Washington’s WA Cares Fund began paying out benefits in July 2026: eligible workers who need help with daily living can now draw on a lifetime long-term care benefit worth up to $36,500, funded through a payroll premium most Washington workers have already been paying since 2023.
What WA Cares Actually Pays For
WA Cares is a public long-term care insurance program — not a caregiving wage-replacement leave. It pays for services like in-home personal care, home safety modifications, respite care for family caregivers, and adult day services, up to a lifetime cap. Each "benefit unit" is worth $100 in 2026, and the initial maximum lifetime benefit equals $36,500.
This is not a monthly check that arrives automatically — it’s a benefit pool you draw from as you incur qualifying long-term care costs, similar to how private long-term care insurance works.
Who Qualifies
Two separate requirements have to be met:
Contribution requirement (you paid into the fund): generally, you need to have worked and contributed at least 500 hours in a year for three of the last six years, or 500 hours a year for at least ten years total with five of those years consecutive, or 500 hours a year for the last three years if applying near retirement age.
Care-need requirement (you actually need the benefit): you must need help with three or more activities of daily living — bathing, transferring, mobility, medication management, toileting, bed mobility, or eating — and be expected to need that help for at least 90 days.
Both requirements have to be met independently; paying into the fund for years doesn’t guarantee approval if an assessment finds the care need isn’t severe enough yet.
Using It to Pay a Family Member as Caregiver
WA Cares allows a beneficiary to use their approved benefit to pay a family member for caregiving, not just a licensed agency. To do this, the family caregiver becomes a formal employee of Consumer Direct Care Network of Washington (CDWA) or a registered home care agency — the beneficiary can’t simply hand cash to a relative and count it as a qualifying expense. Once the beneficiary’s application is approved and the caregiver is hired through CDWA or an agency, the beneficiary authorizes the specific hours of care, and payment flows through that formal employment relationship.
How to Apply
- Confirm you meet the contribution requirement (check your account at wacaresfund.wa.gov).
- Get a care needs assessment showing you need help with three or more ADLs for at least 90 days.
- Submit a benefit application through the WA Cares portal.
- If approved, choose how to receive care — through a licensed provider, a home care agency, or a family caregiver hired through CDWA.
Who Pays Into It
Most W-2 employees working in Washington have a 0.58% payroll premium withheld automatically, unless they obtained an approved private long-term care insurance exemption before the state’s 2021-2023 opt-out window closed. Self-employed workers can opt in voluntarily.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is WA Cares the same as Washington’s Paid Family and Medical Leave?
No. Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) replaces wages during a leave from work, funded through a separate payroll premium. WA Cares is a long-term care benefit pool for care costs, not a wage-replacement leave program — the two are commonly confused because both are payroll-funded Washington benefits.
Can I still opt out of WA Cares?
The private-insurance exemption window closed in 2023. Workers who didn’t secure an approved exemption before that deadline are enrolled and pay the premium.
Does $36,500 arrive as a lump sum?
No. It’s a lifetime maximum you draw down as you use qualifying services, not a single payment.
What if I move out of Washington?
You may be able to keep your WA Cares eligibility if you elect to maintain coverage after relocating; check current portability rules on the program’s official site before assuming coverage continues automatically.
