Objectives: The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) funded assisted living (AL), adult family home (AFH) and residential care for the first time in the Assisted Living Pilot Program (ALPP) This article describes the background and methods of the ALPP evaluation and the characteristics and experiences of the facilities. Method: Facility data were collected from the contracting/inspection process and a survey of ALPP facilities and those contacted but not participating in ALPP Results: pata on 131 participating facilities are presented: 41 AFHs, 47 assisted living facilities (ALFs) and 43 residential care facilities (RCFs). The average facility had 33 beds (about one quarter Medicaid beds), for-profit ownership, and private rooms for ALPP residents, and about half had private baths. About two thirds of ALPP AFH providers spoke a primary language other than English. Discussion: Findings indicate that a wide range of community facilities were willing to provide care to residents with heterogeneous needs on VA funding.

Objective: The Department of Veterans Affairs funded assisted living, adult family home, and adult residential care for the first time in the Assisted Living Pilot Program (ALPP) This article compares the use and cost for individuals that entered ALPP and a comparison group. Method: This was a nonrandomized study. The comparison group consisted of VA patients who were eligible but did not enter an ALPP facility. The ALPP (n = 393) and comparison (n = 259) groups were followed for 12 months to assess ALPP facility, case management, and health care costs. Results: ALPP facility and ALPP case management costs were respectively $5,560 and $2,830 per individual. Total health care costs, including ALPP costs, were $11,533 higher for the ALPP group compared to the comparison group after adjusting for baseline differences. Discussion: Although ALPP successfully helped individuals transition to longer term care in these facilities, it was more costly than the comparison group.