No. Wisconsin runs four separate license/certification types -- Community-Based Residential Facility (CBRF), Residential Care Apartment Complex (RCAC), Adult Family Home (AFH), and nursing home -- each licensed by the DHS Division of Quality Assurance, Bureau of Assisted Living, under different rule chapters. There is no single umbrella 'assisted living' license the way some states use the term.
What this means in practice
This trips up a lot of families who move to Milwaukee from a state that does use a single assisted-living license. A community that markets itself as 'assisted living' in Wisconsin is almost always operating under a CBRF license (Wis. Admin. Code ch. DHS 83), which allows up to 3 hours of nursing care per resident per week. A community offering more independence in apartment-style units with up to 28 hours of supportive care per week is more likely an RCAC. Ask any Milwaukee-area community directly which of the four license types it holds -- the answer changes what level of care it's legally allowed to provide, and you can confirm it yourself through the state's DQA Provider Search tool before touring.
Related questions
- What is a CBRF in Wisconsin?
- What is an RCAC and how is it different from a CBRF?
- What is an Adult Family Home (AFH) in Wisconsin?
- Does a Wisconsin nursing home need a different license than assisted living?
- How do I check whether a Milwaukee-area facility's license is current?
- Who licenses and regulates senior care facilities in Wisconsin?
- What happens if I have a complaint about a Milwaukee-area facility's care?
