Accreditation Updates
CARF’s 2026 Standards: AI Policies, Sobering Centers and Integrated Primary Care
CARF’s 2026 standards year began July 1, 2026. It brings a first-ever artificial intelligence standard, sobering center standards and a new Integrated Primary Care designation. Here is what changed and what to do about it.
The 2026 survey year
CARF ties each standards manual to a survey year. The 2026 Behavioral Health Standards Manual applies to surveys from July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027, and is sold as the manual, a survey preparation workbook, or both.1 If your survey falls in that window, prepare from this edition.
A first standard on artificial intelligence
Announced April 21, 2026 and effective July 1, 2026 across all of CARF’s manuals, the new standard covers:2
- Written policies on the use of AI
- Disclosure to the people you serve
- Data protection
- Human oversight
- Incident response
- Annual review
Using AI anywhere in your program?
Documentation assistants, scribes, chatbots and scheduling tools can all count. Inventory the tools your staff actually use before you write the policy, so the policy matches practice.
Sobering center standards
CARF created accreditation standards for sobering centers in January 2026. They are in the 2026 Behavioral Health manual and apply to surveys from July 1, 2026, and CARF plans to fold them into its crisis program standards later.3
Integrated Primary Care designation
A new Integrated Primary Care specialty designation, announced January 27, 2026, appears in the Behavioral Health, Child and Youth Services and Opioid Treatment Program manuals, effective July 1, 2026.4 It is worth a look if you deliver or plan to deliver primary care alongside behavioral health.
What to do now
- Confirm which manual applies to your next survey date.
- Inventory AI tools in use and draft a written AI policy covering each element above.
- Train staff on what to disclose to persons served.
- If you run a sobering center or crisis program, map your practices to the new standards.
- Consider the Integrated Primary Care designation if it fits your services.
More on the process in our CARF accreditation guide.
Sources
- CARF Bookstore, 2026 Behavioral Health standards. bookstore.carf.org
- CARF International, CARF implements first AI standard (April 21, 2026). carf.org
- CARF International, CARF creates accreditation standards for sobering centers (January 2026). carf.org
- CARF International, CARF standards address integrated primary care (January 27, 2026). carf.org