Wisconsin grants
& benefits: BadgerCare to the poverty line, SeniorCare and the homestead credit.

KFF lists Wisconsin as not adopting the ACA Medicaid expansion, while 41 states, counting DC, have. A federal waiver closes part of that gap: BadgerCare covers adults without dependent children earning up to and including 100% of the federal poverty level, and CMS has extended it through December 31, 2029.

From February 1, 2026 to January 31, 2027, a single adult may earn $1,330 a month, and a four-person household $2,750. Pregnant people and children qualify up to 306% of poverty, which is $8,415 a month for four. There is no open enrollment period, so you can apply in any month.

The 2027 federal work rule reaches BadgerCare members 19 to 64 who are not pregnant or disabled and are not caring for a child under 19 who stays with them at least 40% of the time. In a month they need 80 hours of work, school, volunteering or a work program, or $580 of household income.

Wisconsin checks a single month. People applying from January 1, 2027 must qualify during the calendar month just before their application. Current members are checked at renewals starting in March 2027, and one qualifying month since their last approval is enough. Anyone whose coverage ends can reapply at any time.

Congress wrote the hours test into federal law; the details are in our Medicaid work requirements guide.

Medicaid eligibility groups and expansion rules across the country are set out in our Medicaid program guide.

SeniorCare is Wisconsin's own prescription program. Any resident 65 or older who is a U.S. citizen or qualifying immigrant can join whatever other coverage they have, Medicare Part B or D included. Only members of full-benefit Medicaid such as BadgerCare Plus are left out. Enrollment costs $30 per person a year.

Income decides your level. In 2026, Level 1 covers incomes up to 160% of poverty, $25,536 a year single or $34,624 married, with no deductible: you pay $5 for a covered generic and $15 for a covered brand-name drug. Level 2A, up to 200%, adds a $500 deductible per person.

Level 2B, up to 240% of poverty, carries an $850 deductible. Above that, Level 3 members pay retail prices until they meet a spenddown, then the $850 deductible. You can apply in the month you turn 65, coverage starts the month after, and you renew every year. Questions go to 800-657-2038.

Part D, Medigap and the rest of federal coverage at 65 are covered in our Medicare program guide.

Medicaid long-term care for frail elders and adults with disabilities comes in two versions here. Your local ADRC explains both and uses the Long-Term Care Functional Screen to confirm you need that level of help. Either way you must be at least 18 and eligible for Medicaid.

In Family Care you join a managed care organization (MCO) that arranges help with tasks such as bathing, dressing and making meals. It requires a condition expected to last more than 90 days. Family Care began in five counties in 2000, reached the last county in 2018 and now serves more than 57,000 members.

IRIS, short for Include, Respect, I Self-Direct, hands you a budget instead. You or your legal decision maker choose and manage your own workers and services, guided by an IRIS consultant agency and a fiscal employer agent. Joining costs nothing, though some members owe a monthly cost share based on income.

Lower-income owners and renters get some property tax or rent back through the refundable homestead credit. For 2025, household income must be under $24,680, and you or your spouse must be 62 or older, disabled, or have earned income. The most it pays is $1,168, set by comparing income with tax or rent.

Homeowners attach their 2025 property tax bill and renters a rent certificate signed by the landlord. Schedule H-EZ is the short form for people whose income comes only from sources such as wages, pensions and Social Security; everyone else files Schedule H. The 2025 claim deadline is April 15, 2030.

Starting with 2025 returns, residents 67 or older can subtract up to $24,000 of retirement income, or $48,000 when both spouses on a joint return qualify. Taking that subtraction rules out every credit on the return for the year, the homestead credit included, so compare both ways before you file.

Some people are barred whatever their income, including anyone claiming the veterans property tax credit or farmland preservation credit for the same year, and anyone living in a nursing home on Medicaid when they file. Free filing help is available at VITA and TCE sites; call 1-800-906-9887 to find one.

The veterans and surviving spouses property tax credit matches the property tax bill on your principal dwelling and is claimed on the Wisconsin income tax return. It needs a 100% service-connected disability rating, or 100% based on individual unemployability, and a WDVA certificate attached the first year you claim.

The veteran must have entered service as a Wisconsin resident or lived here for any five consecutive years afterward. Unremarried surviving spouses can qualify too, for example when the veteran died on active duty or the spouse now receives Dependency and Indemnity Compensation.

The Wisconsin GI Bill, a state program apart from the federal one, waives full tuition and segregated fees for up to eight semesters or 128 credits, whichever is greater, at any UW System school or Wisconsin technical college. Apply through MyWisVets.com or on WDVA Form 2030.

Spouses and children qualify when the veteran holds at least a 30% service-connected rating from the VA, or died on active duty or from a service-connected disability. A child must be at least 17 and not yet 26. WDVA takes benefit questions at 800-947-8387.

Food help here is called FoodShare, and benefits are loaded onto a QUEST card. You can apply on ACCESS or through the same county or tribal agency that handles BadgerCare, so a single application can be screened for health coverage and groceries together.

USDA's waiver page shows no soda or candy limits for Wisconsin, so FoodShare still pays for those items.

The 200% income chart, QUEST deposit days and the heating allowance are worked through in our Wisconsin food stamps guide.