The Latest Research, Commentary, And News From Health Affairs
Thursday, May 20, 2021
Dear John,
A May paper finds that a Veterans Affairs program providing financial assistance for housing led to declines in health care costs.
Housing Assistance Decreased Health Care Costs
In October 2011 the Department of Veterans Affairs launched the Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) program to provide housing support to veterans who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. One of the services provided through this program is temporary financial assistance for housing-related expenses such as rent, utility payments, and security deposits. To explore the connection between housing and health, Richard Nelson and coauthors assessedhealth care costs before and after people enrolled in
SSVF. After enrollment,people receiving the assistance incurred $352 lower health care costs per quarter than those who did not receive the assistance. Health Affairs has published several policy briefs about housing and health. In April 2021 Gracie Himmelstein and Matthew Desmond reported onhow eviction impacts health. Today on Health Affairs Blog, Amy Killelea and Tim Horn write about generic HIV prevention drugs, while J. Nwando Olayiwola shares five keys to realizing health equity in US health plans.
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