From McConnelsville and Malta along the river to Stockport and Chesterhill, Morgan County is entirely rural, and most of its homes are privately owned single-family houses spread across 14 townships. Many are older farmhouses that were never built with a stair lift in mind, and no two staircases look quite alike.
This page walks through what that means for a stair lift in your house or your parent's house: which type tends to fit, when an outdoor or porch solution makes more sense on hilly ground, and which local, state and federal programs are worth a phone call before you buy.
Morgan County has no large town with rows of matching houses. Stair lift work here is usually in standalone farmhouses, detached houses, ranch-style homes and split-level homes, and the staircases vary widely from one property to the next.
A single straight flight with no turns or landings is the simplest case, and a straight stair lift rail can often go in without changes to the house. Farmhouse stairs with a turn, a landing partway up or winders at the bottom usually need a curved rail built to that exact staircase.
Split-level homes bring their own question: there are often two short flights instead of one long one. We look at which flight the person actually needs to use every day before recommending anything, since that decides whether one lift is enough.
The county sits in southeastern Ohio's Appalachian region, with part of the Wayne National Forest and Burr Oak State Park inside its 416 square miles. That hilly, forested ground means a lot of home sites are built on a slope.
On a sloped lot the hardest climb is sometimes the porch steps or the walk up from the driveway, not the indoor stairs. In those cases an outdoor stair lift or a vertical platform lift at the porch can matter more than an interior lift, and a ramp may not be practical if the grade is steep.
During a visit we measure both the inside stairs and the outside entry so you can compare the options side by side.
For many families, that means the question of staying in the home comes up with a parent who lives out on a farm property or in one of the villages.
Distance is part of the picture. The average commute here is 37.5 minutes, compared with 26.4 minutes nationally, so adult children often live a drive away. Grouping the measurement visit, the funding calls and the install date helps cut down on trips.
None of the local programs listed below names stair lifts as a covered item, and the VA HISA grant specifically excludes stair glides. That does not rule out help, but it does mean you should ask each program directly whether a stair lift can count under its home modification or equipment category.
For residents 60 and older, start with the Morgan County Office on Aging in McConnelsville and with Buckeye Hills Regional Council about PASSPORT. Homeowners with very low income can ask about USDA Section 504 repair loans and grants, since the county is rural, though eligibility is checked address by address.
Veterans should call the Morgan County Veterans Service Office first. Staff there can help sort out which VA grant, if any, fits the veteran's disability rating and the home.
A Medicaid waiver for people 60 and older who are financially eligible and need an intermediate level of care; its services include minor home modification and repairs and durable medical equipment, but stair lifts are not specifically named. Call (800) 331-2644 or (740) 373-1594 to ask about an assessment.
County help with light housekeeping, yard work, minor home repairs and chore services for residents 60 and older who lack an able-bodied caregiver at home; stair lifts are not mentioned. The office is at 10 West Main Street in McConnelsville, phone (740) 962-5600.
Loans up to $40,000 at 1% fixed interest over up to 20 years, and grants up to $10,000 for homeowners 62 and older (up to $50,000 combined), for very low income owners in eligible rural areas. Grants must remove health and safety hazards; stair lifts are not specifically named, so confirm with USDA.
A VA grant of up to $6,800 or $2,000 over a lifetime, depending on the disability, for medically needed structural changes to a veteran's home. It does not cover stair lifts: porch lifts and stair glides are explicitly excluded.
Up to $126,526 (FY2026) toward adapting a permanent home, or up to $50,961 for a temporary residence adaptation, for veterans with certain severe service-connected disabilities; stair lifts are not specifically named. The VA can be reached at (800) 827-1000.
Up to $25,350 (FY2026) toward a permanent home, or up to $9,100 for a temporary residence adaptation, for veterans with qualifying disabilities such as loss of use of both hands; stair lifts are not specifically named. Call the VA at (800) 827-1000.
A local office at 135 S. Kennebec Ave. in McConnelsville that helps veterans with VA claims and referrals; it does not list its own stair lift funding. Call (740) 962-4181, Monday through Friday, 8:30am to 4:30pm.
Older adults
1400 Pike St., Marietta, 45750
Veterans
135 S. Kennebec Ave., McConnelsville, 43756
PASSPORT lists minor home modification and repairs and durable medical equipment among its services, but it does not name stair lifts. Ask Buckeye Hills Regional Council at (800) 331-2644 whether a stair lift can be included in a care plan.
No. The VA excludes removable equipment such as porch lifts and stair glides from HISA. The SAH and SHA grants do not name stair lifts either, so talk with the Morgan County Veterans Service Office at (740) 962-4181 about what may apply.
The Office on Aging and the regional PASSPORT listing both serve people 60 and older. Veterans of any age can contact the county Veterans Service Office, and USDA Section 504 loans are open to very low income homeowners, with the grants limited to those 62 and older.
The county is fully rural by the 2020 Census, which helps, but USDA decides rural eligibility address by address. Check your address on USDA's eligibility map before applying.
Often it is worth comparing. On sloped lots the porch steps or entry can be the harder climb, and an outdoor stair lift or porch lift may solve more than an indoor lift would. We measure both during a visit.
Locally, the Morgan County Office on Aging is at (740) 962-5600. The regional Area Agency on Aging is Buckeye Hills AAA (AAA 8) at 1400 Pike St. in Marietta, phone (740) 374-9436.
Tell us about the stairs in your home and we will explain which lift fits, what it costs and how installation works.
