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Family Care Partnership

Family Care Partnership (Partnership) helps older adults and adults with disabilities. It began in December 1995 thanks to a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The Partnership program is a team effort between:

  • Health care groups called managed care organizations (MCOs):
    • Community Care Health Plan, Inc.
      Corrective action—Community Care: Community Care contracts with DHS for the Family Care Partnership program. DHS has ordered Community Care to correct issues within its Family Care Partnership program. Community Care will be under corrective action until they meet all requirements.
    • Independent (iCare) Health Plan.
    • My Choice Wisconsin Health Plan.
  • Some Wisconsin counties—See PACE/Partnership Geographic Service Region Map, P-01789 (PDF).
  • Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS).

What is the Partnership program

Partnership is a program that mixes health and long-term support services in home and community settings. Learn more about Services Included in IRIS, Family Care, Partnership, and PACE, P-00570 (PDF).

The goals of Partnership are to:

  • Improve the quality of health care and services while keeping costs low.
  • Increase the ways people can live in the community. Also increase the ability of people to make their own choices about their health care.
  • Reduce the division in the current health care delivery system. Improve efficiency.

Who is eligible

Your local aging and disability resource center (ADRC) can help you know if you qualify for Partnership. These centers serve the public and offer information. They help with issues that affect older adults, people with disabilities, and their families. ADRCs make it easy to learn about resources near you. Members must:

  • Be at least 18 years old.
  • Be a frail elder or an adult with a disability.
  • Be eligible for Medicaid.
  • Be functionally eligible for Partnership. The Long Term Care Functional Screen helps confirm eligibility.
  • Have a long-term care condition that will last more than 90 days.
  • Live in a county that offers Partnership.

Partnership also serves members who qualify for both Medicaid and Medicare.

How to apply

To apply for and enroll in the Partnership program, contact your ADRC.

The Partnership program is only in some counties. The PACE/Partnership Geographic Service Region Map, P-01789 (PDF) shows which counties. If the Partnership program is not in your county, your ADRC can help find other options.

Contact my ADRC

How to manage benefits

Partnership is a Medicaid program. It’s designed to get services to people who need them. This is how the Partnership program works:

  1. Qualified MCOs sign a managed care contract with DHS. They also sign a Medicare contract with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. This contract provides coverage to members who have both Medicaid and Medicare.
  2. Each month, MCOs get paid for each Partnership member they serve.
  • Members can choose their MCO.
  • We have MCO scorecards with reviews and facts about each MCO.
  1. MCOs use their funds to pay for services for all members. MCOs coordinate the care members get. This is the case no matter where and who gives the services.
  • Members are on a team with their doctor, nurses, and social workers. The team creates a care plan. Then, MCOs find and schedule the services needed for the plan.
  • A big part of the Partnership program is member choice. MCOs aim to honor how, when, and where members want to get services.
  • Members can sometimes keep their own doctor. MCOs often add the doctor to the Partnership provider network.
  1. MCOs often look at program quality and ways to improve.

Learn more about how Partnership works and what it means to be a member.

Who to contact for help

Questions? Call Medicaid Member Services at 800-362-3002, your ADRC, or an MCO. You also can email us at DHSFCWebmail@dhs.wisconsin.gov:

Glossary

 
Last revised January 16, 2024