Addiction treatment Medi-Cal can pay for
Medicaid in California is called Medi-Cal. Through the Drug Medi-Cal Organized Delivery System (DMC-ODS), Medi-Cal can pay for outpatient care, intensive outpatient care, partial hospitalization, residential treatment, withdrawal management (detox) and medications for addiction treatment, including FDA-approved drugs for opioid use disorder. County behavioral health departments arrange this care, as explained in the state-funded treatment section below.
The 2010 Affordable Care Act made substance use disorder treatment an essential health benefit, which many health plans must cover. According to SAMHSA and CMS, Medicaid is the single largest payer for substance use and mental health treatment in the US.
The California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) licenses and certifies alcohol and drug treatment facilities in the state.
Who qualifies for Medi-Cal, and how to apply
You can apply for Medi-Cal in any month of the year, so you never have to wait for an enrollment period. The Medi-Cal application page is linked in the official resources list below.
While your application is pending, ask programs about state-funded treatment and sliding-scale fees. In most states, Medicaid coverage can be backdated up to three months, though some states have waived this. Ask whether it applies to your Medi-Cal application.
State-funded rehab when you don't have Medi-Cal
DHCS oversees substance use treatment at the state level, but counties arrange the care. The Drug Medi-Cal Organized Delivery System runs through county behavioral health departments, and each county has a 24-hour access line that screens callers and refers them to treatment. DHCS also gives counties federal block grant money for treatment.
Programs paid for with these federal block grant funds must admit people in this order: pregnant people who inject drugs, then other pregnant people with a substance use disorder, then people who inject drugs, then everyone else. Many state-funded programs keep a waitlist for residential care.
What treatment costs when you have no coverage
We don't list prices here, because many programs set fees based on your income. If you are looking for free rehab in California, ask whether a program receives SAMHSA block grant funding. Those programs must serve people who cannot pay, often on a sliding scale by income.
On a sliding scale, the fee depends on what you earn, so expect questions about your income when you call. Before you start, ask the program to explain the fee so you know what you will owe.
Medicaid-accepting facilities in our directory
Our directory lists 1,955 treatment facilities across 347 California cities and towns. Our database records 595 of them as accepting Medicaid, and the facility list on this page is pulled from that database.
The chart shows how many listed facilities offer each level of care. Outpatient care is the most common.
If you are looking for Medicaid rehab in California, Los Angeles has the widest choice in our directory.
The five cities with the most Medicaid-accepting facilities in our directory are Los Angeles (50), San Diego (32), Sacramento (20), San Francisco (17) and Bakersfield (13). Each city name links to that city's page.
Outside those five cities, examples of Medicaid-accepting facilities include the County of Madera's Oakhurst Counseling Center in Oakhurst and Horizon Services' Cherry Hill Detox in San Leandro. In Los Angeles, one example is Amanecer Community Counseling Service. You can also start from the California rehab directory.
Official California resources
- Medi-Cal (apply): apply for Medi-Cal through the DHCS application page.
- DHCS substance use disorder services: read how DHCS describes the state's substance use disorder services.
- County mental health and SUD access lines: look up the 24-hour access line number for your county.
- 211 California
How to start treatment today
A good first step is to call your county's access line. Tell the person who answers whether you have Medi-Cal, have applied or have no coverage.
The diagram shows three ways to start treatment in California. If you have Medicaid, call your plan or program and ask which of the facilities listed on this page fit your needs. If you have no coverage, apply for Medi-Cal in any month and ask about state-funded treatment and sliding-scale fees while your application is pending. If you need help today, call SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-4357, or call or text 988 in a crisis.
If you have Medi-Cal or another plan, you can verify your insurance through our site. For support before or alongside treatment, our California meetings page lists 9,140 AA meetings and 3,208 NA meetings across the state. Confirm times with each group.
