California’s assisted living and adult residential care communities are beginning to partner with Medi-Cal managed care plans as part of CalAIM (California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal). As with any new initiative, there are opportunities, challenges, and unknowns.

This brief, CalAIM Explained for Assisted Living Community Operators, focuses on CalAIM’s provisions for older adults, explaining how it seeks to increase access and to improve the delivery of long-term services and supports. Under CalAIM, assisted living and adult residential care operators can tap into the Enhanced Care Management benefits and optional Community Supports services through contracts with managed care plans. This creates new opportunities — outside of the existing Assisted Living Waiver — to expand access to assisted living and adult residential communities and to enhance the quality of life for Medi-Cal enrollees.

In June, Senior Living Consult held a webinar to provide a general overview of the CalAIM Nursing Facility Transition/Diversion to Assisted Living Facilities and Community Supports programs and to share the potential opportunities and challenges for assisted living operators. Watch the recorded webinar on Vimeo.

The brief is available in Document Downloads below.

Also available is a companion fact sheet, CalAIM FAQ for Assisted Living Operators.