Dear John,

In anticipation of our March issue coming out next week, we released an ahead-of-print article from John Bowblis of Miami University and his team of coauthors that examines trends in the use of staffing agencies among freestanding nursing homes before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Check out the article and get ready for next week's new issue which focuses on physicians, Medicaid, nursing homes, and more!

Homelessness And Health: Factors, Evidence, and Innovations That Work

In their article in the February Housing & Health issue of Health Affairs, Cheyenna Garcia of the University of California, San Francisco, and her team of coauthors provide an overview of the relationships between homelessness and health in the United States.

Garcia and coauthors find that about 650,000 people experienced homelessness in a single night in 2023, and these people were disproportionately Black, Indigenous, Pacific Islander, and gender and sexual minorities.

The researchers document the structural and individual risk factors associated with homelessness, noting that a lack of affordable housing, having a substance use disorder, or a history of incarceration increases the risk of homelessness.

They also summarize literature about the associations between homelessness and poor health, finding that those experiencing homelessness have a higher prevalence of acute and chronic physical and mental health conditions, higher mortality rates, and elevated rates of mental health conditions. 

Garcia and coauthors advocate for affordable housing and increased health-sector interventions.

To learn more about this paper's findings, check out a video abstract featuring author Margot Kushel below.

Health Affairs Branded Post:

Harlan Pittell et al.

Sponsored by Flatiron Health

Health Affairs is implementing a new word limit for journal research articles.

Beginning with submissions received on or after April 1, 2024, the word limit will change from 5,000 words, including endnotes, to 3,250, excluding endnotes.

This change will allow for a tighter focus on core empirical research elements and create shorter, more accessible content for our audience.

Research papers using both qualitative and quantitative methods will be allowed a word count of 4,000 (excluding endnotes).

For more on this change, check out a newly released article from Editor-in-Chief Alan Weil.

The Final 2023 Merger Guidelines: Will Small Changes From The Draft Version Make A Difference?

Katherine L. Gudiksen and Jaime S. King

This Black History Month, we're highlighting influential Black voices and organizations who have made an impact on health equity and policy.

In an October 2023 Narrative Matters, Maranda C. Ward shares how structural racism gets codified in health care policy, specifically when it comes to dental care coverage.

In conjunction with this Narrative Matters essay, check out a video abstract featuring Ward below.