Consumer Directed Services in Kirkwood, Missouri

For Kirkwood and southwest county, Communicare Elite is the Consumer Directed Services vendor. MO HealthNet funds it, you pick and direct the attendant — spouses excepted — and we run payroll, program paperwork and Medicaid billing.

Why home care matters in Kirkwood

Kirkwood has one of the strongest stay-put cultures in the region. People raise families here and then stay, often in the same house, long past the point where the house is easy to manage. The historic homes near downtown Kirkwood are exactly the ones that get hardest — original bathrooms, steep staircases, and rooms arranged for a household with young legs in it.

What Kirkwood residents often need is not a decision about moving but a way to avoid making one yet. A CDS care plan covering bathing, dressing, meal preparation and transport can extend the workable life of a house by years. St. Luke’s Hospital in Chesterfield and Mercy South are both a straightforward drive, and the walkable downtown means an attendant can often handle errands on foot in a way that is impossible in more car-dependent suburbs.

How CDS works for Kirkwood residents

Eligibility for MO HealthNet, a state assessment at home on 866-835-3505, then an authorized plan setting your approved tasks and hours. The complete process.

What your attendant can be paid for

Personal care through to shopping and appointment transport, as your authorized plan allows. See the full list.

Paying a family member in Kirkwood

In Kirkwood the caregiving is frequently already being done by an adult child. If they are not the consumer’s spouse, that can be paid work. The details.

Distance from our office

Communicare Elite is at 4477 Woodson Rd, Suite 106, St. Louis, MO 63134, minutes from Lambert International Airport — roughly about 25 minutes from Kirkwood. Most business is handled by phone, but you are welcome at the office; call ahead so someone is expecting you.

Questions from Kirkwood families

Our family home has a steep staircase and an old bathroom. Does that count toward the assessment?

The assessment looks at what you can and cannot do safely, and the environment is part of that. Describe the stairs and the bathtub specifically to the assessor.

Is there an income limit that would rule us out?

CDS is funded by MO HealthNet, so MO HealthNet eligibility — which does consider income and assets — is one of the five requirements. Owning your home is not automatically disqualifying.

How far is Kirkwood from your office?

About twenty-five minutes, straight down I-270.

How do I actually get started?

The first step is the state eligibility and assessment route, not a form on our side. Start here.

What is expected of me as the employer?

You direct the work and sign timesheets accurately; the compliance obligations that come with that are set out plainly. Compliance and program integrity.

Nearby communities we also serve

Chesterfield · University City · Arnold · St. Louis County — or see the whole service area.