Projects / Bridging the Gap: Aligning Supportive Housing and Health Care Under CalAIM

Bridging the Gap: Aligning Supportive Housing and Health Care Under CalAIM

February 18, 2025

Key takeaways

Affordable housing developers are turning to CalAIM Community Supports to help their tenants remain housed.
Developers are working together to address CalAIM implementation barriers.
Experts at UC Berkeley’s Terner Center for Housing Innovation are facilitating the developers in this work.

The California Health Care Foundation is supporting a vital initiative with UC Berkeley’s Terner Center for Housing Innovation to strengthen collaboration between permanent supportive housing developers and the health care sector. The Terner Center is facilitating a community of practice for developers so they can learn how to leverage opportunities presented by CalAIM (California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal). The goal is to improve health outcomes for people experiencing homelessness by enhancing the integration of the health care and housing sectors.

Regular participants in the community of practice include the following:

The community of practice features two key components.

Education and peer learning for housing developers
- CalAIM 101. Providing clear explanations of CalAIM and Medicaid waivers
- State policy environment. Clarifying guidance, requirements, and interagency alignment about permanent supportive housing
- Service contracting models. Sharing diverse approaches to structuring supportive services, and describing the benefits and challenges of each approach
Addressing CalAIM implementation barriers in supportive housing
- Identifying challenges through peer-to-peer engagement
- Creating resources to explain issues and highlight solutions
- Focusing on areas including client eligibility, care coordination, infrastructure, funding, and accountability

This initiative reflects CHCF’s commitment to data-driven solutions and cross-sector partnerships. By fostering a shared understanding between health care and housing sectors, the foundation seeks to improve the effectiveness of CalAIM’s housing supports and ultimately enhance care for Californians experiencing homelessness.

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