What Is the LIC 602A Physician’s Report for Assisted Living in California?

If your parent is moving into assisted living or a board and care home in California, one piece of paperwork will come up almost immediately: the LIC 602A physician report. Care homes cannot accept a new resident without it, and a missing or incomplete form is one of the most common reasons a move gets delayed by days.

This guide explains what the LIC 602A physician report is, what is on the current version of the form, who fills it out, how recent it has to be, and how to get it done quickly in San Diego, even during a hospital discharge. It is written for adult children who are handling a parent’s move into a senior care home and want to avoid last-minute surprises.

What Is the LIC 602A Physician Report?

The LIC 602A is the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) form that documents a medical assessment of a person moving into a Residential Care Facility for the Elderly (RCFE). Every licensed assisted living community and board and care home in California must have a current medical assessment on file before admitting a new resident.

The legal requirement comes from Title 22 of the California Code of Regulations, Section 87458 (Medical Assessment). That section says the home must obtain a medical assessment made within the last year before the person is accepted as a resident, and keep it in the resident’s record. The LIC 602A is the state’s standard form for meeting that rule.

You will hear it called several names:

• The “602” or “602A”
• The physician’s report
• The medical assessment or doctor’s report for assisted living
• The “Medical Assessment for Residential Care Facilities for the Elderly,” which is the title printed on the current version

Older versions of the form were titled “Physician’s Report for Residential Care Facilities for the Elderly.” The version revised in April 2025 (marked LIC 602A (4/25)) is longer and more detailed, and it is now signed by a “licensed medical professional” rather than only a physician. Most homes and doctors’ offices still call it the physician report.

Why Do California Care Homes Require the LIC 602A?

Care homes need the LIC 602A physician report to decide whether they can legally and safely care for your parent. RCFEs provide non-medical care, so the form tells the home about diagnoses, mobility, cognition, behaviors and medications, and confirms there is no active tuberculosis or other contagious disease that would put other residents at risk.

The form serves several purposes at once:

• Licensing compliance. A home that admits a resident without a current medical assessment can be cited by Community Care Licensing.
• Fire safety classification. The doctor marks whether your parent is ambulatory, nonambulatory or bedridden. A board and care home can only accept nonambulatory or bedridden residents if its fire clearance allows it.
• Care planning. The home uses the report, along with its own pre-admission appraisal, to build a plan for bathing, dressing, medications and supervision.
• Restricted health conditions. If the form shows needs such as insulin injections, oxygen, a catheter or wound care, the home must confirm it can meet California’s rules for those conditions.

The top of the current form states plainly that these facilities provide primarily non-medical care and cannot provide skilled nursing care. That sentence matters: if the doctor’s answers describe someone who needs around-the-clock nursing, the home may not be able to accept your parent, and a skilled nursing facility in San Diego may be the right setting instead.

What Is on the LIC 602A Form?

The current LIC 602A runs about nine pages. It covers diagnoses, cognitive conditions, TB results, infectious and contagious diseases, allergies, physical health, capacity for self-care, mental health, behavioral expressions, safety around household items, medication management and ambulatory status. The doctor signs at the end.

Here is what each part asks, in plain language.

Section I: Facility information. The care home fills in its name, address and contact person.

Section II: Resident information. Your parent’s name, date of birth and address.

Section III: Authorization for release of medical information. Your parent, or their legal representative, signs to let the doctor share the results with the home.

Section IV: Resident information completed by the medical professional. This is the heart of the form:

• Exam date, height, weight and blood pressure
• Diagnoses, with treatments, medications and equipment, and whether your parent can manage each one on their own
• Cognitive conditions, such as mild cognitive impairment or major neurocognitive disorder (dementia)
• Tuberculosis test date, type, results and any follow-up
• Infectious diseases, contagious diseases, other medical conditions and allergies
• Overall physical health, including hearing and vision loss, dentures, special diets, bowel or bladder incontinence, paralysis, help needed with repositioning and transfers, and any history of skin breakdown
• Capacity for self-care: bathing, dressing and grooming, eating, toileting, managing money, communicating, following directions and leaving the facility unsupervised
• Mental health status, including depression
• Behavioral expressions such as disorientation, lack of hazard awareness, unsafe wandering, elopement or hallucinations
• Whether your parent would be at risk with access to items like cleaning products, sharp objects, supplements or alcohol, and whether they need supervision near stoves, pools or fountains
• Medication management: whether your parent can take their own pills, give their own injections, check their own blood sugar or manage their own oxygen
• Ambulatory status: ambulatory, nonambulatory or bedridden, and whether your parent is receiving hospice care

Section V: Licensed medical professional information. The doctor, nurse practitioner or physician assistant prints their name and contact details, notes how long they have cared for your parent, and signs.

Who Fills Out the LIC 602A Physician Report?

Your parent’s primary care doctor usually completes the LIC 602A physician report, though any licensed medical professional acting within their scope of practice can sign it. That can include a nurse practitioner or physician assistant. The family and care home each fill in small sections; the medical sections must come from the clinician.

In practice, families split the work like this:

• The care home fills in Section I and often sends you the blank form, or emails it directly to the doctor’s office.
• You or your parent complete the resident information and sign the release. If you hold a durable power of attorney for health care, you may sign as the representative.
• The clinician completes Section IV and V after an exam. Many offices require an appointment rather than filling it out from old records.

If your parent is in the hospital or a skilled nursing facility, the attending physician, hospitalist or facility doctor can complete it. This is often the fastest route, because your parent was examined that week and the TB screening can be done on site.

Families sometimes ask whether they can fill in the medical parts themselves to save time. No. The home needs the clinician’s signature, and a home that accepts a form completed by family is taking a licensing risk. A reputable senior care home will not do it.

How Recent Does the LIC 602A Need to Be?

Under Title 22, Section 87458, the medical assessment must have been made within the last year before your parent is accepted as a resident. In practice, most San Diego care homes want a form completed within the last 30 to 90 days, because a year-old exam rarely reflects a frail senior’s current needs.

A few timing details to know:

• Homes can ask for something newer. The one-year rule is the legal outer limit. A home may require a more recent exam, especially after a hospital stay, fall or change in memory.
• Licensing can require an update. Section 87458 lets CDSS require an updated assessment when needed.
• Annual reappraisals continue after move-in. Under Section 87463, the home must update your parent’s appraisal at least every 12 months, or sooner after a significant change in condition, and offer an annual routine visit with a licensed medical professional.
• The TB test has its own timing. Homes usually want a TB skin test, blood test or chest X-ray done recently. Ask the home what window it accepts before you book the appointment.

Our guide to the TB test and health requirements for moving into assisted living in California explains the TB piece in more detail.

How to Get the LIC 602A Completed Quickly in San Diego

The fastest way to get an LIC 602A physician report done in San Diego is to send the blank form to the doctor’s office before the appointment, book a visit specifically for the assessment, and ask the office to fax or email the signed form straight to the care home. During a hospital stay, ask the case manager to have the attending physician complete it before discharge.

A practical checklist:

1. Get the right version. Ask the care home for its copy, or download the current LIC 602A from the CDSS forms page. Older versions may be rejected.
2. Call the doctor’s office first. Ask how they handle the form, whether they charge a form fee, and how long it takes. Some practices need an appointment and several business days.
3. Bring a current medication list and recent records. Include any hospital discharge summary, specialist notes and the names of any home health agency.
4. Arrange the TB test early. A skin test has to be read 48 to 72 hours after it is placed, so plan for two visits, or ask whether a blood test or chest X-ray is an option.
5. Review the draft before it goes out. Make sure the mobility, cognition and behavior answers match what you see at home. An inaccurate form can lead to the wrong placement.
6. Send it directly. Ask the office to send it to the care home and keep a copy for yourself.

For example, a family in Clairemont moving a mother from Sharp Memorial into a board and care home might ask the hospital case manager on day one to have the hospitalist complete the 602A, so the form, TB result and discharge summary all arrive at the home together. That one request can save two or three days.

If your parent is homebound, a mobile physician or house-call practice can often do the exam at home. Our post on doctor visits in board and care, including house calls and telehealth describes how these practices work once your parent has moved in.

Common LIC 602A Mistakes That Delay a Move

Most delays come from incomplete forms, missing signatures, an old TB result, or answers that contradict what the care home sees during its own assessment. Each one sends the form back to the doctor’s office, which can add days. Reviewing the form before it is sent prevents nearly all of them.

The issues we see most often:

• Blank sections. The doctor skips the behavior or medication management questions. Homes need every section answered, even if the answer is “no.”
• Unsigned release. The family authorization in Section III is missing, so the home cannot use the form.
• Wrong ambulatory status. A parent who cannot get out of bed without help is marked “ambulatory.” Fire clearance rules make this a serious mismatch.
• Understated dementia or behaviors. Well-meaning doctors or families downplay wandering or agitation. If the home discovers it after move-in, your parent may be given notice to leave.
• Outdated medication list. Hospital stays change prescriptions. The 602A should match the discharge medication list.
• No TB result. Or a result too old for the home’s policy.

Honesty on this form protects your parent. Placing someone in a home that cannot meet their needs usually leads to a second, harder move. A good board and care home in San Diego wants the full picture so it can plan care, not to find a reason to say no.

How the LIC 602A Fits With Other Admission Paperwork

The LIC 602A is one part of a small packet every California RCFE assembles before move-in. The home also completes its own pre-admission appraisal, has you sign an admission agreement, and gathers identification, insurance cards, a medication list, emergency contacts and any advance directives such as a POLST or DNR.

Typical items in a San Diego admission packet:

• The LIC 602A medical assessment, signed
• TB screening results
• The home’s pre-admission appraisal under Title 22, Section 87457, which looks at functional capabilities, mental condition and social factors
• The admission agreement, which spells out rates, services and notice rules
• Medicare, Medi-Cal or supplemental insurance cards and a photo ID
• Current prescriptions and pharmacy information
• Power of attorney, health care directive and POLST, if they exist

The 602A tells the home what the doctor sees. The pre-admission appraisal tells it what the home sees. When both agree, admission goes smoothly. Our guide to the RCFE pre-admission appraisal explains what the home assesses on its own, and our post on board and care admission agreements covers the clauses to read before you sign. If you are still deciding between a small home and a larger community, our comparison of board and care vs. assisted living for a parent can help.

What Happens After Move-In: Updates and Reappraisals

After move-in, the LIC 602A becomes part of your parent’s permanent resident file, but it is not the last word. California requires the home to update its appraisal at least yearly or sooner when your parent’s condition changes, and to involve your parent and the family in reviewing the changes.

Under Title 22, Section 87463, a significant change includes things like a stroke or heart attack, a decline in memory or reasoning, new behaviors that put your parent or others at risk, a major loss such as a spouse’s death, or an illness that changes care or diet needs. When that happens, the home should:

• Notify your parent’s doctor and any specialized providers, such as hospice or home health
• Tell your parent and the responsible family member about the change and any recommendations
• Meet with you, in person or by phone or video, to review the updated plan
• Adjust care and supervision to match

Sometimes the home or licensing will ask for an updated medical assessment, which may mean a new 602A. It is also wise to request a fresh form yourself if your parent’s needs increase and you are considering a move to a different senior care home. The new home will want current information.

How Elder Answers Helps

Paperwork is where many moves stall. Elder Answers has helped San Diego families for well over a decade, and our advisors know which homes accept which forms, how quickly each home can review a 602A, and which homes can meet needs like insulin, oxygen or dementia care before you spend time on tours.

Our help is free for families because care homes pay us after a resident moves in, and the rate you pay the home does not change. We share your information only with homes you choose, and when the need is urgent, moves can often happen within a few days. Contact Elder Answers to talk with a local advisor about senior care placement in San Diego.

Frequently Asked Questions About the LIC 602A Physician Report

Is the LIC 602A the same as the physician’s report for assisted living?

Yes. The LIC 602A is the California form commonly called the physician’s report for assisted living, board and care and other RCFEs. The current version, revised in April 2025, is titled “Medical Assessment for Residential Care Facilities for the Elderly,” but homes and doctors still use the older names.

Who can sign the LIC 602A?

Title 22, Section 87458 requires the assessment to be signed by a licensed medical professional acting within their scope of practice. That is usually the primary care physician, but it can also be a nurse practitioner, physician assistant, hospitalist or skilled nursing facility doctor who examined your parent.

How old can the LIC 602A be?

The legal limit is one year before admission. Many San Diego care homes prefer a form completed within the past 30 to 90 days, and almost all will want a new one after a hospital stay or a big change in health or memory.

Does the doctor charge to fill out the LIC 602A?

Some practices charge a form completion fee and some do not. The exam itself is usually billed to Medicare or other insurance like a normal office visit. Ask the office about fees and turnaround time when you book the appointment.

Does my parent need a TB test before moving into a board and care home?

Yes. The medical assessment must address communicable tuberculosis, and the LIC 602A has a section for the TB test date, type and result. Ask the home what kind of test and what time window it accepts, and schedule it early because skin tests must be read two to three days later.

Can the care home refuse my parent based on the LIC 602A?

Yes. If the report shows needs the home’s license, fire clearance or staffing cannot meet, such as being bedridden in a home without the right clearance or needing skilled nursing, the home must decline. That is a reason to be accurate, so your parent is matched with a home that can truly care for them.

What if my parent’s condition changes after move-in?

The home must update its appraisal at least every 12 months and whenever there is a significant change in condition, under Title 22, Section 87463. It may also ask for a new medical assessment. You should be included in reviewing the updated care plan.

Can a hospital doctor complete the LIC 602A before discharge?

Yes, and it is often the fastest route. Ask the hospital case manager early in the stay to have the attending physician or hospitalist complete the form and send it, with the discharge summary and TB result, directly to the care home.

Where do I get a blank LIC 602A form?

The care home you are moving into will usually provide it. You can also download the current version from the California Department of Social Services forms page. Make sure it is the April 2025 or later version, since some homes reject older forms.