Wyoming adult foster care home license: a capped pilot program for five residents

A pilot program, not an open license category

Most states let anyone who meets the rules open an adult foster or family care home. Wyoming does not. The Long Term Care Choices Act allows the Department of Health to “initiate and license an adult foster care pilot project”, and the statute caps that pilot at no more than ten adult foster care homes. At least three of them must be in counties with 30,000 people or fewer.⁠³ Before you buy or remodel a house, email HLS at [email protected] or call (307) 777-7123 and ask whether the pilot is taking applications.⁠¹

The rule HLS still publishes uses different numbers from the statute. Chapter 13, effective September 10, 2008, sets the cap at five homes and allows no more than two in counties with more than 30,000 people, using Census Bureau figures as of the date a complete application arrives.⁠⁴ The statute now allows ten homes and reserves at least three for small counties.⁠³ HLS’s rules page lists no other adult foster care rule.⁠⁵ If an application would hit a limit, Chapter 13 says complete applications are reviewed and qualified in the order HLS receives them.⁠⁴ HLS publishes no count of filled pilot slots and does not say which limit it applies, so ask in writing how many homes are licensed and whether it applies the statute’s ten or the rule’s five.

Breaking the licensing law has teeth. Under W.S. 35-2-902, no one may set up a health care facility without a license, and adult foster care homes are on the statute’s list of health care facilities.⁠² HLS’s own page says a license is required before you care for any resident.⁠¹ Operating without one is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $750, up to six months in jail, or both, and each calendar week counts as a separate offense.⁠²

What counts as an adult foster care home

W.S. 35-2-901 defines the home as a place where care is provided for up to five adults who are not related to the provider by blood, marriage or adoption (“except in special circumstances”) and who need long-term care in a home-like atmosphere. The definition excludes any residential facility that is otherwise licensed or funded by the state of Wyoming.⁠² The Long Term Care Choices Act definition reads “any family home or facility” giving residential care to five or fewer unrelated adults. That act governs if it conflicts with the health facilities act.⁠²⁠³

Three features set this license apart from the neighboring Wyoming licenses:

• It is your home. Chapter 13 requires you to attest that the home will be the licensee’s primary residence.⁠⁴
• Each resident has a private room and bathroom. Rooms can be shared only with a spouse, and each resident client has an individual handicapped-accessible bathroom.⁠¹⁠⁴
• Residents are adults. “Resident client” means a person 18 or older who is not related to the owner and who lives and receives services in the home.⁠⁴

When an assisted living or boarding home license fits better

Wyoming sets no minimum bed count for an assisted living facility. The statute defines one as a dwelling that provides limited nursing care, personal care and boarding home care to people not related to the owner.⁠² The fee for an assisted living facility of 1 to 25 beds is also $250 a year.⁠² Assisted living has no statewide cap, so a founder who wants more than five beds, does not plan to live on site, or cannot get a pilot slot should look there first. Assisted living has its own costs: the assisted living manager rules in Chapter 12, Section 6 include education or experience qualifications, such as 48 semester hours of post-secondary education. Chapter 13 exempts adult foster care homes from that section.⁠⁴⁠⁹

A boarding home is a third option. It rents rooms and provides meals and personal daily living care, but no nursing or habilitative care.⁠² If your residents will come only during the day, the adult day care facility license applies instead.

Who can run the home

Chapter 13 sets the owner/manager standards directly rather than borrowing the assisted living ones:⁠⁴

• At least 21 years old and responsible for day-to-day operation.
• Able to read, write and speak English.
• A land-line telephone with a listed number located in the home.
• Familiar with the Chapter 13 rules and the assisted living program administration and licensure rules that apply.
• Must not act as, or become, a resident’s legal guardian, conservator or holder of power of attorney.
• Must send HLS an acceptable plan of correction within 10 calendar days of receiving a statement of deficiencies.

The application asks for the manager’s name and for a “supervising nurse” with license type and number.⁠⁷ A non-individual applicant must file a sworn application made by two officers or by its managing agents.⁠² The form asks for signatures from two officers, or from all managing agents with company documents attached to show their authority. The instructions say the officers list is not the CEO, CFO or administrator, who are usually appointed or hired by the owners.⁠⁷⁠⁸

Staff, the RN contract and background checks

Chapter 13 has no staff-to-resident ratio. It says staffing must be “sufficient to meet the resident client needs”, and anyone providing supervisory care must be at least 18.⁠⁴ Supervisory care covers general supervision, stepping in during a crisis or emergency, and helping residents self-administer prescribed medications under the Nurse Practice Act.⁠⁴

• Nurse assistants. No employee or household member may work as a nurse assistant unless certified by the Wyoming State Board of Nursing, and the certificate must be kept on file in the home.⁠⁴
• RN oversight. If the owner/manager is not an RN, the home must contract with one at minimum. The RN supervises nurse assistants, does initial and periodic resident assessments, develops care plans, and manages medications to professional standards.⁠⁴ The HLS checklist asks for evidence of that contract with the application.⁠⁶
• Tuberculin screening. Each employee needs TB testing before any contact with residents and every year after that. Other people living in the home and the resident clients are screened annually. Anyone with a known positive skin test needs a certificate of non-infectiousness.⁠⁴
• Personnel files. The owner/manager and each employee need a secure record. It holds the employment application with evidence of education, experience and references, employment-eligibility documents, any professional license or certification, and background check results.⁠⁴

Background checks reach past your staff. W.S. 42-6-105(d) requires the department to complete a criminal records check on every employee and on everyone else who lives in the home or comes to live there, other than resident clients and their spouses.⁠³ Once you hold a provisional license, Chapter 13 has you submit those names to the Aging Division right away. You reimburse the department for the checks when it invoices you. Until the check is done and paid, that person may not have contact with residents.⁠⁴ HLS may refuse a license if anyone employed or living in the home has a felony conviction indicating they may abuse or steal from a resident.⁠³⁠⁴ You also need written hiring policies based on background check results, plus a plan for monitoring other household members and visitors.⁠⁴⁠⁶

The house: fire safety and living conditions

The statute requires the home to meet all state and local building, sanitation, utility, fire and zoning codes that apply to single-family dwellings.⁠³ Your local zoning office therefore matters as much as HLS. Chapter 13 adds its own standards:⁠⁴

Chapter 13 exempts adult foster care homes from the assisted living rules’ furnishings, physical plant, construction, life safety and evacuation sections, so the table above takes their place.⁠⁴ W.S. 35-2-906 requires a licensee planning construction, alteration or an addition to submit plans and specifications to HLS for approval before work starts.⁠² The application asks whether a construction or remodel project is underway and for any HLS project numbers.⁠⁷

Who you can admit and keep

Chapter 13 makes the home follow “all applicable existing” assisted living rules except the sections it lists. The section of services an assisted living facility cannot provide is not on that list.⁠⁴ Under Chapter 12, Section 8 (services Level 1 assisted living staff cannot provide), those services include continuous help with transfers and mobility, total help with bathing and dressing, invasive catheter or ostomy care, incontinence care by staff, sterile dressing changes, Stage II skin care and beyond, care of a resident whose wandering puts them at risk, and monitoring of acute medical conditions.⁠⁹ The assisted living section on secure dementia units is also on Chapter 13’s exempt list.⁠⁴

Chapter 13 exempts adult foster care homes from the ALF 102 screening form. Chapter 12’s other admission provisions are not on the exempt list: a resident is admitted only with admission orders that include an order for TB screening, and the RN assessment is done no earlier than one week before admission.⁠⁴⁠⁹ Chapter 13 was written in 2008 and has not been amended, while the current Chapter 12 took effect August 24, 2020.⁠⁴⁠⁵ The section headings Chapter 13 cites (Sections 6 to 10 of Chapter 12) and the core-service subsection letters still line up with the 2020 text.⁠⁴⁠⁹ HLS does not say which 2020 provisions it applies to adult foster care homes, so ask in writing before you write admission policies.

Applying to HLS, in order

1. Confirm a pilot slot

   Contact HLS before anything else, because of the cap in W.S. 42-6-105.⁠¹⁠³

2. Check local codes

   Confirm with your city or county that the house meets local building, fire and zoning codes for single-family dwellings.⁠³

3. Assemble the checklist items

   The August 14, 2025 HLS checklist asks for: the completed application and fee; CNA certificates for nurse-assistant staff; the RN contract if the owner/manager is not an RN; infection control policies covering communicable disease and TB testing; hiring policies covering criminal background checks and monitoring of household members and visitors; a list of core services; resident rights; a grievance procedure; and a written description of a quality improvement program.⁠⁶ Every licensee must have a quality management function under W.S. 35-2-910.⁠²

4. Add the floor plan and evacuation plan

   Chapter 13 requires both with the application.⁠⁴ The floor plan must be readable, show room numbers and service areas such as dining, bathing and toilet rooms, and carry the home’s name.⁠⁸

5. Submit the application

   Use the Adult Foster Care Home Initial/Change of Ownership form (rev. July 1, 2021), a fillable Word document.⁠⁷⁠⁸ Mail the complete packet to HLS at the Hathaway Building, Suite 510, 2300 Capitol Avenue, Cheyenne, WY 82002.⁠⁶ Or email it with the subject line “License Application Submission”. If you email it, you must still mail the original signature page together with the check.⁠⁸

6. Pass the pre-opening inspection

   HLS, a public health nurse or another local health department employee inspects the home for construction and Life Safety Code compliance, and HLS approves your policies. Both must happen before any resident is admitted.⁠³⁠⁴

7. Receive the provisional license, then admit residents

   Chapter 13 issues a provisional license once the preliminary reviews pass.⁠⁴ W.S. 35-2-904(f) also allows a provisional license with restrictions when an applicant is not yet in full compliance but residents would not be endangered.⁠² HLS emails the license; it does not send a paper copy.⁠⁷ Submit names for background checks at this point.⁠⁴

8. Expect the unannounced care inspection

   The first inspection of care and quality of life is unannounced and takes place after residents arrive.⁠⁴

HLS publishes no processing time for adult foster care home applications.

Fees as published on 2026-10-12

HLS accepts only checks, and each application needs its own check.⁠⁸ The application instructions say statutory licensing fees changed on July 1, 2021.⁠⁸ The $100 fee is still in the statute and the rule, but the 2021 application lists only the $250 fee and says nothing about the $100. Ask HLS whether it bills the $100 separately and when.

Renewal, ownership changes and enforcement

Every Wyoming health care facility license runs from July 1 to June 30. The full fee is due even if you are licensed for only part of the year, and the license renews each year when you pay the fee.⁠² The care and quality-of-life inspection repeats every year.⁠⁴ A license cannot be assigned or transferred.⁠² A buyer must qualify under Chapter 13 on their own. If the buyer is not approved or does not want to run the home, you must move every resident safely, tell HLS where each one went, and return the original license.⁠⁴ The application also has a change-of-ownership option, and HLS publishes separate change-of-information forms.⁠¹⁠⁷

For enforcement, the department may, after notice and a hearing, suspend or revoke the license, stop new admissions, attach conditions, or order specific fixes. Grounds include a threat to resident health or safety, credible evidence of abuse, neglect or exploitation, and operating out of compliance.⁠³⁠⁴ HLS gives 15 days’ notice before revocation unless conditions pose a substantial and immediate threat. In that case it can suspend at once, and you get a hearing within 10 days.⁠⁴ The state health officer can close a home and move residents when there is a clear and present threat. The department must then start formal proceedings within three working days.⁠³

Medicaid payment

Wyoming’s Community Choices Waiver is the Medicaid home and community-based program for people 65 and older, and for adults 19 to 64 with a disability, who need nursing facility level of care. Its fact sheet lists assisted living facility services as the residential option and does not list adult foster care.⁠¹⁰ Chapter 13 also exempts adult foster care homes from the assisted living rule’s section on home and community-based waiver contract services.⁠⁴ Under the waiver rule, room and board is never covered, and residents of provider-owned settings pay it under a lease.⁠¹¹ Under that rule a waiver provider must be enrolled as a Medicaid provider and certified as a CCW provider.⁠¹¹ Neither the fact sheet nor the waiver rule names adult foster care homes as a waiver provider type. Ask the Medicaid waiver unit in writing whether a licensed adult foster care home can be certified, and plan on private-pay residents until it confirms.

What is outdated or pending

The adult foster care rule has not been updated since 2008. It still gives HLS’s old address at the Qwest Building on Yellowstone Road and an older email domain.⁠⁴ HLS’s August 2025 checklist uses the Hathaway Building address and [email protected].⁠⁶ The statute it implements now allows ten homes rather than the rule’s five, and 2015 legislation repealed parts of W.S. 42-6-105.⁠³ The licensure checklist is newer, dated August 14, 2025.⁠⁶ Read the 2008 rule as the minimum standard, and get HLS’s answers on slots, fees and the applicable assisted living provisions in writing before you apply.

Sources

1. 1
   Wyoming Department of Health, Healthcare Licensing and Surveys, Adult Foster Care Home Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
2. 2
   Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 35, Chapter 2, Article 9 (W.S. 35-2-901 through 35-2-914): health care facilities Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
3. 3
   Wyoming Legislature, Wyoming Statutes Title 42, Chapter 6 (W.S. 42-6-101 through 42-6-106): Wyoming Long Term Care Choices Act Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
4. 4
   Wyoming Department of Health, Aging Division, Chapter 13: Rules for Pilot Project, Adult Foster Care Homes (effective 09-10-2008) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
5. 5
   Wyoming Department of Health, Healthcare Licensing and Surveys, Rules and Policies Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
6. 6
   Wyoming Department of Health, Healthcare Licensing and Surveys, Adult Foster Care Home Checklist for State Licensure (08/14/2025) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
7. 7
   Wyoming Department of Health, Healthcare Licensing and Surveys, Adult Foster Care Home License Application, Initial or Change of Ownership (Rev. 07/01/2021) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
8. 8
   Wyoming Department of Health, Healthcare Licensing and Surveys, Initial or Change in Ownership License Application Instructions (07-2021) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
9. 9
   Wyoming Department of Health, Aging Division, Chapter 12: Program Administration of Assisted Living Facilities (effective 08-24-2020) Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
10. 10
    Wyoming Department of Health, Division of Healthcare Financing, Community Choices Waiver Program Fact Sheet Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑
11. 11
    Wyoming Department of Health, Medicaid Chapter 34: Home and Community Based Services, Community Choices Waiver Program Checked 12 Oct 2026 · Back to text ↑

Was this information accurate? Report an errorPrint or save as PDF