Long Term Care for Seniors and People with Disabilities
Definitions - Updated May 2009
- Institutional Care: Skilled Nursing facility, Nursing Facility and Nursing Home all refer to the same institutional setting and usually house 50 + beds.
- Hospital and Rehabilitation Center: Institutional Setting.
- Home and Community-based care: Options include: (1) remaining in one’s own house or apartment with in-home supports (i.e., case management, attendant care, home modifications, home health and nursing care); (2) assisted living; and, (3) supported housing.
- Attendant Care: In-home assistance with personal care needs, meal preparation, cleaning assistance with medications and medical procedures, protective monitoring. For Medi-Cal eligible seniors and people with disabilities, usually provided by In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS), which is Medi-Cal funded.
- Assisted Living: Apartment or single-room occupancy buildings in which attendant care, medication administration and oversight, and availability of 24-hour staff, etc., are provided to residents, with an emphasis on independence and privacy.
- Supported Housing: Apartment or single-room occupancy buildings in which tenants have access to comprehensive services including case management, mental health services, money management, and life skills/vocational/educational training, etc.
- Residential Care Facility: Group home, or board and care home, that is licensed by the state to provide basic support, including attendant care, meals, case management, and minor medical services to disabled and elderly residents. Usually house six people but can be more or less.
- Waiver Slots: Also known as home and community-based waiver: A provision in the federal Medicaid law (California Medi-Cal) which permits states to apply for and receive funding for in-home and community based care for disabled and elderly persons who might otherwise require care in an institution. Can provide in-home attendant care over and above IHSS, nursing care, and/or case management, as well as other services.
- Medicaid/Medi-Cal Eligibility: Federal and state matched funding for medical and attendant care for people with disabilities, including the elderly, who are poor or middle or low-income people who have exhausted their resources and cannot afford to pay for these services.