birth, Social Security number, and Medi-Cal number ready. You may also need the same information for your spouse, guardian, or contact person. Gathering these details before completing the application helps you provide the information the county requests.

The county accepts completed IHSS applications by email, fax, mail, or in person. The application email address is IHSSapply@ssa.sccgov.org, and the application fax number is (408) 792-1837. The street and mailing addresses appear in the office list at the end of this article.

Use the application contact information for a new request to receive care. The county provides a different fax number for provider designation paperwork, so the destination depends on the document you are submitting.

Health Care Certification

Your doctor must complete and sign a Health Care Certification Form before you can receive IHSS. Submitting an application is therefore only one part of the process. The medical certification must also be completed.

Discuss the form with your doctor as part of preparing your application. Do not treat an unsigned or unfinished certification as a completed requirement. The county’s recipient application page provides access to the Health Care Certification Form.

The Social Worker’s Home Visit

An IHSS social worker visits your home to determine the types of services you need and the number of hours needed to provide them. The assessment considers your medical condition, living arrangement, and resources that may already be available.

Prepare to explain your daily needs in terms of actual tasks. For example, describe the help you need with bathing, dressing, laundry, meal preparation, or moving around your home. Explain your living arrangement and any assistance already available so the social worker can assess your circumstances.

Give an accurate account of your abilities and needs. The assessment is used to determine services, and recipients must report known facts about their level of need. A diagnosis alone does not communicate all the practical details of the assistance required at home.

The Notice of Action

The county sends a letter called a Notice of Action, or NOA, telling you whether you have been approved for IHSS. An approval identifies the authorized services, the time allowed for each service, and the total approved monthly hours.

Read these parts together before arranging a caregiver’s duties. The monthly total describes the approved amount of care, while the service entries explain what that care includes. Use the authorization when discussing responsibilities with a provider and reviewing submitted time.

Hiring and Managing a Provider

After IHSS services are approved, you can hire one or more people to provide your care. A friend or relative may become your provider, or you may hire someone through the Public Authority Registry. Anyone providing paid IHSS services must complete the required provider enrollment process.

As the recipient, you are the employer of record. You are responsible for hiring, training, and, when necessary, firing your provider. You must also ensure that the provider performs the authorized tasks. County approval of your services does not replace these responsibilities.

Electronic Access for Recipients

The county directs recipients to create an account in the Electronic Services Portal, or ESP. The portal enables you to hire your provider and link that person to your case. The county’s recipient application page includes the electronic-access instructions.

You must review provider timesheets twice a month and approve or deny them. Review the hours against the work performed and the services authorized for your case. Timesheet approval is part of managing your care and is also necessary for processing the provider’s paycheck.

Keep your personal information current. Tell your IHSS social worker when your contact information or level of need changes. Provider enrollment, case linkage, and timesheet review each serve a different purpose; completing one does not complete the others.

Becoming an IHSS Provider

The county’s IHSS provider enrollment and payment instructions describe the steps for someone who wants to provide care. The process begins with the Public Authority’s “5 steps to become a provider” and completion of all enrollment requirements.

Providers then create an ESP account to enter and submit hours worked. The recipient links the provider to the case through ESP or completes a Provider Designation Form, SOC 426A. Providers also sign up for direct deposit through ESP, and the recipient reviews each submitted timesheet.

Provider Designation Form SOC 426A

SOC 426A is an alternative method for linking an enrolled provider to the recipient’s case. It follows completion of the Public Authority’s requirements; it does not replace provider enrollment.

The county accepts SOC 426A by email at IHSS.SCC@SSA.sccgov.org, by postal mail, by fax at (408) 792-1601, or in person. Use the IHSS addresses in the final office list for mailed or in-person submissions. The county’s provider page offers the form in English, Chinese, Spanish, Russian, and Vietnamese.

A common paperwork mistake is confusing the application to receive care with the form designating a provider. The recipient application requests IHSS services. SOC 426A connects a provider to a recipient’s case after the provider has completed the required enrollment steps.

Timesheets and Provider Payments

Providers submit timesheets twice a month. The first pay period runs from the first through the fifteenth of the month. The second runs from the sixteenth through the last day of the month. Report the hours actually worked during the applicable period.

Timesheets may be submitted electronically through ESP or by telephone through the Telephonic Timesheet Service, or TTS. The county’s provider page includes instructions for both methods, along with assistance for timesheets and direct deposit.

Recipient Approval Before Payment

Both the provider and the recipient must approve the timesheet through ESP or TTS for the paycheck to be processed. A provider’s submission alone does not complete the payment process.

Only the recipient or an authorized Timesheet Signatory may approve a timesheet, and approval must occur after all reported hours have been worked. Providers cannot claim more hours than they actually worked. Recipients should review the submitted entries before approving them.

If a recipient dies, contact IHSS and ask for payroll staff for assistance with timesheet approval. Providers must not claim hours after the recipient’s date of death.

Weekly Hours and Overtime

The county defines the workweek as beginning at 12:00 a.m. Sunday and ending at 11:59 p.m. Saturday. Providers receive overtime pay for hours worked beyond 40 in that workweek, at 1.5 times their hourly rate.

Overtime rules do not remove the limits on authorized work. The county divides monthly authorized hours by four to determine the weekly hours allowed. A provider caring for one recipient may work all the hours allowed for that workweek. A provider caring for more than one recipient may work no more than 66 hours per week.

Travel Between Recipients’ Homes

A provider who must go immediately from one recipient’s home to another to provide IHSS services may receive payment for travel time. The maximum paid travel time is seven hours per week. This provision concerns travel between recipients’ homes under the circumstances described by the county.

Working more hours than allowed or exceeding the travel-time limit can result in loss of the right to work as an IHSS provider. Providers serving multiple recipients should consider the combined weekly hours when arranging their schedules.

Changes That Must Be Reported

Recipients must report changes in their household living situation, temporary stays in a hospital or skilled nursing facility, and significant changes in functional abilities. These changes affect the circumstances under which IHSS services are provided.

The county’s IHSS fraud prevention and recipient responsibility guidance explains the reporting and payment rules. Inform your IHSS social worker about changes in your level of need, and report relevant changes in where you are living or receiving care.

Hospitalization and Other Out-of-Home Stays

Providers cannot receive IHSS payment while the recipient is hospitalized, placed in a nursing home or skilled nursing facility, in jail, or living outside the county. The county also states that providers cannot claim hours while the recipient is temporarily residing outside the home.

During hospitalization or another out-of-home stay, providers cannot claim hours for translation, housekeeping, laundry, or preparing and bringing food to the recipient. These activities do not become payable IHSS services simply because they would be useful during the stay.

When the recipient returns home, a provider cannot make up the missed hours by adding extra hours to the next timesheet. Timesheets must reflect work actually performed under the applicable authorization and program rules.

Accurate Claims and Provider Identity

Providers must use their own personal information, including their name, address, and Social Security number, and must have legal employment status. They cannot hire another person to perform their duties and then claim that person’s hours on their own timesheet. Providers must be registered and authorized through IHSS.

The county also prohibits submitting timesheets and accepting payment for work that was not done, including splitting that payment with the recipient or another person. Suspected IHSS fraud can be reported to the IHSS Program Integrity Line or the California Department of Health Care Services Fraud Hotline. Emergencies require a call to 911.

IHSS Offices and Contact Information

In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS)
353 W. Julian St., San Jose, CA 95110
Mailing address: P.O. Box 11018, San Jose, CA 95103-1018
Phone: (408) 792-1600

Department of Employment and Benefit Services (DEBS) Programs
P.O. Box 11018, San Jose, CA 95103
Phone: (408) 758-3800

IHSS Program Integrity Line
Phone: (408) 792-1782

California Department of Health Care Services Fraud Hotline
Phone: (800) 822-6222

IHSS FAQs

What if I missed my Medi-Cal renewal?

If your Medi-Cal coverage ended because you did not return requested renewal information, Santa Clara County says you have 90 days to contact the county and provide the information needed to restore coverage. This rule concerns missed renewal paperwork; it does not mean every coverage cancellation can be resolved the same way. Because Medi-Cal is required for IHSS eligibility, address the coverage problem promptly. Read your notice to identify why coverage ended and which documents are missing. The county’s Medi-Cal renewal guidance explains this restoration opportunity. Keep your existing Benefits Identification Card rather than throwing it away.

Where can I raise an IHSS service concern?

The county lists an Ombuds office for the Department of Aging and Adult Services, the department that includes IHSS. If you need another place to raise a concern about your experience with the program, consult the county’s department and Ombuds listings to identify the appropriate office. Prepare a clear account of the issue, including relevant dates, the action you are questioning, and what you need addressed. Avoid confusing the Aging and Adult Services Ombuds with the separate Ombuds office for Medi-Cal and other benefit programs.

Does an IHSS fraud report mean wrongdoing is proven?

No. The county states that a report of suspected fraudulent IHSS activity may lead to an investigation; a report itself is not a finding that fraud occurred. Its guidance on suspected IHSS fraud also explains that withholding income information from another program can result in a referral to the appropriate agency. If you are reviewing a concern, distinguish the allegation from the records showing what happened. The county provides fraud prevention brochures in English, Spanish, Vietnamese, and Chinese for recipients and providers who need to review the rules in those languages.