Medi-Cal is the California version of the Federal Medicaid program. The Medi-Cal program provides health care coverage for low-income residents of California. Although the Affordable Care Act allowed for former foster youth to have their Medical coverage extended to age 26, not every youth was covered under AB12 which extends foster care services to age 21 and some youth have even experienced a lapse in coverage. If you are a resident of California and a former foster youth who was in care on or before your 16th birthday you should automatically qualify for Medi-Cal but there are some steps you need to follow if you are not currently enrolled, have experienced a lapse in coverage, or haven’t had Medi-Cal before. The first and most important thing I would recommend knowing is who your eligibility worker is. HSA has many different departments and if you want to navigate the system efficiently knowing which worker is assigned to your case is important. You need to put in an application for Medi-Cal benefits either on the website at www.C4Yourself.com or by calling in 1-800-300-1506 The application takes anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour so be prepared to spend that time and have the following information with you: -Social Security number -CA DL number if applicable -W2 or W9 forms if applicable and any income information -Address and phone number if you are homeless or in a shelter there are options on the application to fill that information out Once you submit your application you will be given an appointment date and time to meet with a case worker who is initially assigned to your case. The appointment date and time will be given to you either by email, mail, or over the phone. Be prepared to ask questions of your worker and write down what supplies you will need to bring with you to your interview. Depending on your case and circumstances you might be approved fairly quickly but be sure to take down the number and name of your case worker so you can follow up with them.