IHSS Nevada County: the Nevada City office, phone numbers and $18.50 pay

Who can get IHSS in Nevada County

Nevada County's IHSS page calls the program Medi-Cal based, paid for jointly by county, state and federal budgets. Its purpose, in the county's words, is to keep people with low incomes who are elderly, blind or disabled, children among them, safe at home when they would otherwise risk out-of-home placement; the county treats it as a substitute for nursing home or board and care placement.

Nevada County lists these conditions for every applicant and recipient:

• you live in Nevada County;
• you hold U.S. citizenship or are a legal permanent resident living in California;
• you are 65 or older, or blind or disabled at any age;
• you have a Medi-Cal eligibility determination;
• you live at home or in a place you chose yourself (the county does not count acute care hospitals, long-term care facilities or licensed community care facilities as your own home);
• you cannot live at home safely without help;
• a completed Health Care Certification, the SOC 873, has been turned in.

Authorized hours can pay for cleaning the home, preparing meals, washing clothes and buying groceries; for hands-on personal care like bathing, grooming, toileting and paramedical tasks; for an escort to medical visits; and for protective supervision of someone with a mental impairment.

IHSS Nevada County phone number and how to apply

Applications start with a phone call to Adult Services, (530) 265-1639, on weekdays between 8 and 5. The county also publishes a toll-free number, 888-339-7248. Applications can be mailed or faxed instead:

Anyone who notices that a person needs help at home may refer them, but the would-be recipient must join that call and say they want the service. The county's checklist for the call runs from the applicant's name, address, date of birth and Social Security number to household members, preferred language, the services wanted, other agencies already involved, an authorized representative if one acts for the applicant, and whoever you hope will be the caregiver.

When the SOC 873 and Medi-Cal eligibility are both in place, the county assigns a social worker to assess need. The county says the assessment weighs the applicant's medical condition, living arrangement, who else lives there and the help already available. Statewide, CDSS publishes the IHSS application as form SOC 295, in English and several other languages.

Nevada County IHSS pay: $18.50 an hour

The county's IHSS page gives the care provider rate as $18.50 an hour as of January 1, 2026. On October 16, 2026 we opened the CDSS workbook of county wages (sheet "IP Effective 10-1-2026"); the Nevada line there carries the same rate and date, and Connecting Point quotes $18.50 on its provider and registry pages. Of California's 58 counties, 30 pay providers more than $18.50 and 24 pay less; Plumas, Shasta and Sierra are level with Nevada.

Pay follows the county where your recipient lives. A Grass Valley caregiver who works for a client in Placer County is paid Placer's rate, and a Placer resident caring for someone in Truckee is paid Nevada's.

EDD estimates put unemployment at about 4.8% of Nevada County's labor force, on average, between August 2025 and August 2026, below California's 5.3%. No local wage law for the county, Truckee, Grass Valley or Nevada City appears in the Berkeley Labor Center's city and county inventory (its September 30, 2026 revision), so private care work in the county falls back on California's $16.90 minimum. The IHSS pay by county table sets Nevada beside every other county.

Connecting Point, the Public Authority and caregiver registry

Nevada County's entry in the CAPA directory of Public Authorities points to Connecting Point, a public agency. Its history page says the organization started life in 2003 under the name Nevada-Sierra Regional IHSS Public Authority, serves IHSS in Nevada, Sierra and Plumas counties, and took on Nevada County's 2-1-1 service in 2011. Find it at 208 Sutton Way in Grass Valley (95945); the IHSS team's number is (530) 274-5601.

The county's IHSS page says that once hours are authorized, a recipient who needs a caregiver can turn to Connecting Point, which refers registry providers; a relative or friend can also take the job. Either way, the client is the employer, supervises the work and signs the timesheets.

Connecting Point describes its registry as a pool of independent providers available for referral to IHSS consumers, matched on each consumer's needs, schedule and preferences. For a referral in Nevada County, the Home Care Coordinator line is (530) 557-0408. The coordinator learns what you need, sends names and contact details of registry providers, and leaves you to call, interview and choose. After the paperwork, you set the schedule, train the provider, keep track of hours and sign off timesheets.

Connecting Point offers caregivers two routes in: enroll to care for a person you know already, or join the Nevada County registry to be matched with a client by availability, location, skills and comfort level. For union matters, Connecting Point's resource list sends providers to United Domestic Workers (UDW). Families who also hire outside IHSS can use our private caregiver hiring checklist.

Becoming a Nevada County IHSS provider, step by step

Connecting Point's Nevada County checklist has seven steps. Its employment specialists for Nevada County answer on (530) 274-5601.

1. Phone Connecting Point. Enrollment begins with a call to (530) 274-5601.
2. Go to your in-person appointment. Take your Social Security card and an unexpired state photo ID, both originals; Names must match exactly, and photocopies are refused. You leave with the Department of Justice form for Live Scan.
3. Pass the background check. Book Live Scan fingerprinting; the fingerprint roller hands you a completed copy to keep. Questions about the check, or about Tier 1 or Tier 2 convictions, go to (530) 274-5601.
4. Get your provider number. Connecting Point emails you once all steps are complete, then mails a letter giving the number, the timesheet site and your next steps. Where it applies, a SOC 2271 lists the tasks authorized for your recipient.
5. Register for ESP or TTS. The state treats enrolling in the online portal or the telephone system as a condition of employment. TTS registration is on 1-833-342-5388.
6. Set up direct deposit for each recipient (each counts as a separate employer; allow about 30 calendar days) and, if you live with your client, attest to the Live-In Provider Self-Certification in the portal.
7. Fill in each timesheet that appears and let your recipient know, since only they can approve it.

Statewide, CDSS requires the provider enrollment form (SOC 426), the enrollment agreement every provider signs (SOC 846), DOJ fingerprinting and orientation. Relatives use the same process: read IHSS pay for family members and the statewide IHSS provider steps.

Live Scan fingerprinting in Grass Valley and Truckee

The Attorney General's list for Nevada County, checked on October 16, 2026, shows these sites. Each site sets its own rolling fee; the DOJ notes that further charges can be added.

Bring the DOJ form from your Connecting Point appointment, and call ahead to confirm hours and fees, as the AG advises.

Timesheets, payroll help, sick leave and health benefits

• Payroll questions. The county sends Nevada County IHSS payroll calls to Connecting Point, (530) 274-5601, weekdays 8 am to 5 pm. Connecting Point also runs a Timesheet Helpline: dial 2-1-1 (or 1-844-319-4119) and press 3. Calls are toll-free and returned in the order received, weekdays 8:30 am to 5:00 pm.
• Online timesheets. Through the state's Electronic Services Portal you can submit timesheets, check payment status and history, change direct deposit and claim sick leave. For portal log-in or registration problems, phone (866) 376-7066, the state ESP desk, on a weekday between 8 and 5.
• Weekly cap. CDSS limits a provider to 66 hours a workweek across all IHSS recipients combined.
• Sick leave. For fiscal 2026/2027 CDSS grants 40 hours of paid sick time, usable from the first of July 2026, after a newly hired provider completes 100 hours on authorized tasks. File a claim online or with the paper SOC 2302; hours left on June 30 are forfeited.
• Other paperwork. Written employment verification requests, live-in certification and workers' compensation after an injury are all handled on (530) 274-5601; the portal also shows your own wage details.
• Health plan. Providers in the three counties Connecting Point serves can get its limited benefit indemnity coverage, underwritten by Pan-American Life. To qualify, IHSS payroll has to show two consecutive months with 80 or more approved and paid hours each, and you need to be working on the start date; keep up 80 hours monthly to stay covered. Connecting Point mails the application. If it has not come, ring (530) 274-5601 or (866) 577-6331.

The county's fraud page warns against claiming meal breaks, days the client was in a hospital or nursing home, or uncovered tasks such as gardening or pet care. Report suspected IHSS fraud on 888-717-8302.

Adult Protective Services and other Nevada County contacts

Nevada County APS investigates reports about adults 60 and over, and adults 18 to 59 with physical or mental limitations, who cannot meet their own needs or are being abused, neglected or exploited. According to the county, an APS social worker may make a personal visit anywhere from 24 hours to 10 days after the report comes in. The county takes reports 24 hours a day, every day, on its Adult Services numbers above, and the APS 24-hour emergency response line is 530-265-1217. Written reports on the SOC 341 can be faxed to 530-470-2625. CDSS also runs 1-833-401-0832 statewide; key in the 5-digit ZIP and the call is routed to that county's APS. For a nursing home or other licensed setting, the county directs reports to the local Ombudsperson on 1-866-901-3212. Caregivers who suspect abuse must report it under Welfare and Institutions Code section 15630.

For other local services, the county points residents to 2-1-1 Nevada County, a free, confidential line open 24/7.

IHSS in Truckee, Grass Valley and Nevada City, and private care

Every part of the county uses the same Adult Services intake line and the same Connecting Point team. About 5.8% of Truckee's labor force was unemployed, on average, between August 2025 and August 2026, according to EDD estimates, and about 6.5% of Grass Valley's, compared with 4.8% for the county and 5.3% for California. For Nevada City, EDD's small-area figure is not usable, so use the county's 4.8%.

• Caregivers: caregiver jobs in Nevada County, caregiver jobs in Truckee, home health aide jobs in Grass Valley and CNA jobs in Nevada City.
• Families: in home care in Nevada County, home care in Truckee, senior care in Grass Valley and in home caregivers in Nevada City.

The county's assessment fixes the number of IHSS hours. Anything beyond them, nights or weekends for example, is private work at a rate the family agrees. A family can list that work on CaregiverConnect at no cost. Interested caregivers apply, the family interviews and hires, and caregivers keep their whole wage. We run no background checks; caregivers may attach a record of their own. Extra tools come with optional paid plans. Clients who live outside Nevada County fall under their own county's office: see the guides for Placer, El Dorado, Yuba and Sierra counties.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

1. Nevada County, In-Home Supportive Services (program description, eligibility, application process, Connecting Point role, $18.50 rate as of 1/1/2026, payroll and verification contacts), plus its Apply for IHSS, IHSS Fraud Prevention and Other IHSS Resources pages
2. Nevada County, Apply for In-Home Supportive Service (intake line, toll-free line, 950 Maidu Ave office by appointment, mailing address, fax, information needed)
3. Nevada County, Adult Services and Adult Protective Services (APS age groups, 24-hour lines, emergency response 530-265-1217, Ombudsman)
4. CAPA, County Public Authorities (Nevada County listed as Connecting Point)
5. Connecting Point, About (public agency, history since 2003, 2-1-1)
6. Connecting Point, IHSS Step-By-Step: Nevada County (seven enrollment steps, TTS line, Grass Valley office)
7. Connecting Point, Receive IHSS and Hire a Caregiver (registry steps, Nevada County coordinator line) and Home Care (UDW link)
8. Connecting Point, Become an IHSS Provider and Registry Provider Application ($18.50 rate, two routes)
9. Connecting Point, Health Benefits (Pan-American Life plan, 80-hour rule) and IHSS Timesheets (Timesheet Helpline)
10. CDSS, IHSS wages by county (sheet "IP Effective 10-1-2026"; Nevada $18.50 from January 1, 2026)
11. CDSS, In-Home Supportive Services (SOC 295, SOC 873) and IHSS provider orientation process (SOC 426, SOC 846, DOJ check)
12. CDSS, IHSS program requirements (66-hour workweek), paid sick leave FY 2026/2027 and ESP help (Service Desk); Adult Protective Services (statewide line 1-833-401-0832)
13. California Attorney General, Live Scan locations in Nevada County
14. California EDD, Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS), 12-month average August 2025 to August 2026
15. California DIR, minimum wage FAQ ($16.90 from January 1, 2026); UC Berkeley Labor Center local minimum wage inventory (updated September 30, 2026)