Idaho Families Struggle to Find Caregivers for Children with Disabilities as Lawmakers Reject Program Fix

Why It Matters

Thousands of Idaho families caring for children with disabilities face a mounting crisis. Without access to paid family caregiver programs, parents and guardians are left scrambling to find professional care in a state already facing severe worker shortages. The decision by Idaho lawmakers to reject reinstating a caregiving assistance program means vulnerable children may go without necessary support services while their families shoulder impossible financial and physical burdens.

What Happened

Idaho’s Department of Health and Welfare eliminated the Family and Personal Care Services program last year, a decision that cut off payments to family members serving as primary caregivers for relatives with disabilities. The agency cited fraud and abuse concerns as justification for ending the program.

This year, disability advocates and families pushed lawmakers to reinstate the program through legislation. However, Rep. John Vander Woude, a Nampa Republican who chairs the House Health and Welfare Committee, made clear the bill would not advance due to budget constraints.

“Everybody has good ideas on how to spend money. It’s harder to have good ideas on how to cut money,” Vander Woude told the Idaho Capital Sun. “This was a year we had to cut funding and hold the budget line. And so that’s one of the reasons why that bill didn’t have any chance of going anywhere.”

The lawmaker indicated he could not secure the necessary $30 million in funding through the Legislature’s budget committee to resurrect the program, despite acknowledging the genuine need families face.

By the Numbers

• 1,200: Idaho children enrolled in the Family and Personal Care Services program as of October 2024, months before the program was eliminated
• $30 million: Estimated annual cost to reinstate the paid family caregiver program
• Multiple years: Duration that families like Nathan Hill’s have dealt with acute nurse staffing shortages in Idaho’s caregiver workforce
• Zero: Number of alternative caregiver assistance programs currently available to replace the discontinued service

The Caregiver Crisis

Idaho faces a critical shortage of professional caregivers willing to work in the field. This shortage has forced many families to rely on relatives—often parents—to provide full-time care for children with disabilities. Without compensation through the state program, these family caregivers sacrifice employment opportunities, income, and personal well-being.

Nathan Hill, who cares for his 15-year-old son Brady, spent years dealing with Idaho’s professional caregiver shortages. He ultimately abandoned hopes of using Idaho’s caregiver program due to workforce limitations.

Jessica Jackman, who cares for her own son while helping lead Fair Care Idaho—a nonprofit advocating for program reinstatement—described the desperation families now face. “We have nowhere to turn,” she told reporters. For many families, the elimination of paid family caregiver services means “just don’t have caregiving, period.”

Budget Pressures Drive Decision

Idaho lawmakers faced budget constraints this legislative session, forcing difficult choices about state spending priorities. The rejection of the caregiver program reinstatement reflects broader fiscal pressures rather than a dispute over the program’s value or necessity.

Vander Woude’s comments acknowledge the legitimacy of the need while emphasizing the competing demands on a limited budget. The House Health and Welfare Committee chair indicated that finding $30 million in a tight budget year proved impossible, despite the program serving nearly 1,200 disabled children.

What’s Next

Disability advocates and families will likely continue pressing Idaho lawmakers to address the caregiver crisis in future legislative sessions. The state’s ongoing professional caregiver shortage shows no signs of improvement, potentially intensifying pressure on lawmakers to reconsider the program’s elimination.

Families currently face the reality of navigating Idaho’s limited caregiver market without state compensation for family members providing essential care. The outcome underscores the tension between fiscal responsibility and meeting the needs of Idaho’s most vulnerable citizens.