In Johnstown, many families still live in the two- and three-story houses built when the Cambria Iron Company drew thousands of mill and mine workers to the valley. Up the hill in Westmont, and out in towns like Ebensburg, Portage, Nanty-Glo and Northern Cambria, homes sit on slopes with split entries and long runs of steps. Cambria County has 71 towns, and a lot of them share that pattern of older, taller homes on uneven ground.
This page walks through what that housing means for a stair lift, which kind tends to fit, and which public programs may help pay. If you are helping a parent stay in the family home, or you are the one finding the stairs harder each year, start here.
The Cambria Iron Company of Johnstown was founded in 1852, and the town grew from about 5,150 people to 30,114 by 1890. Many of the newcomers came from Southern and Eastern Europe and settled next to the mill in the neighborhood still called Cambria City. A good share of those pre-1900 and early-1900s homes are still lived in today.
These are mostly row houses, duplexes and single-family homes with bedrooms and the bathroom upstairs. Moving everything to the main floor usually is not practical in a house like that. A stair lift keeps the upstairs in use without rebuilding the home.
When the staircase runs straight from bottom to top, a straight stair lift is the simpler install. Older homes often have a turn or a landing partway up, and in that case a curved rail built to the stairs is the usual answer. We measure every staircase before recommending one or the other.
Johnstown sits in a valley where the Stonycreek and Little Conemaugh rivers meet in the Allegheny Mountains, with steep hillsides on every side. The Johnstown Inclined Plane links the city to Westmont on top of Yoder Hill at roughly a 72% grade, and it is recognized as the steepest vehicular funicular in the world. That tells you a lot about the streets people live on here.
Many homes are built into the hill, so they have several levels reached by stairs and split entries at the front door. In a split-level home, a person may face a short flight just to get from the entry to the kitchen. Interior lifts can handle those short runs.
Outside, the climb from the sidewalk or driveway to the door can be the hardest part of the day. An outdoor stair lift is built for weather and can cover exterior steps. For someone who uses a wheelchair, a platform lift may make more sense than a seat, and that is worth discussing during the home visit.
About 23.7% of Cambria County residents are 65 or older, and 76.6% of households own their home. Bethlehem Steel's Johnstown operations employed 11,800 workers at their 1973 peak, and the plants closed in 1992. Many of the people who worked those years still live in homes they have owned for decades.
That mix of long-held older homes and limited budgets is why the funding programs below matter.
Pennsylvania's Medicaid waivers are the most direct route for people who qualify. Community HealthChoices and the OLTL OBRA, Independence and Aging waivers list stair lifts as a covered home adaptation when a service coordinator authorizes it.
For residents age 60 and up, the Cambria County Area Agency on Aging is the local door to the OPTIONS Program and to waiver enrollment. Homeowners on a tight income can also look at rehab programs from the Cambria County Redevelopment Authority, the Center for Community Action and, inside city limits, the City of Johnstown. These programs do not name stair lifts specifically, so ask how accessibility work is handled.
Veterans should know that the VA HISA grant excludes stair lifts. The SAH and SHA grants can fund one as part of an approved adaptation plan. The Cambria County Veterans’ Service Office at 200 South Center Street in Ebensburg can be reached at (814) 472-1590.
A Medicaid waiver for Pennsylvania adults 21+ who are Medicaid-eligible and meet a nursing-facility level of care, and stair lifts are a covered home adaptation when the managed-care service coordinator authorizes them as medically necessary. Call (844) 824-3655.
Medicaid waivers from the Office of Long-Term Living for adults with physical disabilities and older adults who meet the required level of care, with stair lifts listed among supported environmental adaptations. Call (800) 757-5042.
The county's starting point for residents age 60+, which assesses needs and connects people to OPTIONS and Medicaid waivers; it is not a direct grant, and the source does not say whether it funds stair lifts itself. Call (814) 472-5440.
A state lottery-funded in-home services program for Pennsylvanians 60+ with a sliding co-pay based on income, offering home modifications and assistive devices at the local AAA's discretion; stair lifts are not specifically mentioned. Call (717) 783-1550.
A federal grant of up to $126,526 for FY 2026 for veterans with qualifying service-connected disabilities who own or will own the home, and a stair lift may be funded within an approved adaptation plan. Call (877) 827-3702.
A federal grant of up to $25,350 for FY 2026 for veterans with certain service-connected disabilities, and a stair lift may be covered within an approved adaptation plan. Call (877) 827-3702.
A lifetime grant of up to $6,800 for service-connected or $2,000 for non-service-connected needs, but stair lifts are explicitly excluded, so veterans should look at SAH or SHA instead. Call (877) 222-8387.
A nonprofit serving people with disabilities in a region that includes Cambria County, offering referrals, assistive-technology guidance and help reaching waiver and home-modification funding; no direct stair lift grant is confirmed. Call (814) 949-1905.
A county-run rehab program for income-eligible owner-occupants in participating municipalities, focused on code, health and safety needs, with funding that depends on annual allocations; stair lifts are not specifically mentioned. Call (814) 472-6711.
Deferred grant or loan rehab for owners at or below 80% of Area Median Income who have lived in the home at least 2 years, where accessibility improvements are eligible though stair lifts are not named. Call (814) 623-9129.
A 0% interest forgivable deferred loan for income-eligible Johnstown homeowners, up to $22,000 or $24,000 for repairs plus up to an additional $7,500 to make the home handicap accessible; stair lifts are not specifically listed. Call (814) 539-2504.
Older adults
401 Candlelight Drive Suite 260, Ebensburg, 15931
Veterans
200 South Center Street, Ebensburg, 15931
Many of these homes date to before 1900 or the early 1900s, and their stairs vary a lot. A straight lift suits a single straight run, while stairs with a turn or landing need a curved rail. We measure the staircase in person before recommending anything.
Interior lifts can cover the short flights inside a split-level, and an outdoor stair lift can handle exterior steps up from the street or driveway. If the person uses a wheelchair, a platform lift may be the better fit.
Through its waivers, yes, for people who qualify. Community HealthChoices covers adults 21+ who are Medicaid-eligible and meet a nursing-facility level of care, and a service coordinator must authorize the lift as medically necessary. The OLTL waivers also list stair lifts.
The OPTIONS Program serves Pennsylvanians 60+ with no minimum income threshold, though a sliding co-pay applies. Home modifications are offered at the local agency's discretion. Contact the Cambria County AAA at 401 Candlelight Drive Suite 260, Ebensburg, phone (814) 472-5580.
Not through the HISA grant, which excludes stair lifts. The SAH and SHA grants can cover one within an approved adaptation plan for qualifying service-connected disabilities. The Cambria County Veterans’ Service Office in Ebensburg can help at (814) 472-1590.
The City of Johnstown Owner-Occupied Housing Rehabilitation Program offers up to an additional $7,500 to make a home handicap accessible, on top of repair funds, as a forgivable 0% loan. Call (814) 539-2504 to ask whether a stair lift qualifies.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
