From Carrollton and Malvern to Lake Mohawk, Dellroy and Leesville, Carroll County is hill country. The county covers 399 square miles of Appalachian Ohio, and the 2020 Census counted its population as 100.0% rural. A lot of homes here sit on sloped lots, so getting from the driveway to the kitchen can mean stairs before you ever reach the inside ones.
Most people in the county own their homes and plan to stay in them. The 2020 Census put the median age at 46.2, older than the national average. When the stairs start to feel like a risk, a stair lift is often the step that lets someone keep living in a house they have had for decades.
The housing here is mostly single-family homes and detached houses, with split-level and ranch-style homes mixed in and some walk-up apartments in the villages. Long-held homes built into hillsides are often multi-level rather than single-story, and each layout calls for a different lift.
A straight staircase between two floors is the simplest case. A straight rail mounts to the stair treads, not the wall, and usually goes in quickly with no structural changes.
Split-level homes are common in towns like Carrollton and Malvern. They often have two or three short flights instead of one long one. Sometimes two separate straight lifts make sense, and sometimes a single custom curved rail that turns at the landing is the better fit.
Curved rails are built to the exact shape of your stairs, so we measure carefully before anything is ordered. If the person using the lift has trouble transferring at the top, a powered swivel seat that turns toward the landing helps a lot.
On hilly lots around Pekin, Sherrodsville and the lake homes at Lake Mohawk, the hardest stairs are sometimes outside: porch steps, a walkway down from the road, or stairs to a lower-level entry. Outdoor stair lifts use weather-resistant rails and seat covers built for Ohio winters.
Where someone uses a wheelchair, a platform lift may serve better than a seat. We look at the slope, the footing and where the person needs to go before recommending one.
The strongest lead for many older residents is PASSPORT, Ohio's Medicaid waiver for people age 60 and up. It lists home modifications as a covered service, and a stair lift can be approved case by case as part of a care plan. Area Agency on Aging Region 9 runs PASSPORT for Carroll County at (800) 945-4250.
For people who are not on Medicaid, the USDA Section 504 program offers repair loans up to $40,000 and grants up to $10,000 for homeowners 62 and older, though it does not name stair lifts. Veterans have several VA options, but note that the VA HISA grant specifically excludes stair glides. The program list below explains each one.
Ohio's Medicaid home and community waiver for people 60 and older who need a nursing-facility level of care but can stay home with services; home modifications are a named covered service, so a stair lift can be approved case by case. Call AAA9 at (800) 945-4250.
The regional aging agency that administers PASSPORT and HOME Choice for Carroll County and eight other counties; its program list does not mention stair lifts or home modifications by name. It is the place to start an application at (800) 945-4250.
Helps Medicaid-enrolled people move home from a nursing facility, hospital or ICF-IID, with up to 180 days of pre-move and 30 days of post-move support; the source does not say whether stair lifts are covered. Ask AAA9 at (800) 945-4250.
Offers very-low-income rural homeowners loans up to $40,000 at 1% and grants up to $10,000 for those 62 and older to remove health and safety hazards; stair lifts are not named. Check your address on USDA's property eligibility tool.
A VA health benefit for home improvements with lifetime caps of $6,800 or $2,000 depending on disability status. It does not cover stair lifts, since stair glides and porch lifts are specifically excluded.
Up to $126,526 (FY2026) for veterans with certain severe service-connected disabilities to adapt a home they own; stair lifts are not named but are not excluded either. Call the VA at (800) 827-1000.
Up to $25,350 (FY2026) for veterans with qualifying disabilities such as loss of use of both hands or certain severe burns; stair lifts are not named in the source. Call the VA at (800) 827-1000.
The county office in Carrollton helps veterans and families apply for VA benefits and offers emergency financial assistance; stair lift funding is not listed among its services. Call (330) 627-2590.
A nonprofit independent living center offering peer support, referral, advocacy and nursing-home transition help to people with disabilities of any age; it does not list stair lift funding. Call (330) 343-9292.
Older adults
1058 Southgate Pkwy., Cambridge, 43725
Veterans
160 Second St. SW, P.O. Box 303, Carrollton, 44615
Possibly, through PASSPORT. It covers home modifications, and a stair lift can be approved case by case for someone 60 or older who meets Ohio Medicaid's financial rules, which generally means countable assets near $2,000 for a single applicant. Call AAA9 at (800) 945-4250 to ask.
PASSPORT starts at age 60. Society for Equal Access serves people with disabilities of any age in Carroll County and can point you toward other options at (330) 343-9292.
No. HISA specifically excludes stair glides and porch lifts. Veterans with severe service-connected disabilities can ask about the SAH or SHA grants at (800) 827-1000, and the Carroll County Veterans Service Office at (330) 627-2590 can help with the paperwork.
The 2020 Census counted Carroll County as 100.0% rural, so most addresses are likely eligible. You should still check your specific address on USDA's property eligibility tool.
Sometimes. A custom curved rail can follow the turn at a landing, or two straight lifts can cover separate short flights. We measure your stairs to see which works.
Area Agency on Aging Region 9 is at 1058 Southgate Pkwy., Cambridge, 43725. Its office line is (740) 439-4478, and PASSPORT intake is (800) 945-4250.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
