The Department of Health Care Services sets California's long-term-care transfer look-back at 30 months. For someone applying for LTC coverage for the first time, that period starts the month before the application; for a current Medi-Cal beneficiary who then needs LTC, it starts the month before admission — and the application month itself isn't counted (DHCS ACWDL 25-18).
That's a real departure worth flagging: federal law sets a 60-month look-back for transfers made after February 2006, and Florida follows that federal 60-month standard. Anyone comparing notes with a Florida plan should read California's look-back rules on their own terms rather than assuming the timelines match (42 U.S.C. § 1396p).