Transitional Rent
Provider Type
- Physicians and Practitioners
- Participating Physician Groups (PPG)
- Hospitals
- Ancillary
The Plan covers Transitional Rent for eligible members. Members can access rental subsidies funded through Behavioral Health Services Agency Housing Interventions following their receipt of Transitional Rent. Transitional Rent is not a temporary reprieve from homelessness, but a pathway to long-term housing stability.
Eligibility requirements
The Medi-Cal member must be enrolled with Health Net, CalViva Health or Community Health Plan of Imperial Valley, and meet all the following criteria:
- Have a qualifying behavioral health need.
- Be homeless or at risk of homelessness.
- Be part of a specified transitioning population, including those exiting institutional care, incarceration or the child welfare system.
- Have a Housing Support Plan that includes confirmation of long-term housing funding source (e.g., Behavioral Health Services Act Housing Voucher or other long-term subsidies).
Initial coverage for Transitional Rent
- Transitional Rent may be used to cover up to six months of rental assistance in allowable settings.
- A member may not receive more than a combined six months of Short-Term Post-Hospitalization, Recuperative Care and Transitional Rent within a rolling 12-month period.1
The Housing Deposits Community Support may be deployed for coverage of additional expenses not provided under Transitional Rent.
Allowable settings
Transitional Rent can provide for a member’s housing in a permanent or interim setting, or some of the months in an interim setting and the remainder in a permanent setting.
Permanent settings
- Single-family and multi-family homes (e.g., duplexes)
- Apartments
- Housing in mobile home communities
- Accessory dwelling units (ADUs)
- Shared housing – where two or more people live in one rental unit
- Project-based or scattered-site permanent supportive housing
- Single-room occupancy units
- Tiny homes
- Recovery housing
- License-exempt room and board
Interim settings
- Single-room occupancy units
- Tiny homes
- Hotels/motels when serving as the member’s primary residence
- Interim settings with a small number of individuals per room (not large dormitory sleeping halls)
- Transitional and recovery housing
- Medically appropriate Community Supports services
Note: The availability of each setting type will vary by county. Utilization will reflect this variation in local supply.
Automatic authorization for ECM and the Housing Trio when authorized for Transitional Rent services
When a member is approved for Transitional Rent, the Plan must also authorize for Enhanced Care Management (ECM) and the Community Supports Housing Trio:
- Housing Navigation or Tenancy Support
- Housing Deposits
- Housing Transition and Stabilization Services
ECM helps connect members to health and social services to support their housing stability, while Housing Trio services assist them in finding and maintaining long-term housing after Transitional Rent ends.
Requesting services
Prior authorization is required for Transitional Rent. To request authorization, submit a Transitional Rent Authorization Form (Health Net (PDF), CalViva (PDF), Community Health Plan of Imperial Valley (PDF)) along with the required supporting documentation online on the provider portal or via fax as noted on the form. The turnaround time for a routine request is seven calendar days. Examples of supporting documentation include, but are not limited to:
- Housing Support Plan
- Lease agreement
- Interim housing agreement
- Behavioral health eligibility confirmation
- Long-term subsidy
1For more information, refer to the Community Supports Policy Guide Volume 2, Date April 2025.