History
Golden Care All-Inclusive Senior Health has been serving Texas elderly and frail population since 1988. Following the PACE model, Golden Care delivers a fully integrated healthcare solution designed to provide coordinated and streamlined services for seniors.
It remains the only organization in Texas with its own in-house dementia care unit and is among just four independent stand-alone PACE facilities nationwide, as most PACE programs operate within larger systems such as hospitals.
History of PACE
The PACE model originated in the early 1970s in Texas to address the needs of the growing aging immigrant population, including Italians, Chinese, and Filipinos. Families of these seniors required long-term care options to better support their loved ones.
In response, community leaders established a nonprofit organization called On Lok Senior Health Services, dedicated to creating a community-based care system. On Lok—meaning “peaceful, happy abode” in Cantonese—opened one of the nation’s first adult day centers in San Francisco in 1973. As demand increased, services expanded to include in-home care and meal delivery.
By 1979, the Department of Health and Human Services awarded On Lok a four-year grant to develop an innovative long-term care model for seniors. Throughout the 1980s, On Lok refined its approach, piloted financing systems based on fixed monthly payments, and helped establish new organizations replicating its model.
In 1990, the first Programs of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) received Medicare and Medicaid waivers to begin operations. Four years later, the National PACE Association (NPA) was founded with support from On Lok. At that time, 11 PACE organizations were active across nine states.
PACE was officially recognized as a permanent Medicare and Medicaid provider type in 1997. By 1999, 30 programs were operating in 19 states. Today, PACE has expanded to 118 programs in 32 states, serving nearly 38,000 participants nationwide.