Charlton County is Georgia's southernmost county and covers 782 square miles, much of it inside the Okefenokee Swamp and the federal wildlife refuge lands around it. Most homes sit in or around Folkston and Homeland, spread out across a landscape that is entirely rural.
That spread matters when you are planning a stair lift. Homes here are mostly single-family ranch-style and detached houses, with some split-level homes and manufactured housing, and the steps that cause trouble are often at the front or back entry rather than a long interior staircase. This page walks through what fits these homes and where to look for help paying.
A single-story ranch-style home rarely has an indoor staircase, so the problem is usually the entry steps up to the porch or door. For those, an outdoor stair lift built for exposed steps, or a vertical platform lift, is often the better fit than an indoor model.
Split-level homes are different. They tend to have short flights of stairs between levels, and a straight stair lift on each short run usually handles it. If a flight turns or has a landing, a curved lift is custom-built to follow the rail path, which takes more measuring up front.
The 2020 census counted every Charlton County resident as living in a rural area. In practice that often means a longer distance between the road or driveway and the entry steps, which affects how equipment gets carried to the house and where a lift can be placed.
When we measure a home here, we look at the path from the vehicle to the steps, not just the steps themselves. A lift at the door does little good if the ground between the driveway and the porch is not safe to walk or roll across.
About 13.8% of Charlton County residents are 65 or older, and 63.4% of households own their home. Owning the house makes a permanent install like a platform lift or curved rail much simpler to plan.
If the person who needs the lift is a veteran with a service-connected disability, the VA grants listed below are worth checking before paying out of pocket.
Local paychecks lean on a narrow set of employers, including the detention center in Folkston, refuge tourism and rail work on the Folkston Funnel. That limits both the local tax base for senior services and what many families can spend on home changes, so it pays to ask about every program before buying.
None of the programs below name stair lifts in their published materials. That does not mean the answer is no. It means you should ask the intake worker or case manager directly whether stair-access equipment can be covered for your situation.
The Southern Georgia Regional Commission AAA in Waycross is the main starting point, at (912) 285-6097. Veterans can reach the Georgia Department of Veterans Service - Waycross Veterans Field Service Office at (912) 285-6340. Georgia also runs statewide programs worth asking about by name, including the Community Care Services Program (CCSP), the SOURCE Waiver, the Home Access Program and the Credit-Able Loan Program.
A Georgia Medicaid waiver for Medicaid recipients age 65+ or with disabilities who meet nursing-facility level of care; the state's published page does not list stair lifts or home modifications. Intake runs through the local Area Agency on Aging at (888) 732-4464, so ask them about environmental-modification coverage.
A Georgia Medicaid waiver for recipients age 21-64 with significant physical disabilities who meet a hospital or nursing-facility level of care; stair lifts are not mentioned in the published materials. Call (404) 656-4507 or ask your case manager whether they can be covered.
A regional home-modification service for older adults in the 18-county Southern Georgia Regional Commission area, which includes Charlton County; it lists ramp construction only and does not mention stair lifts. Call the ADRC intake line at (888) 732-4464 to ask whether interior stair equipment is ever funded case by case.
A federal grant of up to $126,526 (permanent home) for FY2026 for veterans with qualifying service-connected disabilities, usable up to 6 times over a lifetime. The VA gives ramps and doorway widening as examples but does not name stair lifts.
A federal grant of up to $25,350 (permanent home) for FY2026 to adapt a home for qualifying service-connected disabilities. It covers home modification in general, but stair lifts are not named.
For SAH- or SHA-eligible veterans temporarily living in a family member's home, this grant pays up to $50,961 (SAH-eligible) or up to $9,100 (SHA-eligible) for FY2026 to adapt that home. Stair lifts are not explicitly named.
Older adults
1725 South Georgia Parkway, W., Waycross, 31503
Veterans
415 Lott St., Waycross, 31501
Often the steps that matter are at the entry, not inside. For porch or entry steps, an outdoor stair lift or a vertical platform lift is usually the option to look at.
Call the Southern Georgia Regional Commission AAA in Waycross at (912) 285-6097, or the ADRC intake line at (888) 732-4464. They handle referrals for the Elderly and Disabled Waiver Program (EDWP) and the regional home-modification service.
The published pages for EDWP and ICWP do not list stair lifts or home modifications. Ask the intake worker or case manager directly, since the waiver documents themselves were not itemized on the state page.
The Independent Care Waiver Program (ICWP) serves Georgia Medicaid recipients age 21-64 with significant physical disabilities who meet a hospital or nursing-facility level of care. You can reach them at (404) 656-4507.
The closest listed office is the Georgia Department of Veterans Service - Waycross Veterans Field Service Office at 415 Lott St., Waycross, phone (912) 285-6340. They can help with the SAH, SHA and TRA grant applications.
If the veteran is SAH- or SHA-eligible, the VA Temporary Residence Adaptation (TRA) Grant can fund changes to a family member's home where they are temporarily living. Amounts for FY2026 are up to $50,961 or up to $9,100, depending on which grant they qualify for.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
