What is the Nursing Home Transition and Diversion (NHTD) waiver, and who qualifies?
Short answer: NHTD is a 1915(c) HCBS Medicaid waiver, administered through Regional Resource Development Centers, that helps people avoid or transition out of nursing homes into community settings. It explicitly excludes anyone already in an ALP or other licensed congregate care setting.
NHTD is aimed specifically at community-based living — think home modifications, assistive technology, care management, and respite — for someone who is Medicaid-eligible, assessed at a nursing-home level of care, and able to live safely in a non-facility setting with support. Because it explicitly excludes people already living in an ALP-certified assisted living community, families sometimes have to choose a lane: pursue NHTD to stay at home longer, or pursue ALP once a facility move is the better fit. If your parent is currently at home in Erie or Niagara County and trying to avoid a facility move, NHTD (not ALP) is the program to ask your county's Medicaid unit about.
