What is a Lifespan Respite Voucher? 

Lifespan Respite WA offers support in the form of a voucher (financial award) for unpaid caregivers who support a family member, friend, or neighbor who has a special need or condition. The voucher is used to pay for services or programs that allow the caregiver to have respite, or “short breaks”. Lifespan Respite vouchers are for short-term respite. 

Types of Respite and Respite Providers: 

Respite is a “short break” from caregiving for a family caregiver. Any family member, neighbor or friend may be an unpaid caregiver to a person with whom they have a personal relationship, and who has a chronic or disabling condition.
In our program, respite is any program or service that lets a family caregiver to take time off from caregiving, knowing that the person they care for is safe. When respite time is comfortable and interesting for the person who gets care, that’s an added benefit!

Respite providers in our program are organizations that offer these types of services. Some offered through Lifespan Respite WA include:

• In-Home Services (errands, light chores, personal care, companionship, medication reminders, etc.)
• Recreation (sports, exercise, crafts, and other leisure activities)
• Day or Overnight Camps which serve individuals with disabilities
• Day Services (dementia or memory centers, after-school and weekend programming for adults, children, and youth, daycares, etc.)
• Education/Classes (may include preschools, nature schools, art, music, recreational skills, academics, etc.)
• 24-hour care

Lifespan Respite WA registered providers are organizations (businesses, agencies, nonprofits) which offer these services, meet WA State requirements for employee background checks and insurance coverage and agree to accept our vouchers for payment. We do not register individuals who provide respite services.

About the Voucher

Vouchers have both a time limit and an award amount limit. You can use the voucher until either the award has been spent, or the time limit runs out, whichever comes first. Please be aware of this as you plan your respite time.

How much is a voucher award? The maximum allowed amount of a voucher is $1,000 per household, per year (a year begins when you apply, and ends one year from that date). If you apply for respite for more than one person, the award will be divided among them.  

• For in-home services, we will usually award the maximum amount.
• For other programs, we will usually award a voucher that covers or partially covers the cost of services or the program.

What is the time limit?

• There is a time limit of 120 days (4 months) to use the voucher, which begins on the date you are awarded and notified. This gives you time to select a provider and schedule respite services.
• You will have 4 weeks to select a provider and for us to confirm that services have begun, or are scheduled. That means you will be able to schedule 3 or more months of respite periods or programming, up to the dollar amount of your voucher.
• If you have not been able to find a provider that meets your needs or has availability, we may cancel your voucher, as we cannot keep the funds unused for very long.

What if I want to use a voucher for a program that happens over the summer, such as sending my child to a summer camp or summer recreation?

We are reserving a block of funding for this purpose, and will be making those awards in early 2026. When you apply, be sure to list “Camp” or “Recreation” as the type of respite you are looking for. A Lifespan team member will contact you in early Spring when we are ready to make those awards. You will need to select a provider on our registered providers list, and we will need confirmation that you have registered your loved one for a camp. We work with camp providers to allow you to register without a down payment.

As always, we make awards as funding is available. An application is not a guarantee of getting a voucher.

How do I get respite services with a voucher? 

• You (the caregiver) select respite providers from our list of approved agencies and programs.
• Then you register or sign an agreement with the agency or program for services.
• You must notify us when you have reached an agreement with or registered with a provider.
• Bills for respite care are sent to Lifespan Respite Washington, and we pay for respite services up to the amount of the voucher.  

Can I use a provider that isn’t on your Registered Provider List? If a respite provider you want is not on our list, please contact us at getrespite@wapave.org and we will contact the organization to find out if they meet the qualifications and want to become a Respite Provider Agency. Please note: it takes time to bring a new provider into our program. Please be aware! we cannot guarantee they will join, or it may take so long you run out of time on your respite period. Because of this, we require that you also explore available providers on our list.

No family members, friends, or independent providers may be used for respite services. 

Eligibility

To qualify for a voucher, you must: 

• Not get paid to be a caregiver;  
• Provide 40 or more hours per week of care or support to someone with a special need or condition (the person can be any age), and the 40 or more hours must include supervision of the person receiving care;
• Live in Washington State; 
• Not be able to afford respite care on your own;
• You or the person you care for are not enrolled in any program that provides respite services, unless you are on a wait list and not scheduled to receive services within 30 days of voucher application.

Questions? Contact us: email getrespite@wapave.org or phone 253-442-3214.

How to Apply for a Voucher

Apply with the online application. If you provide care for more than one person, you can enter them all on the same application. Note-the total amount of the voucher will be split evenly among the individuals you care for. 

You can contact us with any questions or for help applying at getrespite@wapave.org or by calling 253-442-3214.

Completing and submitting an application does not guarantee you will get a voucher. We do our best to extend limited resources and there are generally more requests than the current sources of funding. Vouchers are awarded according to priority needs as outlined by funders, including distribution across Washington State. Know of a potential funder? Email us at getrespite@wapave.org.

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