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About Us
About the Former Foster Youth (FFY) Program
Young adults who were in foster care at age 18 or older may be eligible for the Medi-Cal program for FFY until age 26 regardless of income. DHCS is responsible for managing and ensuring this Medi-Cal coverage for FFY is implemented in California. DHCS works with county human services agencies, Covered California (CoveredCA), advocates, the California Department of Social Services (CDSS), and other interested parties to identify and provide Medi-Cal coverage to all eligible FFY.
DHCS efforts include providing guidance to the counties about how to best implement the FFY program, developing outreach materials, and working with advocates to address the varied needs of the FFY population. DHCS projects included creating new flyers designed to help FFY and the county eligibility workers that service FFY, and providing guidance to the counties about how to handle the cases of FFY who were not automatically enrolled in coverage.
One of the DHCS’s major accomplishments has come from partnering with CDSS. In an effort to ensure all eligible California foster youth are automatically enrolled into Medi-Cal coverage for FFY, DHCS has created a Global Data Sharing Agreement between DHCS and CDSS. The agreement allows DHCS and CDSS to compare records and ensure eligible youth are automatically enrolled in the correct coverage upon exiting foster care. This is just one example of DHCS’s commitment to working with its partners to provide better care for FFY.
Contact Us
For more information on the FFY Medi-Cal program, please contact DHCS at FFY@dhcs.ca.gov.