Plain-language ALW guide
Applying for ALW from home: how to start, and how to use the wait
If your family member lives at home, you can ask Beta to screen them for the ALW waitlist. How to start, what the community list means, and how to use the wait.
If your family member lives at home or anywhere that isn't a nursing facility, you can ask Beta to screen them for the Assisted Living Waiver (ALW) waitlist. Most people join the general community list. You can't jump it, but you can be ready.
Important: The state, not Beta, keeps the waitlist and decides when openings are released, and nobody can honestly promise how long the wait will be. Asking to be added to the list is not approval, and a change in where the person lives doesn't create approval either.
How to start
1. Check whether ALW may fit. 21 or older, full-scope Medi-Cal with no monthly share of cost, needing the level of care a nursing home gives, and able to live safely in an assisted-living home in one of the fifteen ALW counties. Full list: eligibility page, or take the quick fit check.
2. Choose a Care Coordination Agency. The Care Coordination Agency (CCA) is the state-listed organization that does the ALW paperwork and care planning with you. Beta can be yours in every county where ALW operates.
3. Ask to be added to the state's waitlist. Tell us about the person and we send the request; you get written confirmation under the state's current policy. Most people applying from home wait in the general community list, filled in the order requests come in. A few situations, such as a recent nursing-facility stay, get priority, and we'll tell you if one applies. Understand the waitlist
While you wait
Four things matter most: keep Medi-Cal active and answer every county notice; keep your phone number current with us; keep one folder of records; and keep the person safe where they are now. The full list is on the waitlist readiness checklist.
You can look at homes that take ALW while you wait. Just don't pay a non-refundable fee or make an irreversible plan based on a listing. Search participating facilities
If things change while you wait
Tell Beta's ALW team if the person goes into a hospital or nursing facility, declines sharply, loses a caregiver, moves, changes representative or Medi-Cal, or can no longer stay safely where they are.
If the person needs care now, don't wait for ALW: the what if ALW doesn't fit page lists programs that can help in the meantime, like IHSS (paid in-home help through the county) and PACE.
What surprises people
Things people are sometimes told that aren't true: that there's a typical wait time, that calling protective services moves you up, that a facility can create a slot, or that someone can sell you priority. More on the common mistakes page.
When a slot opens
When the state releases an opening to your family member, we call you, and the next 60 days move quickly. Read what happens after a slot opens.
Your next step
Tell us about your family member and we'll start the waitlist request with you.
Official sourcesChecked against the official sources
Use the official sources below to confirm time-sensitive program details.
This page provides general California ALW information. It is not an eligibility decision or a promise of enrollment, and it is not a guarantee of facility placement. You may choose any Care Coordination Agency listed by DHCS and any participating facility.