Medicaid long‐term services and supports and caregiving needs of caregivers of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities

Background Long‐term care services are funded primarily by Medicaid long‐term services and support in the United States, where eligibility is based on care needs of the individual with intellectual and developmental disability alone. Impact of Medicaid waiver services on self‐reported caregiver needs is not well understood. Method Caregivers ( n = 405) of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities across four states (NY, OH, TX, and PA) completed an online survey. Results Caregivers reported a moderate degree of burden and susceptibility of stress‐induced health breakdown. Despite controlling for the activities of daily living of the care recipient, caregivers of individuals with Medicaid Waiver services reported greater difficulty managing medications ( p = .013) and finding paid help ( p < .001) than caregivers of individuals without services.