Corporation for Supportive Housing

Under the Affordable Care Act, states have the option to provide coordinated services for Medicaid patients with multiple chronic conditions through health homes—networks of providers across communities that facilitate access to various medical, behavioral, and social services.

Health homes have the potential to reorganize how care is delivered, managed, and coordinated for high-need and high-cost patients, which in turn could lead to lower emergency room use; reductions in hospital admissions and readmissions; reductions in higher health care costs; and improved quality of care. However, health home participants who are unstably housed often cycle through emergency rooms, detox facilities, hospitalizations, and shelters, resulting in enormous costs and poor health outcomes. NYHealth awarded Corporation for Supportive Housing (CSH) a grant to improve coordination of care for health home participants with the supportive housing sector.

Under this grant, CSH worked with all health homes and supportive housing partners—more than 50 organizations statewide—to support and promote the adoption of collaborative models. Specifically, CSH trained health homes on different types of housing options; equipped health homes with the tools to identify clients who need supportive housing; and brokered partnerships between health homes and supportive housing providers. CSH also developed a training curriculum and an assessment tool to ensure the dissemination and success of best practices. Finally, CHS assisted the State and localities in creating a centralized data system for tracking health home participants in supportive housing.