Dual-Eligible Coverage

MI Coordinated Health: Eligibility & How It Works

If your loved one qualifies for both Medicare and Medicaid, MI Coordinated Health may be the coverage that applies — not the Home Help program. Here's what it actually is, where it's available, who qualifies, and how caregiver pay works.

By Kinwell · 4 min read · Last updated: July 29, 2026

Key Takeaways

MI Coordinated Health (MICH) is a Highly Integrated Dual Eligible Special Needs Plan (HIDE SNP) — it replaced MI Health Link effective January 1, 2026.¹
It's only available in four regions of Michigan — outside those counties, Home Help is the relevant path instead.
You can't be enrolled in both MICH and Home Help at the same time — choosing one closes the other, though you can switch back the following month.²
Personal care is arranged through the enrollee's health plan, not the county — caregivers enroll as a network provider with that specific plan, not through CHAMPS.
Confused with MI Choice Waiver? That's a different, non-dual-specific program with its own application process.

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What is MI Coordinated Health?

MI Coordinated Health (MICH) is Michigan's Medicaid program for people who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid — known as a Highly Integrated Dual Eligible Special Needs Plan (HIDE SNP). It combines most Medicare and Medicaid benefits, including long-term services and supports like in-home personal care, into a single health plan with one ID card. Per MDHHS, MICH replaced the former MI Health Link program effective January 1, 2026.¹

Every enrollee gets a dedicated Care Coordinator, who assesses care needs and builds an individualized care plan with the enrollee's care team.

Where is it available?

Unlike the Home Help program, MI Coordinated Health only operates in four regions of Michigan:

Region 1 (Upper Peninsula): Alger, Baraga, Delta, Dickinson, Houghton, Iron, Keweenaw, Luce, Mackinac, Marquette, Ontonagon, and Schoolcraft counties
Region 8: Barry, Berrien, Branch, Calhoun, Cass, Kalamazoo, St. Joseph, and Van Buren counties
Region 10: Macomb County
Region 12: Wayne County

If your loved one lives outside these counties, MI Coordinated Health isn't available yet — the Home Help program is the relevant path instead.

Who qualifies?

Per MDHHS, the person receiving care generally needs to:

Be 21 or older
Qualify for full benefits under both Medicare and Medicaid
Live in one of the regions above

A few groups aren't eligible to enroll — including people with only partial Medicaid coverage, people residing in a state psychiatric hospital, or people with other comprehensive health coverage. An adult services worker or health plan can confirm eligibility case by case.

Enrollment is voluntary, and MI Coordinated Health can't be combined with Home Help — choosing one closes the other, though you can switch back the following month if needed.²

How does a family caregiver get paid?

Personal care for MI Coordinated Health enrollees is arranged through the enrollee's health plan, not the county. Per MDHHS, if you're already a Home Help individual caregiver and your loved one switches to MI Coordinated Health, the health plan is required to make every effort to bring you into its network so you can keep providing care — but the specific requirements, including a criminal history screen, are set by that health plan rather than a single statewide rule.

To get paid, the caregiver contacts the enrollee's health plan directly to enroll as a network provider. Kinwell is in-network with several plans for this side of MI Coordinated Health — see Aetna, HAP CareSource, Molina, and UnitedHealthcare for plan-specific details.

MI Coordinated Health vs. Home Help

	MI Coordinated Health	Home Help
Who it's for	Dual-eligible for Medicare and Medicaid, 21+	Medicaid-eligible, 18+
Where available	Four regions only (see above)	Statewide
Who arranges care	The enrollee's health plan and Care Coordinator	MDHHS Adult Services Worker
Caregiver enrollment	Through the specific health plan's provider network	Through CHAMPS

You can't be enrolled in both at once, so if your loved one qualifies for MI Coordinated Health, it usually replaces Home Help rather than adding to it.²

See what you'd actually qualify for.

Get My Pay Estimate

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Why Kinwell

Most families never get there alone. With Kinwell:

Benefit discovery

A 2-minute check shows you if you qualify, and which plan covers it.

Expeditious approval

A dedicated Kinwell care team walks you through every step, from paperwork to clinical review, to approval, so most caregivers start getting paid in 1–2 months.

Greater weekly pay

Self-directed pay is typically paid monthly. Kinwell always pays weekly — with same-day pay coming soon — at a higher hourly rate.

Paperwork, handled

We manage the compliance, documentation, and billing, so nothing gets between you and your pay.

Frequently asked

Is this the same as the Home Help program? No — different program, different rules, and per MDHHS you can only be enrolled in one at a time. Read the Home Help Program guide →

Can I keep caring for my loved one if they switch to MI Coordinated Health? Often, yes — health plans are required to try to bring existing Home Help caregivers into their network, but you'll need to enroll separately with that specific plan.

What if I don't live in one of the four regions? MI Coordinated Health isn't available there yet. The Home Help program is likely the relevant path instead.

Is this the same as MI Choice Waiver? No — MI Choice is a separate, non-dual-eligible-specific waiver with its own application process through a regional Waiver Agency, not a health plan. Read the MI Choice Waiver guide →

Related terms

D-SNP (Dual Eligible Special Needs Plan): A Medicare Advantage plan built for people who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid. In Michigan, the Highly Integrated version (HIDE SNP) is what MI Coordinated Health uses. Read more →
Activities of Daily Living (ADLs): The basic self-care tasks used to measure how much hands-on help someone needs — bathing, dressing, grooming, toileting, transferring, eating, and mobility.

References

Cited in this article

1
Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). MI Coordinated Health. michigan.gov. Retrieved July 28, 2026, from https://www.michigan.gov/mdhhs/doing-business/providers/mi-coordinated-health
2
Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). ASM 126 — Home Help/MI Coordinated Health Coordination. mdhhs-pres-prod.michigan.gov. Retrieved July 28, 2026, from https://mdhhs-pres-prod.michigan.gov/olmweb/ex/AS/Public/ASM/126.pdf