Woodford County is a county of long-established farm towns. Eureka is the county seat and home to Eureka College, and places like Metamora, El Paso, Minonk and Roanoke grew up around agriculture, not newer suburban development. Many families here have owned the same traditional single-family home for a long time, and those houses often have interior stairs and more than one level.
Spread across 14 towns, from Germantown Hills and Washburn to Secor and Kappa, the county is mostly rural. When the stairs at home get harder, moving to a single-story house or assisted living can mean a long drive from family and neighbors. A stair lift lets an owner keep using the whole house, and this page covers which kind fits and where to look for help paying for it.
The older farm-town houses in Eureka, Metamora and Minonk often have one straight staircase between floors. That is the simplest case: a straight stair lift rides a rail bolted to the stair treads, not the wall, so plaster and woodwork stay untouched.
Split-level homes are different. Each short run of steps is separate, and a landing or turn usually calls for a curved rail built to the exact shape of the stairs. We measure every step and landing before recommending one or the other.
Townhouses, walk-up apartments and low-rise buildings bring their own questions, such as who owns the stairway and whether the landlord or association must approve the install. Renters should get that permission in writing first.
Most of the county is flat prairie, but there are bluffs that were once covered in timber, and some homes near them sit on sloped lots with outside steps. An outdoor stair lift, built to handle weather, can carry someone from the drive or yard up to the porch.
For a person who uses a wheelchair, a seat lift is not enough. A platform lift carries the chair itself and is the usual answer at a raised entry where a long ramp will not fit.
About 17.5% of Woodford County residents are 65 or older, and 79.8% of households own their home. Owners can modify a house as they see fit, which makes a stair lift a realistic choice for many families here.
The Woodford County Veterans Assistance Commission at 115 N. Main St. Room 106, Eureka 61530, can be reached at (309) 467-2716 for help sorting out which VA benefits apply.
Start with age. Applicants under 60 with a severe disability can look at the Illinois Home Services Program waiver. Residents 60 and older should call Age Central at (309) 674-2071, the Area Agency on Aging that serves Woodford County, to ask about home modification referrals.
The Illinois Department of Human Services lists stair lifts by name among home modifications and points people to Centers for Independent Living and other funding sources. The IHDA Home Repair and Accessibility Program and the INCIL Home Modification Program both fund accessibility work, but both warn of long waitlists, so apply early.
For veterans, the VA HISA benefit excludes stair glides. The SAH and SHA grants are the VA options to ask about for a permanent lift. Each program is summarized below.
A state information and referral page that names stair lifts as an example of a covered home modification and directs residents with disabilities to Centers for Independent Living and funding programs. It does not pay for lifts itself; call (800) 843-6154.
A Medicaid waiver for Illinois residents under 60 at application with a severe disability, which funds home modifications that improve mobility and safety; stair lifts are not named on the program page. Call (877) 581-3690 to ask whether a lift can be covered.
In-home care, adult day service, emergency home response and medication dispenser service for people 60 and older at risk of nursing facility placement. It does not cover stair lifts or home modifications; call (800) 252-8966.
The information and referral hub for adults 60 and older in Fulton, Marshall, Peoria, Stark, Tazewell and Woodford counties, with a Home Support Program among its services; its page does not say whether stair lifts are funded. Call (309) 674-2071 as a first step.
A state-funded program for income-eligible Illinois households with a member who has a documented disability, covering exterior ramps and interior accessibility changes; stair lifts are not listed specifically, and more than 800 individuals are on the waiting list. Call (217) 525-1308 to find the regional center serving Woodford County.
Loans and grants for very low-income rural homeowners to repair or improve their homes or remove health and safety hazards, with grants limited to owners 62 or older who cannot repay a loan. Stair lifts are not mentioned in the source, and rural eligibility is checked address by address.
A lifetime benefit of up to $6,800 or $2,000, depending on disability status, for medically necessary accessibility improvements for enrolled VA health care patients. Stair glides are explicitly excluded, so it does not cover stair lifts.
Grants for veterans with qualifying severe service-connected disabilities, up to $126,526 for SAH and $25,350 for SHA, for adapting a home they own. The VA gives ramps and wider doorways as examples but does not name stair lifts.
Funds health and safety repairs and accessibility improvements for low- and very-low-income homeowners through local grantee organizations; stair lifts are not itemized. Demand far exceeds funding, so expect a waitlist and contact IHDA to find the grantee serving the county.
Older adults
700 Hamilton Boulevard, Peoria, 61603
Veterans
115 N. Main St. Room 106, Eureka, 61530
Yes, the Illinois Home Services Program waiver is for residents under 60 at application with a severe disability. Its page does not name stair lifts, so call (877) 581-3690 and ask whether one can be funded as a home modification.
No. The Community Care Program covers in-home care, adult day service, emergency home response and medication dispensers, not equipment or modifications. For a parent 60 or older, call Age Central at (309) 674-2071 for home modification referrals instead.
No, HISA explicitly excludes stair glides. Ask about the VA SAH or SHA grants, and the Woodford County Veterans Assistance Commission in Eureka at (309) 467-2716 can help with the paperwork.
Possibly. Section 504 grants go to very low-income homeowners 62 or older in USDA rural areas, and much of Woodford County is rural, but eligibility is checked for each address. The program source does not mention stair lifts specifically.
It depends on how the flights connect. Separate straight runs can each take a straight lift, while a run with a turn or landing usually needs a curved rail made to fit, which is why we measure the stairs before quoting.
IHDA says demand for its Home Repair and Accessibility Program far exceeds funding, and INCIL reports more than 800 individuals on its waiting list. Applying early and to more than one program gives you the best chance.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
