How to Qualify for TennCare’s CHOICES Program

"In Tennessee, around 20 percent of people receive their health insurance through TennCare, the state Medicaid plan — about 1.3 million people in all.

There are several aspects to TennCare, but one part is the CHOICES program (short for CHOICES in Long-Term Services and Supports), designed both for people in need of nursing home care and people who can’t afford the cost of an assisted living facility or nursing home, but need help remaining in their own homes. Given its purpose, most of the people served by CHOICES are seniors.

Few people know how to navigate TennCare procedures well enough to pursue these options independently. Many seniors who apply have experiential knowledge of CHOICES, but they haven’t read the numerous pages of rules and regulations surrounding each minute detail, nor should they have to.

Enter the Tennessee Senior Law Alliance (TSLA), a program launched in 2018 by Legal Aid Society of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands and four partner legal services organizations across the state in an effort to help low-income senior citizens. As representatives of TSLA, we want potential CHOICES recipients to understand the basics of how the program works — and how we can help..."

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