Thanks to an experimental new program aimed at easing the state’s profound homelessness crisis, some Californians now can get housing help from an unlikely source: their health insurance plans.
With the launch this year of CalAIM, California is reimagining medical coverage by marrying healthcare and housing statewide for the first time. Under the new approach, certain high-risk and low-income Medi-Cal recipients can use their insurance plans for more than doctor’s visits and hospital stays – they can get help finding affordable or subsidized housing, cash for housing deposits, help preventing an eviction and more.
Proponents say the program acknowledges what doctors and social workers have known for years – it’s incredibly difficult to keep people healthy if they’re living on the streets or at risk of losing their home.
