Official websites for seniors and families, explained

FloridaHealthFinder

What it is: Florida's official site for checking on health care providers. It's run by the state Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA).

Use it to:

• Check that a home health agency, homemaker and companion service, assisted living facility, or nursing home has an active state license
• Compare assisted living facilities, nursing homes, hospice, and home health agencies in your county, including complaints and fines
• Read a provider's inspection reports
• File a complaint

Where to start: Click Locate Facility. Pick the type of provider and your county. Not sure of the type? Choose All.

Good to know:

• There's no type called "home care agency." Non-medical help at home is listed as Homemaker and Companion Service or Nurse Registry. Skilled care is Home Health Agencies.
• A basic search finds agencies by their main office only. To see every agency that serves your county, pick the provider type, then use Advanced Search and choose the county.
• Checking on an individual doctor or nurse? That's the Florida Department of Health, not this site.

You can skip: The dashboards, the query tool, and the data downloads. They're built for researchers.

Call or visit: AHCA: 888-419-3456

Go to FloridaHealthFinder ↗Checked September 2026

MyFloridaLicense.com

What it is: Florida's license lookup for contractors and many other trades. It's run by the Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR).

Use it to:

• Check that a contractor's license is active before you hire them for a bathroom remodel, a new roof, or air conditioning work
• File a complaint about a licensed contractor
• Report someone working without a license

Where to start: Click Verify a License, then Search by Name. You don't need an account.

Good to know:

• A license number that starts with C (certified) is good anywhere in Florida. One that starts with R (registered) is good only in the area where it was issued.
• Electricians have their own licensing board, so don't limit your search to construction.
• Small handyman jobs under $2,500 that are "casual, minor, or inconsequential," like painting, carpet, or cabinets, don't need a state license. Your county building department can tell you if local rules apply.

You can skip: Anything about applying for or renewing a license, exams, or continuing education. That's for the license holders.

Call or visit: DBPR: (850) 487-1395

Go to Verify a License ↗Checked September 2026

MyACCESS (food assistance and Medicaid applications)

What it is: Florida's application for food assistance (SNAP), Medicaid, and cash help. One application covers all three. It's run by the Department of Children and Families (DCF).

Use it to:

• Apply for food assistance or Medicaid for your parent
• Upload documents DCF asks for
• Check on the case and read notices

Where to start: Start on DCF's Applying for Assistance page, then click Apply for Benefits. You'll need to create an account with an email address.

Good to know:

• The online application takes about 30 minutes. A decision can take up to 30 days.
• Applying for a parent? They need to name you as their authorized representative, in writing.
• Write the case number on every paper you send in.
• Medicaid to pay for long-term care at home works differently. It starts with a call to the Elder Helpline. See Medicaid long-term care below.
• In Hernando County, the county's Health & Human Services office helps people apply: (352) 540-4338.

You can skip: The policy manual and the pages for partner agencies.

Call or visit: DCF: (850) 300-4323, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Go to Applying for Assistance ↗Checked September 2026

Medicare.gov

What it is: The official Medicare website, run by the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

Use it to:

• Compare home health agencies, nursing homes, and hospice near your parent, with Medicare's star ratings
• Compare Medicare health and drug plans, especially during Open Enrollment, October 15 to December 7
• Replace a lost Medicare card

Where to start: To compare local providers, click Find care providers. To compare plans, click Find health & drug plans.

Good to know:

• Plan changes made during Open Enrollment start January 1.
• Medicare will never call uninvited and ask for your parent's personal information. Don't give a Medicare number to anyone who calls first.
• Want a person to walk you through plans, for free? Call SHINE (next card).

Call or visit: 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), 24 hours a day. TTY 1-877-486-2048.

Go to Medicare.gov ↗Checked September 2026

SHINE (free Medicare counseling)

What it is: Free, unbiased, one-on-one help with Medicare from trained volunteers. It's offered by the Florida Department of Elder Affairs and your local Area Agency on Aging.

Use it to:

• Compare Medicare plans with someone who isn't selling anything
• Sort out Medicare and Medicaid questions
• Find a counseling site near your parent

Where to start: Call, or fill out the Contact Us form on the SHINE site and a counselor will call you back.

Good to know:

• Every local site is by appointment. There are no walk-in hours.
• Citrus and Hernando appointments: 352-593-0705.
• Pasco appointments: 727-570-9696, ext. 282. The New Port Richey Library also offers in-person and phone counseling: (727) 853-1279.
• Expect a busy stretch during Open Enrollment, October 15 to December 7. Call early.

You can skip: The volunteer sign-up pages.

Call or visit: Statewide: 1-800-96-ELDER (1-800-963-5337)

Go to Florida SHINE ↗Checked September 2026

The Elder Helpline (your local aging office)

What it is: The free front door to local senior programs. In Citrus and Hernando, it's run by Elder Options. In Pasco, it's the Area Agency on Aging of Pasco-Pinellas.

Use it to:

• Get your parent screened for meals, help at home, and respite for you
• Start the screening for Medicaid long-term care
• Find caregiver support and training, and dementia care help
• Get connected to SHINE for Medicare questions

Where to start: Pick up the phone. Citrus and Hernando: 1-800-262-2243. Pasco: 727-217-8111.

Good to know:

• 1-800-963-5337 (1-800-96-ELDER) is Florida's statewide Elder Helpline number. For Pasco, the Pasco-Pinellas office's own helpline is 727-217-8111, Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• You don't have to be on Medicaid to call, and there's no income test to ask.

Call or visit: Pasco-Pinellas: agingcarefl.org

Go to Elder Options (Citrus & Hernando) ↗Checked September 2026

Florida Medicaid long-term care

What it is: The Medicaid program that pays for long-term care at home, in assisted living, or in a nursing home, for people who need nursing-home-level care. The state health care agency (AHCA), the Department of Elder Affairs, and DCF run it together.

Use it to:

• Understand the steps: a phone screening, a wait list, a medical check, a financial check, then picking a plan
• Find the numbers for choosing or changing a plan

Where to start: Call the Elder Helpline and ask for a long-term care screening. It's done by phone and takes about 45 minutes to an hour.

Good to know:

• The wait list isn't first come, first served. People come off it by priority score, based on need.
• If things change, like losing a caregiver, ask for a new screening.
• Elder Affairs (a program called CARES) decides if your parent needs this level of care. DCF decides if they qualify financially.
• After enrolling, your parent can switch plans in the first 120 days. After that, mostly once a year.

Call or visit: Plan choice counselors: 1-877-711-3662. DCF: 1-866-762-2237.

Go to the state's long-term care page ↗Checked September 2026

Social Security (ssa.gov)

What it is: The official Social Security Administration website.

Use it to:

• Change your parent's address or direct deposit
• Print proof of benefits or the yearly tax form
• Apply for benefits and check on an application
• Ask about becoming your parent's representative payee, if they can't manage their payments

Where to start: Sign in to my Social Security. To create an account you'll need an email address, a government photo ID, and a phone.

Good to know:

• A lost Medicare card is replaced through Medicare, not Social Security.
• Phone waits are usually shorter in the morning, later in the week, and later in the month.
• Representative payee requests start with a phone call.

You can skip: The pages for organizations that serve as payees.

Call or visit: 1-800-772-1213, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. TTY 1-800-325-0778.

Go to my Social Security ↗Checked September 2026

VA.gov (for veterans and surviving spouses)

What it is: The official site of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Use it to:

• Apply for VA health care
• Check whether your parent qualifies for a VA pension
• Learn about Aid and Attendance, extra monthly money added to a VA pension for veterans who need help with bathing, dressing, or eating
• Find a free, accredited helper to file a claim

Where to start: Call your county's Veterans Service Office first. They help with the forms for free. Citrus: (352) 527-5915. Hernando: (352) 754-4033. Pasco: (727) 834-3282.

Good to know:

• Help from an accredited Veterans Service Organization is always free. Attorneys and claims agents can charge only after the VA decides a first claim.
• Make sure anyone helping with a claim is accredited with the VA.

Call or visit: VA benefits: 800-827-1000, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. ET.

Go to VA.gov ↗Checked September 2026

Special needs registry (hurricanes and disasters)

What it is: A sign-up so county emergency managers know who will need help in a disaster. The Florida Department of Health runs the statewide registry with each county.

Use it to:

• Register a parent who would need help evacuating or a special needs shelter

Where to start: Each county does it a little differently. Citrus uses the state registry, or call the Emergency Operations Center at 352-249-2753. Hernando has its own county registry; call Emergency Management at 352-754-4083. Pasco has a county application; call Emergency Management at 727-847-8137.

Good to know:

• Registering doesn't guarantee help or a shelter spot.
• Renew every year.
• Pasco stops taking applications 5 days before a hurricane or tropical storm. Don't wait.

Call or visit: More in our hurricane prep guide.

Go to the Florida Special Needs Registry ↗Checked September 2026