AIDS Medi-Cal Waiver Program

Local agencies, under contract with the California Department of Public Health, Office of AIDS, provide home- and community-based services as an alternative to nursing facility care or hospitalization.  

Services provided include: case management, skilled nursing, attendant care, psychotherapy, home-delivered meals, nutritional counseling, nutritional supplements, medical equipment and supplies, minor physical adaptations to the home, non-emergency medical transportation, and financial supplements for foster care.

Clients eligible for the program must be Medi-Cal recipients:  whose health status qualifies them for nursing facility care or hospitalization,  in an “Aid Code” with full benefits and not enrolled in the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE); have a written diagnosis of HIV disease or AIDS with current signs, symptoms, or disabilities related to HIV disease or treatment; adults who are certified by the nurse case manager to be at the nursing facility level of care and score 60 or less using the Cognitive and Functional Ability Scale assessment tool, children under 13 years of age who are certified by the nurse case manager as HIV/AIDS symptomatic; and individuals with a health status that is consistent with in-home services and who have a home setting that is safe for both the client and service providers.

For further information refer to the Office of AIDS.

AIDS Medi-Cal Waiver Program Waiver Renewal: 2017 - 2021

The California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS), in collaboration with the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), intends to submit the 1915 (c) Home and Community–Based Services (HCBS) AIDS Medi-Cal Waiver Program (MCWP) Waiver Renewal Application to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on August 1, 2016, but no later than September 30, 2016.

The MCWP seeks public comments on the proposed Waiver language to obtain approval from CMS for the renewal of the current MCWP Waiver, which was scheduled to expire on December 31, 2016.  A temporary extension has been was granted by CMS on February 22, 2017, which runs through March 31, 2017.  This extension allows the Waiver to continue operating in order to allow additional time for the State to finalize the Waiver Renewal Application process. 

Click the following hyperlink to access the CDPH Office of AIDS webpage to review the 1915 (c) HCBS AIDS MCWP Waiver Renewal Application, MCWP Application Companion Guide, the CMS Extension Letter, and Public Comment Template.