Does the MassHealth PCA Program Pay for Cooking and Meal Prep?

Yes, meal preparation is a covered PCA task, but the program now pays for no more than seven hours of it a week. That cap took effect July 3, 2026 under the amended program regulations at 130 CMR 422.410(C)(3). If the meals in your plan currently take more than about an hour a day, that part of your authorization is the part to ask your PCM agency about before your next evaluation.

Meal preparation is paid PCA time, now with a weekly ceiling on it.

Does the PCA program pay for cooking?

Yes. Meal preparation is one of the covered activities in the PCA program regulations, so a PCA can be paid for the time spent getting food ready. What changed is the amount, not whether it counts. The regulation at 130 CMR 422.410(C)(3) allows meal preparation up to a maximum of seven hours per week.

When did the seven hour limit start?

July 3, 2026. The MassHealth transmittal letter accompanying the amended regulations states that the changes take effect that date and that they add a seven hour weekly cap on meal preparation. The same set of amendments also addressed the maximum weekly hours a PCA may work, which we cover on our page on the PCA weekly hour limit and overtime authorization.

Is the seven hours separate from my total PCA hours?

They are two different limits, and both apply. The seven hour maximum applies to meal preparation alone. Separately, the regulations treat PCA services exceeding 60 hours per week in the aggregate as noncovered, which is the overall ceiling on your plan. Reaching the meal preparation cap does not raise your total, and sitting well under your total does not exempt you from the meal cap.

Does the cap include grocery shopping and the dishes?

Ask your PCM agency rather than assuming either way. The regulation states the seven hour maximum for meal preparation. How your own plan counts the tasks around it, the shopping, putting food away, washing up, comes out of the time for task assessment that sets your hours, and that is a conversation with the nurse or case manager who does your evaluation. Our page on how MassHealth decides how many PCA hours you get explains how that assessment works. We will not guess at your numbers on a web page.

What if seven hours a week is not enough to feed someone?

Fill the gap outside the program, and try the free options first. Home delivered meals through your local Council on Aging or the regional Aging Services Access Point reach a lot of households at no cost or on a donation basis, and they solve this exact problem without touching your PCA hours. Many towns also run a congregate lunch site a few days a week. Our page on free grocery and meal help for seniors in Massachusetts lists what to ask for and who to call. If you still need a person in the kitchen beyond that, private pay home health aide care is $45 an hour, one to eight hours a day, with no minimum contract, no assessment fee and no four hour minimum per visit. Three hours twice a week is about $1,170 a month, and a few hours a week is a normal way to use it alongside a PCA plan.

Can a family member be paid to do the cooking?

Not if that person is your spouse, the parent of a member who is a minor, or any other legally responsible relative, and not if they are your surrogate. The regulations exclude those people from being paid as a PCA. Other relatives can be. An adult child, a sibling, a cousin or a friend can be hired and paid as your PCA, because in this program you are the employer and you decide who works for you.

Who do I ask about my own hours?

Your PCM agency. If Care Remedy is your PCM agency, or you want to transfer to us, email pcm@careremedy.com and we will go through your current authorization with you. Send PCA and PCM questions to that address rather than our general inbox so they reach the right team, or call 781 957 8076. Offices in Woburn, Springfield and Brockton.

This page summarizes the program regulations as published and is not legal advice. MassHealth rules change, so confirm your own hours and eligibility with your PCM agency or MassHealth before you act on anything here.