SPARTANBURG, S.C. - South Carolina senior citizens and disabled residents soon will have more choice in deciding how their Medicaid money can be spent.

Gov. Mark Sanford announced the pilot program "S.C. Choice" on a visit to a Spartanburg nursing home Wednesday.

Under the program, people getting benefits from the Department of Health and Human Services' Community Long-term Care Program now can use their Medicaid money in alternate ways.

Before, if seniors needed at-home health care, they had to go through a state-approved agency. Now they can use their Medicaid money to have a friend, relative or neighbor assist when they're most needed, said Health and Human Services Department spokeswoman Kathy Mayfield-Smith.

South Carolina is the first state to receive federal approval for the program. It will begin in Spartanburg, Cherokee and Union counties and expand statewide by next year.

The new program will be beneficial for 86-year-old Roberta Rentz, according to her daughter Beth Grant of Woodruff.

Rentz comes to the Mountainview Medical Day Care Program in Spartanburg three days a week, and gets in-home care twice a week.

"Mom's needs fluctuate," Grant said. "There are times when she may need more in-home care - at nights and weekends."

Grant said her family has been locked in by the number of hours an in-home health care worker can visit. The new program will give the family flexibility, and give Grant a break on evenings or weekends when a health care worker normally is not available.

The program gives seniors the freedom to live comfortably at home, delaying the need to move into a nursing home, said state Health and Human Services Department Director Robbie Kerr.

For example, seniors enrolled in the new program could use their Medicaid money to buy lumber and have friends build a wheelchair ramp. Currently, seniors would have to go through an approved contractor and a good deal of bureaucratic red tape, Kerr said.

"Anything we can do that empowers seniors and disabled people with choices that let them stay in their homes for longer periods of time is only going to enhance quality of life in South Carolina," Sanford said.

It also is expected to save the state money. Community-based care costs the state about 42 percent less than institutional care, Kerr said.

The Health and Human Services Department would assure the Medicaid funds are spent properly by assigning agents to assist patients and monitor the process, Kerr said. Those duties will be assigned to current agency employees, he said.

About 11,000 seniors and disabled residents are eligible for the program.

Senior advocates support the program.

"It's a tremendous opportunity for seniors in South Carolina to make their own choices about how to live their lives comfortably," said Tom Lloyd, speaker of the Silver-Haired Legislature, which sets priorities for legislation affecting senior citizens.