Both are base-level Adult Care Facility license types under NYSDOH, but Enriched Housing Programs are generally structured around apartment-style independent units with supportive services, while Adult Homes are typically more institutional in layout. Either can add ALR certification on top to become licensed for assisted-living-level care.
What this means in practice
The distinction matters less for what a family should ask on a tour and more for understanding why two Staten Island communities that both call themselves "assisted living" can feel physically very different -- one built around private apartment-style units, the other around a more traditional facility layout with shared common areas.
Neither license type alone authorizes personal-care-level assisted living services; that requires the additional ALR certification described elsewhere on this site. A Residence for Adults is the third, less common base license type under the same general Adult Care Facility umbrella, governed by its own rule chapter, 18 NYCRR Part 490.
Related questions
- What does NYSDOH actually license when a Staten Island community calls itself "assisted living"?
- What is a Special Needs Assisted Living Residence (SNALR), and does it matter for memory care?
- How is a nursing home licensed differently from assisted living in New York?
- What is an Enhanced Assisted Living Residence (EALR), and why would it matter for aging in place?
- How do I check a Staten Island facility's inspection history myself?
- Does New York rate assisted living communities the way it rates nursing homes?
