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New York's Assisted Living Program (ALP), Explained

The Assisted Living Program (ALP) is New York's Medicaid pathway that pays for care services inside a licensed Adult Home or Enriched Housing Program.

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Short answer

New York's Assisted Living Program (ALP) is the Medicaid-funded program that pays for care services inside a licensed Adult Home or Enriched Housing Program, for residents who are medically eligible for nursing home placement but can be served in a less medically intensive, lower-cost setting.

What ALP actually covers

ALP, regulated under 18 NYCRR Part 494, covers personal care, housekeeping, supervision, home health aides, personal emergency response systems, nursing, physical/occupational/speech therapy, medical supplies and equipment, adult day health care, home health services, and RN case management -- all delivered inside the ACF.

ALP does not function as a standalone cash voucher; it operates through specific ACFs that participate in the program. Not every Adult Home or Enriched Housing Program on Long Island offers ALP beds, so ask directly whether a specific community participates and whether it currently has ALP capacity.

How to apply

Start with your county's Office for the Aging -- Nassau at 516-227-8900 or Suffolk at 631-853-8200 -- or NY Connects, which can screen for ALP eligibility alongside Managed Long Term Care and the NHTD waiver.

Source: NYSDOH Adult Care Facilities program page

Questions families ask

Which Long Island hospital system likely serves my area - Northwell, Catholic Health, Stony Brook Medicine, or NYU Langone?

Coverage overlaps, but broadly: Northwell dominates central and western Nassau and much of Suffolk, plus the North Fork via Peconic Bay Medical Center in Riverhead. Catholic Health covers central Nassau and western-central Suffolk, including Rockville Centre, Roslyn, West Islip, Smithtown, Port Jefferson, and Bethpage. Stony Brook Medicine covers central and eastern Suffolk plus the South and North Forks. NYU Langone covers Mineola and central Nassau, with a Suffolk presence as well.

If my parent is discharged from Huntington Hospital, what senior care options are nearby?

Huntington Hospital is a Northwell Health facility located directly in the Town of Huntington, Suffolk County, which this site treats as its hub area for senior care research, covering neighborhoods from Huntington Village and Huntington Station to Cold Spring Harbor, Northport, Dix Hills, and Melville. Discharge planning from Huntington Hospital would coordinate with home care agencies, rehabilitation facilities, and assisted living or nursing communities in this immediate area.

What does Medicare's skilled nursing facility benefit actually require in terms of a prior hospital stay?

Medicare's skilled nursing facility benefit generally requires that the patient first have a qualifying inpatient hospital stay of at least 3 days before Medicare will cover a subsequent skilled nursing facility stay, and only time spent formally admitted as an inpatient counts toward that requirement, not time spent under observation status. This is a critical distinction for Long Island families navigating a hospital discharge, since a stay that looks identical from the patient's bed can be billed either way.

Does NYU Langone have Long Island hospital locations, and what should I know about discharge planning there?

Yes. NYU Langone operates two Long Island hospital campuses: NYU Langone Hospital-Long Island, a 591-bed medical center at 259 First Street in Mineola, formerly Winthrop-University Hospital, renamed in November 2020, home to Nassau County's only adult Level 1 Trauma Center and the NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine; and NYU Langone Hospital-Suffolk. As with any hospital system, discharge planning is coordinated by staff at the specific campus where a patient is admitted.

My parent just fell and is in the hospital - what's the first call I should make?

For families in Nassau or Suffolk County, the Office for the Aging in your parent's home county is a good first call - Nassau County Office for the Aging at 516-227-8900, or Suffolk County Office for the Aging at 631-853-8200. Both function as the local NY Connects access point, a free service that helps families understand care options, eligibility, and next steps after a hospital event, without any cost or obligation.

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