​BH-CONNECT FAQs​​

What is BH-CONNECT?

​BH-CONNECT is California’s transformative initiative that establishes a robust continuum of evidence-based community services for people with significant behavioral health needs, including providing up to six months of transitional rent for qualified members, funding new training for providers and counties, and addressing disparities through targeted funding and innovative programs. It aims to:

Through BH-CONNECT, California strives to shore-up its behavioral health system, ensuring individuals with significant mental health and substance use disorder needs receive necessary care and support.

Who will benefit from BH-CONNECT?

• Children and youth involved in child welfare.
• Individuals and families experiencing or at risk of homelessness.
• People involved in the justice system.

To access these services, members must meet criteria for Specialty Mental Health Services (BHIN 21-073), Drug Medi-Cal services (BHIN 21-071), and/or access Drug Medi-Cal Organized Delivery System (DMC-ODS) (BHIN 24-001). DHCS will issue forthcoming guidance with additional eligibility criteria for the BH-CONNECT EBPs and community-based services.

How can individuals access BH-CONNECT services?

Individuals who are eligible for Medi-Cal and meet the specific criteria for BH-CONNECT services should contact their county behavioral health department. County behavioral health departments will provide information on available services, eligibility requirements, and the application process.

I am a​n individual experiencing homelessness and in need of transitional rent assistance. How can I participate in this program?

If you're a Medi-Cal member experiencing homelessness and need transitional rent assistance, contact your Medi-Cal managed care plan (MCP) to inquire about the Transitional Rent program, which may provide up to six months of rental assistance starting as early as July 2025. Your MCP can guide you through eligibility criteria and the application process.​ View the health plan directory​.​

When will these changes be implemented?

Implementation will occur in phases:

• Starting January 1, 2025: Counties may opt to offer services like Assertive Community Treatment (ACT), Forensic ACT (FACT), Coordinated Specialty Care for First Episode Psychosis, Individual Placement and Support (IPS) Supported Employment, Community Health Worker Services, and Clubhouse Services.
• Starting January 1, 2025:, MCPs may choose to provide up to six months of transitional rent assistance to qualified individuals. By January 1, 2026, offering this service will become mandatory for all MCPs for persons with significant behavioral health needs and mandatory for other populations in later phases.
• July 2025: Launch of Activity Funds and initial joint child welfare/behavioral health visits.
• By December 2026: Implementation of bed tracking capabilities to monitor inpatient and crisis stabilization bed availability.​

Will county behavioral health plans have the option to provide a selection of the evidence-based practices (EBP) and not the full suite of EBPs?

BH-CONNECT clarifies the obligation for all county behavioral health plans (BHPs) to cover evidence-based practices (EBP) for children and youth, including Multisystemic Therapy, Functional Family Therapy, Parent-Child Interaction Therapy, and High-Fidelity Wraparound. Through the BH-CONNECT demonstration, county BHPs will have the option to implement any of the individual adult EBPs, including Assertive Community Treatment (ACT), Forensic ACT (FACT), Coordinated Specialty Care for First Episode Psychosis, Individual Placement and Support (IPS) Supported Employment, Community Health Worker Services, and Clubhouse Services. However, to receive federal financial participation for short-term stays in institutions for mental disease (IMD), counties must opt in to the demonstration and agree to implement the full suite of BH-CONNECT EBPs. Please note that participation in the BH-CONNECT incentive program will not require counties to receive funding for short-term stays in IMDs.  ​

How does a county BHP submit its intent to fully “opt" in to the BH-CONNECT demonstration and receive Federal Financial Participation (FFP) for short-term IMD stays?

County BHPs that intend to draw down FFP for care provided during short-term stays in IMDs must commit to implementing a “full suite” of BH-CONNECT EBPs on a timeline specified by DHCS. This includes ACT; FACT, Coordinated Specialty Care for First Episode Psychosis, Individual Placement and Support model of Supported Employment, Community Health Worker Services, and Peer Support Services, including forensic specialization. Additional information about the opt-in process to participate in the IMD option will be issued in forthcoming guidance.

Which EBPs will a county BHP need to provide to be eligible to receive FFP for short-term IMD stays or participate in the BH-CONNECT incentive program?

The BH-CONNECT Access, Reform, and Outcomes Incentive Program provides the opportunity for county BHPs to earn incentive payments for meeting specific performance targets associated with improving access, quality care, and delivery system reforms. Several incentive payments are focused on key EBPs, so for a county to earn incentive payments on those EBPs they would have to cover those EBPs.  Further, the Access, Reform, and Outcomes Incentive Program includes an enhanced opportunity for high-performing county BHPs to earn additional incentive funding through a High-Performance Pool. To earn additional incentive funding in the High-Performance Pool for measures specific to EBPs for adults, a county BHP would need to provide the full suite of EBPs for adults, including ACT; FACT; Coordinated Specialty Care for First Episode Psychosis; Individual Placement and Support model of Supported Employment; Enhanced Community Health Worker Services; and Peer Support Services, including forensic specialization. 

Is there training and technical assistance available to county BHPs to support the  roll-out of these EBPs?

Yes, Centers of Excellence (COEs) will support county behavioral health plans and providers by offering training, technical assistance, and support fidelity implementation of evidence-based practices as part of BH-CONNECT and Behavioral Health Transformation. County behavioral health plans and providers can visit the COE Resource Hub​ webpage to sign up for updates, share feedback and questions, and learn more about COEs.​

Are county BHPs required to provide Clubhouse Services to receive FFP for short-term stays or participate in the BH-CONNECT incentive program ?

​Who qualifies for transitional rent under the BH-CONNECT demonstration?

Members enrolled in a Medi-Cal MCP may be eligible for transitional rent if they:

Meet clinical risk factor requirements, specifically:

1. Meets the access criteria for Medi-Cal Specialty Mental Health Services (SMHS); or
• Meets the access criteria for Drug Medi-Cal, or DMC-ODS; or
• Has one or more serious chronic physical health conditions; or
• Has one or more physical, intellectual, or developmental disabilities, or
• ​Is an individual who is pregnant, up through twelve months postpartum.
2. Meets social risk factors, specifically: are homeless or at risk of homelessness as defined by HUD's current definition as codified at 24 CFR part 91.5, with three modifications¹; AND
3. Meet one or more of the following criteria for transitioning populations:
   
• Transitioning out of an institutional or congregate residential setting
• I​ndividuals transitioning out of an institutional or congregate residential setting, including but not limited to an inpatient hospital stay, an inpatient or residential substance use disorder treatment facility, an inpatient or residential mental health facility, or nursing facility.
• Transitioning out of a carceral setting
• ​Individuals transitioning out of a state prison, county jail, youth correctional facility, or other state, local, or federal penal setting where they have been in custody and held involuntarily through operation of law enforcement authorities.
• Transitioning out of interim housing
• ​Individuals transitioning out of transitional housing, rapid re-housing, a domestic violence shelter or domestic violence housing, a homeless shelter, or other interim housing, whether funded or administered by HUD, or at the state or local level, or some combination thereof.
• Transitioning out of recuperative care or short-term post-hospitalization housing
• ​Individuals transitioning out of short-term post-hospitalization housing or recuperative care, whether the stay was covered by Medi-Cal managed care, or another source.
• Transitioning out of foster care
• ​Individuals up to age 26 who transitioned out of foster care either in California or in another state.
• Unsheltered
• ​Individuals or families with a primary nighttime residence that is a public or private place not designed for ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings, including a car, park, abandoned building, bus or train station, airport, or camping ground (as provided in part (1)(i) of the definition of homeless at 24 CFR part 91.5)
• Eligible for Full-Service Partnership (FSP)
• ​​FSP is a comprehensive behavioral health program for individuals living with significant mental health and/or co-occurring substance use conditions that have demonstrated a need for intensive wraparound services.
  

^1​The three modifications are: (1) for individuals exiting an institution, they are considered homeless if they were homeless immediately prior to entering that institutional stay or become homeless during that stay, regardless of the length of institutionalization; (2) The timeframe for an individual or family who will imminently lose housing is extended from 14 days for individuals considered homeless and 21 days for individuals considered at risk of homelessness under the current HUD definition to 30 days; (3) For the at risk of homelessness definition at 24 CFR § 91.5, the requirement to have an annual income below 30% of median family income for the area, as determined by HUD, will not apply. 

Can a person qualify for transitional rent for six months on more than one occasion, or is six months the lifetime maximum?

Transitional rent services may be covered for a period of no more than six months once per demonstration and must be medically appropriate using clinical and other health-related social needs (HRSN) criteria.

What workforce development funding opportunities are available through the Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI)?

As part of BH-CONNECT, HCAI provides extensive workforce development funding to address shortages in behavioral health practitioners serving Medi-Cal and uninsured populations. These opportunities include:

• Medi-Cal Behavioral Health Student Loan Repayment Program provides up to:
• $240,000 for licensed practitioners with prescribing privileges (e.g., Psychiatrists, Addiction Medicine Physicians, Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioners).
• $180,000 for non-prescribing licensed or associate-level practitioners (e.g., Psychologists, Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists).
• $120,000 for Community Health Workers, Peer Support Specialists, Wellness Coaches, and similar non-licensed practitioners.
• Recipients commit to practicing full-time in safety net settings for a defined period based on loan repayment amounts​
  

• Medi-Cal Behavioral Health Scholarship Program offers scholarships of up to:
• ​$240,000 for licensed practitioners with prescribing privileges.
• $180,000 for non-prescribing licensed practitioners.
• $120,000 for non-licensed practitioners such as Alcohol or Other Drug Counselors and Peer Support Specialists.
• Recipients commit to practicing full-time in safety net settings after completing their education, for a defined period based on loan repayment amounts.
  

• Medi-Cal Behavioral Health Recruitment and Retention Program provides funding for:
• Recruitment bonuses up to $20,000 and retention bonuses up to $4,000 per practitioner.
• Recruitment bonuses up to $50,000, specifically for individuals who are completing required field training in advance of their final year of education.  
• Support for training and licensure, with up to $1,500 per practitioner for costs related to licensure or certification, and up to $35,000 per organization to support the supervision of license-eligible providers.
• Backfill costs for providers training in evidence-based practices to ensure uninterrupted care.
  

• Medi-Cal Behavioral Health Community-Based Provider Training Program
• Funds education and training for Alcohol or Other Drug Counselors, Community Health Workers, and Peer Support Specialists. Includes up to $10,000 per participant for tuition, textbooks, and certification costs.
  

• Medi-Cal Behavioral Health Residency Training Program
• Provides up to $250,000 per residency or fellowship slot per demonstration year for new or expanded positions in Psychiatry and Addiction Medicine.