FAFSA asking about child on Medicaid through disability waiver - how to report correctly?

You should answer 'yes' to the Medicaid question. The FAFSA is asking whether anyone in your household received Medicaid benefits, regardless of how they qualified for those benefits. The fact that your daughter receives Medicaid through a disability waiver rather than income qualification doesn't change the correct answer.\n\nThis question helps determine your Student Aid Index (SAI), but it's just one factor among many. Answering truthfully won't negatively impact your son's aid - in fact, having a family member with special needs who receives Medicaid can sometimes be a positive factor in aid determination.

Thank you for clarifying! That makes sense. Do you know if I'll need to provide any documentation about her specific Medicaid waiver program? I'm worried they'll see \

I had the EXACT same situation with my kid on a disability waiver! Answer YES to the Medicaid question. That's what I did. It didn't make the FAFSA system think we were poor - they still used our actual income figures for the SAI calculation. The Medicaid question is just one of many factors they look at.

That's really reassuring to hear from someone who's been through the same thing! Did you have any issues with verification or having to explain the situation later?

mark yes!!!! my brother is on medicaid thru disability and i checked yes on mine. doesnt matter WHY they get medicaid just that they GET medicaid.

Thanks for the straightforward answer. Did your financial aid package seem accurate despite the Medicaid situation?

Actually, this is a common misunderstanding. The FAFSA Medicaid question is specifically asking about income-based qualification. If your daughter receives Medicaid through a disability waiver that isn't income-tested, you should select 'no' since it's not means-tested Medicaid.\n\nI work with special needs families on financial planning, and this comes up frequently. The question is trying to identify families who meet income thresholds for certain benefits, not disability-based benefits.

I need to respectfully disagree. The FAFSA question simply asks if any household member received Medicaid benefits during the tax year in question. It doesn't distinguish between how they qualified. The Federal Student Aid office has clarified that all types of Medicaid should be reported with a 'yes' answer, regardless of qualification path.\n\nThe system does not automatically assume low-income status based solely on this answer - it considers it alongside all the other financial information provided.

I've been trying to get through to FSA for three days to ask a similar question about my son's SSI payments and how they affect FAFSA. The wait times are ridiculous, and I keep getting disconnected! Has anyone found a way to actually speak to a real person there?

I was in the same boat last month trying to get clarification on my daughter's special circumstances. I finally found a service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that helped me get through to a FAFSA agent without the endless wait. They have a demo video that shows how it works: https://youtu.be/TbC8dZQWYNQ\n\nIt was worth it because I finally got my question about disability benefits answered by an actual FSA representative who confirmed that yes, you should report Medicaid regardless of how your family member qualified for it.

As someone who's gone through this exact situation with my special needs daughter on a Medicaid waiver, here's what you need to know:\n\n1. Answer YES to the Medicaid question - it's asking if anyone received the benefit, not how they qualified.\n2. The FAFSA uses this as ONE data point among many to determine your SAI score.\n3. Your income information, which you also provide on the FAFSA, will clearly show your actual financial situation.\n4. Having a family member with a disability can sometimes qualify your student for additional considerations.\n\nI was worried about the same thing last year, but it worked out fine. The system doesn't just see \

This is incredibly helpful, thank you! Did you have to provide any additional documentation about your daughter's specific situation during the verification process?

No additional documentation was needed specifically about my daughter's Medicaid waiver. The FAFSA doesn't actually collect documentation about the Medicaid question - it's just a yes/no checkbox. They primarily focus on verifying income information through tax documents if you get selected for verification.\n\nIf your son's college financial aid office requests more information later (some do have special forms for families with extraordinary circumstances like medical expenses or special needs family members), then you might provide documentation at that point. But for the FAFSA itself, just answer truthfully with \

same!!! my brother has autism and gets medicaid thru waiver, nobody ever asked for proof or anything about it. they just wanna know yes/no for their formula.

Thank you everyone for the helpful responses. I'm going to mark \

Good choice! You're doing the right thing by marking 'yes'. I just wanted to add that if you're still feeling uncertain, you can always call the Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-433-3243. They can walk you through the specific question and confirm the correct answer for your situation. The wait times can be long (as Klaus mentioned), but it might give you extra peace of mind knowing you answered correctly. Best of luck with your son's financial aid process!

As someone who works in financial aid at a community college, I can confirm what others have said - you should definitely mark 'yes' to the Medicaid question. The FAFSA is asking about any Medicaid benefits received, period. The qualification method (income-based vs. disability waiver) doesn't change how you should answer. I see this confusion a lot with families who have special needs children. The key thing to remember is that the FAFSA uses multiple data points to calculate your Student Aid Index, not just the Medicaid question. Your actual income information (which you also provide) gives a complete picture of your financial situation. One thing I'd add that I haven't seen mentioned - if your family has significant unreimbursed medical expenses related to your daughter's care, make sure to look into whether your son's college offers appeals for special circumstances. Many schools can adjust aid packages when families have ongoing disability-related expenses, even if your base FAFSA doesn't reflect those costs.