Housing and Health Connections

Supportive Housing Integrates Health and Housing Related Services

Supportive housing is a community living option that combines affordable housing with essential supportive services, including health-related services. Scaling supportive housing requires collaboration at both the system and program levels between the health and housing sectors. CSH leads the national dialogue on achieving this cross-sector goal.


Affordable, high-quality, and stable housing promotes good health. Lack of access to housing and exposure to the elements leads to deteriorating health over time. Children, seniors, and individuals with multiple chronic health conditions experiencing homelessness, living in substandard housing, or facing housing instability are especially vulnerable to chronic poor health. Addressing the deep health inequities in our country requires tackling Social Drivers of Health (SDOH) needs, including expanding affordable and supportive housing options.

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CHS is at the forefront, offering practical, data-driven solutions for leaders overseeing state-based housing and public health programs, healthcare leaders, and leaders in the supportive housing field. Our solutions are designed to address the complex challenges of housing and health, providing a roadmap for effective action.

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Using Medicaid’s Housing Related Services (HRS) to Create New Supportive Housing

An increasing number of states are including coverage of Housing Related Services (HRS) in their Medicaid programs. These new services aim to provide more units of supportive housing and higher quality services. CSH has found that states who include these six strategies in their efforts are more likely to be successful. Learn more about these efforts, examples and concrete next steps your state can take to ensure these programs lead to greater supportive housing capacity and higher quality supportive housing statewide

care worker looking at white aging woman patient in home setting

Medicaid Unwinding: How to Help Residents Keep Their Health Care Coverage

With new laws and the winding down of the COVID emergency, states are now reviewing all the persons who have Medicaid health care coverage to ensure they still qualify for the program. This process is called redetermination. CSH’s brief and webinar, created in partnership with the National Health Care for the Homeless Council and the National Alliance to End Homelessness, will help providers learn how to support Medicaid beneficiaries through this process and ensure that they maintain continuous health care coverage. Learn what you and your agency need to know by reading the brief and watching the webinar.

Health Medicaid Map

CSH Unveils An Updated Policy Brief and New Map That Shows States’ Progress In Using Medicaid to Fund Services in Supportive Housing

States are looking to both increase supportive housing capacity and supportive housing quality. One component of improving quality could be developing more intensive supportive services. Many barriers exist to increasing supportive housing capacity for most communities, including a lack of a Medicaid Authority. Over a dozen states already have in place some supportive housing services benefit, and CSH’s map can help you find where your state is in the process. This brief provides a detailed summary of state actions and lessons that could be replicated in your state.

Public Health Masked Individuals

Reframing Homelessness as a Public Health Crisis

This paper by CSH outlines many of the commonalities between the public health field and those who work to align housing and services and offers suggestions on how we can all collaborate effectively. This work was generously supported by a grant from the Bank of America Foundation.

Health System Investments in Housing: A Development Guide

This guidebook explores why and how health systems and hospitals can and should invest in supportive and affordable housing, including an Introduction to Housing Finance and Development for health partners motivated to learn more about the process and get step-by-step instruction on the “how,” this section covers the steps needed to put you in the position to take concrete action.

Health Care Benefits for Older Adults

The public healthcare coverage, services and benefits discussed in this brief can make the difference between a life in the community or a life bouncing between homelessness and various institutions. While a variety of services may be available in your community to assist older adults, if the potential service recipient does not have the public healthcare coverage that funds these services, then either the individual is paying out of pocket, or cannot access the services. Therefore, a basic understanding of public healthcare coverage and benefits for older adults is crucial to accessing and maintaining needed services.

Administrative Models for Medicaid Funding Services

This review of Medicaid funding models is designed to assist supportive housing providers and homeless service organizations consider strategies to enhance their services (and services funding) through partnerships or through securing new resources. The three models this paper reviews are: Becoming a Medicaid Billable Agency; Collaborating to Increase Services and Capacity; and Contracting with an Administrative Services Organization.

Housing is Healthcare

We help communities integrate healthcare and community-based services systems to address patients’ social determinants of health, recognizing that stable housing is crucial for overall well-being. Collaborations between healthcare providers and housing organizations and common-sense policies can create supportive housing solutions for people experiencing complex barriers to housing and healthcare, including those with chronic illnesses or disabilities.