Pierce County, WA
Get paid to care for your family member in Pierce County, Washington
About 146,100 people in Pierce County are 65 or older — 16% of everyone who lives here. That tracks with Washington as a whole. Roughly 13,500 are 85 or older, the age when daily help usually starts. Pierce County is one of the state's biggest population centers, and home-care agencies do work here — but staffing is thin, schedules change, and a stranger in the house is not what every family wants.
Who needs care in Pierce
- People 65 and older
- 146,100
- People 85 and older
- 13,500
- Median age
- 37.4
- Rank in Washington
- 2nd
16% of Pierce residents
the age daily help usually starts
younger than the country as a whole
of 39 counties, by residents 65+
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Population Estimates (Vintage 2024). Pierce County is a large metro county (USDA Rural-Urban Continuum Code 1). Washington as a whole is 17% aged 65 or older.
What Washington pays family caregivers
$22.52–$27.28/hr
Source: Washington Medicaid program data · Updated September 2026
Washington's programs at a glance
- Community First Choice (CFC)
- Medicaid Personal Care (MPC)
- Individual Provider (via CDWA)
- Spouse paid?
- Not right now
- Parent paid for a child?
- Not right now
- Waitlist
- No waitlist.
These rules are set by the state, so they are the same in every county. Read the full Washington guide →
Towns and cities in Pierce County
Washington sets eligibility, not your town — so a family in Tacoma and a family at the far edge of the county apply the same way. The largest communities in Pierce County:
- Tacoma228,202
- Lakewood62,709
- Puyallup42,552
- University Place35,160
- Bonney Lake22,145
- Edgewood13,496
- Gig Harbor12,643
- Fife11,077
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Subcounty Population Estimates.
How families in Pierce apply
You do not need a county office to start. Families in Pierce County start with Washington's program:
The care recipient applies for Apple Health LTSS through a DSHS Home & Community Services regional intake office and gets a CARE assessment; the family caregiver then applies as an Individual Provider at consumerdirectwa.com.
Or skip the phone tag — our free 2-minute check tells you which Washington program fits your family, then we help with the forms.
See if you qualify →Pierce questions, answered honestly
Can I get paid to care for a family member in Pierce County?
Yes. Washington runs real Medicaid programs — like Community First Choice (CFC) — that pay family caregivers, and they cover families in Pierce County. We help you enroll, and applying costs you nothing.
How much do family caregivers earn in Pierce County?
Family caregivers in Washington typically earn $22.52–$27.28/hr. The rate is the same across the state, including Pierce County.
Where do families in Pierce County apply?
Families in Pierce County start with the state, not the county. The care recipient applies for Apple Health LTSS through a DSHS Home & Community Services regional intake office and gets a CARE assessment; the family caregiver then applies as an Individual Provider at consumerdirectwa.com.
Can I get paid to care for my spouse in Pierce County?
Not right now — but other family members often can be. The fine print for Washington: no — DSHS: 'Spouses cannot be paid to care for each other'; some spouses may qualify via Veteran Directed Care or WA Cares Fund instead
How many people in Pierce County might need this?
146,100 residents of Pierce County are 65 or older and about 13,500 are 85 or older, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2024 population estimates. Most of them are cared for at home by a relative rather than in a facility. Washington's programs exist to pay for exactly that care.
Which towns in Pierce do you cover?
All of Pierce County — including Tacoma, Lakewood, Puyallup, University Place and Bonney Lake. Eligibility is set by Washington, not by your town, so where you live inside the county does not change whether you qualify.
Program facts come from Washington's published Medicaid program rules · Population figures from the U.S. Census Bureau · Updated September 2026. Rules change — always confirm with the program.
More Washington counties
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