Supporting Older Adults with Resources

Helping Older Marylanders Remain Independent

Supporting Older Adults with Resources (SOAR) supports healthy aging, caregiving, housing stability, and social connections. Research has shown that care coordination reduces emergency room visits, hospitalizations, and premature nursing home placement—some of the most expensive outcomes for public systems to absorb. By helping older adults remain healthy, independent, and engaged, communities lower health care and long-term care costs while strengthening local economies and reducing strain on families and public resources.

In 2026, three existing state-funded programs administered by Maryland Department of Aging (MDOA) were consolidated into SOAR as a deliberate, intentional action to modernize important longstanding supports in order to address the evolving needs of a growing older adult population.  

If you feel you may qualify for SOAR, connect with MAP or your local Area Agency on Aging.

Services Provided

SOAR creates equitable access to the following light-touch, long-term services and supports by standardizing eligibility, utilizing evidence-based tools to assess risk, and providing person-centered resources that maximize independence.

• Case management
• Home and community-based supports that may include personal care, homemaker/chore services, meals, transportation, safety related minor home repairs/modifications, adult day care, medical supplies, emergency response systems, and respite care
• Partial financial support for assisted living monthly fees

These services are supported by state grant funding and are subject to annual funding availability.

Who Qualifies for SOAR?

• Marylanders age 62+ who make less than 60% of the median state income, have assets below eligibility thresholds, and need help with activities of daily living.
• People who don’t qualify for Medicaid or are on lengthy waitlists to access Medicaid funded services. 

Program Benefits

• Expands capacity and reduces administrative burden for all parties by standardizing processes, access to services, age, and eligibility requirements across all counties and living arrangements.
• Improves cross-agency coordination by leveraging evidence-based tools and enhanced digital infrastructure to facilitate transitions across the continuum of care between home- and community-based services.
• Provides support for older Marylanders who don't qualify for Medicaid, or are waiting for an invitation to apply for a Medicaid waiver, but can't afford private care.
• Delays or prevents Medicaid entry and decreases reliance on costlier institutional care and more restrictive community-based services.
• Addresses upstream drivers of health, creating more equitable access to preventive services and improving health outcomes for more older adults.
• Removes geographical barriers by offering residents in counties without congregate or assisted living facilities the same supports and services as residents in urban centers.

SOAR provides an opportunity for MDoA to take a step back and establish how SOAR and other programs more broadly fit within an LTSS continuum of care. MDoA has already done a tremendous amount of work to plan and develop SOAR through efforts such as LRM and its partnerships with the AAAs, MDH, DHS, and other State and local partners.

~HCBS Strategies: SOAR Program Recommendations Report