Free Wheelchair Ramps for Seniors: 30 Programs to Check out today

By Maurice

Wheelchair ramps enable the physically disabled as well as seniors to enjoy complete freedom, as they allow users to move in and around the home safely and freely. If you are looking for a Free Wheelchair Ramp for Seniors, you have come to the right place. We have compiled a list of programs that will help you with a Free wheelchair ramp.

Free Wheelchair Ramps for Seniors – Government Programs

Medicare

Medicare Advantage may be able to provide you with financial assistance for a wheelchair ramp. Medicare Advantage plans must provide the same benefits as Original Medicare (or traditional Medicare), but may also provide additional coverage. Because these plans are only available through private insurers, they vary by company, plan, and location. To determine financial assistance policies and compare coverage, you’ll need to ask a private insurance agent specifically about their Medicare Advantage policies.

​Medicaid

There are two ways to obtain coverage for a wheelchair ramp under Medicaid:

1. 1Regular Medicaid
2. 2Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Waivers.

​Local Government or City Programs

Many local governments and cities have programs that help with home modification to make homes safer and more accessible for seniors.

City of Jacksonville/Disabled Services Division (Florida) has partnered with the Jacksonville Job Corps to construct free wheelchair ramps for Duval County’s disabled population. The ramps are funded through parking citation revenue from citizens improperly parking in disabled spaces and they are helping local disabled persons obtain better access to their homes.

The city of Topeka’s Planning & Development department has an Accessibility Program that provides modifications to homes such as external ramps, bathroom modifications, and more.

Environmental Modification Home Accessibility Program (Alaska) Alaskans who are ill, frail, or injured may need a wheelchair ramp or other changes to their home to maintain their independence. If they are eligible for one of Alaska’s Medicaid waivers, the state “environmental modification,” or E-Mod service may help pay for accessibility construction projects.

Contact your local government to see if they have any program that assists with home modification and improvement including wheelchair ramps.

Free Wheelchair Ramps for Seniors – Charities

Habitat for Humanity

Many habitats for humanity chapters help with ramp building. For example, Habitat for Humanity Capital Region’s Ramp Crews has built over 800 ramps around Ingham and Eaton Counties in the past 25+ years. Long-time volunteers gather once or twice a week to dedicate their time and skills to help local people create safer and easier access to their homes. This program serves people in Ingham and Eaton Counties, Michigan. It is for renters, homeowners, and people living in mobile homes.

​Safe at home – Rebuilding Together

The Safe at Home program provides no-cost preventive home modifications to people with mobility issues and other disabilities to improve accessibility, reduce falls, increase independence and facilitate aging-in-place. Safe at Home is designed to improve aging-in-place outcomes for low-income older adults through the modification of their home environment to meet their specific needs.

​Operation Ramp Up

Operation Ramp Up’s mission is to install wheelchair ramps in all 50 states. They strive to reach beyond veterans and their families to assist anyone with physical disabilities and in need of a wheelchair ramp. Their team of volunteers is committed to helping those with mobility issues.

​Chive Charities Grant

Chive Charities provides one-time grants for therapy equipment and sessions not covered by insurance, home modifications such as wheelchair ramps, car adaptations, mobility items, developmental and learning aids, and other medical needs as determined by a physician.

​United Way

Many United Way have Ramp Programs where volunteers make it possible for relatives, friends, and neighbors to go to doctor appointments, church, run errands, visit friends and relatives, and have an active lifestyle. Find your local United Way here.

​Volunteers of America

Many VoA chapters have programs that provide free ramps.

For example, Volunteers of America Southeast Louisiana Minor home repairs could include fixing locks, carpentry, plumbing, window work, and other small jobs. Small modifications, such as adding handrails, may also be performed to make it easier to move about. For those who can no longer get in and out of their home without assistance, wheelchair-accessible ramps are also available.

Volunteers of America Colorado make it possible for elders and individuals with disabilities to keep living in their own homes by making home safety improvements (e.g. installing grab-bars, handrails, chair risers, wheelchair ramps, etc.). The handyperson program needs volunteers throughout Larimer County.

Find your local chapter to see if they have a program to provide free ramps.

​AGC Charities, Inc.

Operation Opening Doors is a national program of AGC Charities, Inc., designed to provide home remodeling services to those suffering from disabilities incurred through service to our country or unforeseen disasters. From installing a wheelchair ramp and widening doorways to retrofitting an entire home for handicap accessibility, Operation Opening Doors plays an important role in helping the disabled and their families regain the quality of life they had before.

​Masonic Grand Lodge Charities of Rhode Island, Inc.  (Rhode Island)

Masonic Grand Lodge Charities of Rhode Island supports a number of civic and social charitable organizations throughout our jurisdiction through several initiatives to support and inspire not only their masonic families but also their local communities within their jurisdiction of the great state of Rhode Island. They have available free of charge a wide variety of equipment: Walkers, Canes, Wheelchairs, Commodes, Shower Chairs, Electric Hospital Beds, Lift Chairs, Transport Chairs, and Ramps.

​United Disabilities Services Foundation Accessible Home Modifications

The Accessible Home Modifications program provides services including consulting, design, and construction for disabled individuals who can’t afford the cost of their own modifications. The program covers costs for products such as handicap ramps, automatic door openers, ceiling track lifts, and stairlifts. Low-Income Grants and Programs for Families and Individuals.

​CASA of Madison County (Alabama)

Volunteers enable the installation of wheelchair ramps in homes throughout Madison County for people who are unable to leave their homes, allowing them to remain safe and independent in their own homes.

​Ability 360 (Arizona)

Ability360’s Home Modification program assists people with disabilities and/or seniors who need modifications to their residence to improve accessibility and safety. The program facilitates accessible modifications for low-to-moderate-income Maricopa County residents made possible mainly by Community Development Block Grants

​Mainstream Center for Independent Living (Arkansas)

Mainstream’s Ramp Program provides access to and from home for people with mobility impairments. Mainstream coordinates this program with The AT&T Telephone Pioneers (formerly known as the Southwestern Bell Telephone Pioneers) and the City of Little Rock Community Development Block Grant Initiative. The ramps are built according to ADA specifications.

​Texas Ramp Project (Texas)

Seniors or the disabled are able to have home wheelchair ramps installed so that they can continue to live safely and independently with fewer mobility issues, prevent accidents and falls thereby helping them to maintain a higher quality of life for a longer period of time. To ensure elderly home safety and to ensure that emergency responders have access to senior homes in case of emergency.

​Community Access Center (California)

The Community Access Center is a non-profit organization and one of 29 similar programs throughout the state of California. CAC is a community resource, advocate, and educator for Riverside County residents with disabilities. They have a Residential Accessibility Modification Program that provides free ramps for community members that might need them.

​ElderHelp of Northern Idaho (Idaho)

ElderHelp of Northern Idaho provides various services such as Installing various types of handrails and grab bars, Minor roof leaks, Minor plumbing leaks, Repair floors that present a safety hazard, Putting locks on doors, or windows, Maintaining and installing smoke detectors, Weatherization, Building handicap ramps, Snow shoveling, Yard maintenance, and minor home repairs.

​United Auto Workers Local 249 (IL)

The UAW-Ford Community Outreach Committee has a history of providing wheelchair-accessible ramps to those who reside in the communities where we live and work. UAW-Ford continues to recognize the need in our communities and is honored to provide this free service to those who qualify. To be considered, please fill out and submit the required registration form and appropriate documentation.

​Servants At Work, Inc. (Indiana)

SAWs© is a faith-based nonprofit organization dedicated to providing freedom to low-income, permanently disabled individuals through the construction of wheelchair ramps for the exterior of homes.

​Able Up Iowa (Iowa)

Able Up Iowa (AUI) is a non-profit organization that helps people of all abilities become independent by providing solutions of financial needs and empowering them to achieve financial goals. AUI provides low-interest and forgivable loans so you can purchase what you need to live independently including ramps.

​Appalachia Service Project (Kentucky)

ASP (Appalachia Service Project) is a hands-on home-repair ministry that is sponsored locally by Jesse Lee Church. It makes a huge difference for families who live in the mountains of West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia, Tennessee, and North Carolina, some of the most poverty-stricken areas of our country. They work not only to make their homes warmer, safer, and drier but also to give them hope.

​Western Maine Community Action (Maine)

Western Maine Comunity Action’s Community Aging in Place is a program designed to assist Maine’s low-income elder homeowners age 60+ remain in their own homes as long as they choose to, and are able to do so. This includes Home Modifications for Accessibility such as building ramps.

​Disabilities Services Resource Center (Michigan)

Accessible Ramp Building is a year-round program with an emphasis on one ramp built by DSRC volunteers in summer and a build by Nexteer in the fall. These campaigns bring professional contractors together with community volunteers to construct up to 10 ramps in a single day.

​Center for Independent Living of Northeastern Minnesota (Minnesota)

The Ramp Project provides ramps for people with disabilities on a sliding fee scale.

​West-Central Independent Living Solutions (Missouri)

WILS provides independent living services, programs, and solutions to people with disabilities in Benton, Henry, Johnson, Lafayette, Pettis, and Saline, MO. The services they provide include ramp building.

​RAMP – the Regional Access Mobility Program (Montana)

RAMP of Montana is a private, nonprofit organization based in Missoula. The mission of the RAMP program is to provide dignified self-sufficiency for persons with disabilities and seniors in our community by building wheelchair ramps and other accommodations for accessibility.

​League of Human Dignity (Nebraska)

RAMP of Montana is a private, nonprofit organization based in Missoula. The mission of the RAMP program is to provide dignified self-sufficiency for persons with disabilities and seniors in our community by building wheelchair ramps and other accommodations for accessibility.

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