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Autumn 2026·7 min read·Bruce Tollefson

Free help for East Metro families arranging care

Minnesota Aging Pathways, the area agency on aging, and the Washington County support that costs nothing.

Why this article exists

You are probably here because something changed at your parent's house and you do not know who to call first. Maybe there was a hospital stay. Or your mother stopped driving and the groceries became your Saturday. Or nothing happened at all, and you have only noticed that the visits run longer than they used to and that you leave more worried than you arrived.

Minnesota has a great deal of help for families in your position, and most of it is free. It is hard to find because it sits behind names that mean nothing to anyone who has not needed them yet: aging pathways, area agency on aging, lead agency, MnCHOICES. Nobody hands you that vocabulary on the day you start needing it, so if you feel behind on this, the system is confusing and you are not the first person to say so.

None of this has to happen this week. Most of it is one phone call you could make on a lunch break, to people who have no service to sell you.

A note on what this is. This article is general information from a care provider. It is not legal, financial, or medical advice. Talk with your parent's physician about anything clinical, and with a qualified advisor about money, insurance, or legal questions.

The statewide number changed its name

If you went looking for the Senior LinkAge Line and ended up somewhere unfamiliar, that is because the name changed. Minnesota Aging Pathways is the same service under a new one. The Minnesota Board on Aging describes it as a free, statewide service run in partnership with the state's area agencies on aging, reachable at 800-333-2433, Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

The Board on Aging lists it as the state's federally designated aging and disability resource center, its long-term care options counseling service, its State Health Insurance Assistance Program for Medicare questions, and its Senior Medicare Patrol for fraud. Those are official designations, and one phone number sits behind all of them. In practice it covers Medicare enrollment, help filling out forms, comparing housing, planning for long-term care, finding transportation, and being pointed toward services near your parent's address.

What you get is a person who talks it through with you. They do not sell care, and they have no stake in what you decide. If your question is embarrassingly basic, that is the kind they answer all day.

The Board on Aging also runs a searchable directory of aging and disability resources at mn.gov/adresources, filtered by where your parent lives. It is useful at eleven at night, when calling is not an option and you want to see what exists in Woodbury or Cottage Grove before you talk to anyone.

The agency that covers Washington County

If your parent lives in Washington County, the agency you want is the Metropolitan Area Agency on Aging. Minnesota is divided into seven area agencies on aging, and according to the Minnesota Board on Aging, that one covers Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott, and Washington counties. If your brother lives in Hennepin County, he is served by that same agency.

The agency's own pages for family caregivers list caregiver consultants and coaches who work with you one on one, facilitated family meetings, support groups held by video and phone, educational programs, and adult respite, which is the official phrase for somebody else covering for you, whether that is an afternoon or a few days if your parent can stay somewhere. Its instruction for reaching any of it is the same 800-333-2433 number.

Most families do not know the facilitated family meeting exists. If you have two siblings and three opinions about what should happen to Dad, somebody else can run that conversation, and they have run it many times before.

Families ask about respite constantly and rarely know where it comes from. It is arranged through this network and through your county, and you can ask for it long before you are desperate.

Help that is a short drive away

Washington County has its own organizations, and the nearest one to most East Metro families is FamilyMeans, a nonprofit based in Stillwater. It lists caregiver support groups on a regular schedule: virtual mornings on the first and third Wednesdays, in person on the second and fourth Tuesday afternoons, a Cottage Grove group on the second Thursday, and a virtual evening group on the third Wednesday for people who work during the day.

FamilyMeans also lists individual caregiver coaching and consultation, memory cafés in Woodbury, Lake Elmo, and Hugo, and a social group for people living with dementia. A memory café is a couple of hours where your mother and you both go, and where nobody is startled by repeated questions. Families who are worn out from managing dementia at home tend to find these more useful than they expected. If you are dealing with dementia care at home, a memory café costs the least of anything on this list and often helps sooner than families realize.

Schedules shift, so check current times on the organization's own site before you drive anywhere.

The county assessment

Before anyone can use Minnesota's public long-term care programs, there is an assessment, and it is called MnCHOICES. The Minnesota Department of Human Services describes it as the state's assessment and support planning system, used by counties, tribal nations, and managed care organizations for everyone who wants to use Minnesota's long-term services and supports. At the appointment, somebody sits down with your parent and works through what they need and which supports would help. Your county lead agency is the one who does it.

Families planning to pay out of pocket often skip the assessment. It is usually worth doing anyway. The assessment tells you where your parent actually stands and what public programs they may qualify for now or later, and the answer is often different from what the family guessed. If you want the detail before you request one, we have written up what a MnCHOICES assessment involves.

If the assessment points toward waiver-funded services at home, you will need a different provider. Abloom Senior Living does not bill Minnesota waiver programs or Medical Assistance for care in a client's own home; our in-home care is paid privately or through long-term care insurance. You can still start with us, and we will point you to the agencies that do bill those programs.

Where the free help stops

Free help covers questions, referrals, paperwork, and company. Somebody still has to be in the kitchen at half past six in the evening, when your father is tired and least steady and you are still forty minutes away.

Those hours cost money. Before you ask anyone for a price, think through which hours at home carry the real risk.

A private agency can cover those hours. Abloom Senior Living sends caregivers into people's own homes around Woodbury and the East Metro, and runs a five-resident home in Woodbury for families who eventually need more care than can be managed at home. Respite is arranged through Minnesota Aging Pathways and the county, and that is where we send families who ask us about it.

What to do this week

Call 800-333-2433 and describe your situation in plain words. You do not need a diagnosis or a plan to make that call, and you do not have to decide anything afterward.

If your parent might qualify for public programs, ask the county about an assessment. If you are the one running on empty, pick one support group from the list above and go once before deciding whether it is for you.

The rest can wait. Very little here has to be settled in September, and you are allowed to spend a few weeks just gathering information.

If you want to talk it through

When you reach the point of pricing out real hours, you are welcome to tell us what is going on and we will come to the house and talk it through, or you are welcome to come see the Woodbury home. If we are not the right fit for your family, we will say so and tell you who is. You can also read how getting started works before you contact anybody.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Senior LinkAge Line the same as Minnesota Aging Pathways?

Yes. It changed its name, and the Minnesota Board on Aging now calls the service Minnesota Aging Pathways. The phone number is the same, 800-333-2433, and the Board describes it as a free statewide service run in partnership with the state's area agencies on aging, open Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Does Minnesota Aging Pathways cost anything?

No. The Minnesota Board on Aging describes it as a free service. It is the state's federally designated aging and disability resource center and its State Health Insurance Assistance Program, so Medicare questions, long-term care planning, housing comparisons, and referrals to local services all run through the same number.

Which area agency on aging covers Washington County?

The Metropolitan Area Agency on Aging. According to the Minnesota Board on Aging, it serves Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott, and Washington counties. Its own pages direct family caregivers to call Minnesota Aging Pathways at 800-333-2433 to reach caregiver consultants, family meeting facilitation, support groups, and adult respite.

Do I need a MnCHOICES assessment if we are paying privately?

You do not need one to hire a private agency. It is still worth requesting, because it establishes what public programs your parent may qualify for now or later, and families often guess wrong about that. The Minnesota Department of Human Services describes MnCHOICES as the state's assessment and support planning system, and your county lead agency performs it.

Where are there caregiver support groups near Woodbury?

FamilyMeans, based in Stillwater, lists virtual and in-person caregiver support groups, including a Cottage Grove group and a virtual evening group for people who work during the day. It also lists memory cafés in Woodbury, Lake Elmo, and Hugo. Confirm current times on the organization's own site, since schedules change.

Related reading

Sources

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