Transcript COMING HOME Presentation to the Council of State Community Development Agencies September 16, 2008 ~ Williamsburg, Virginia Julie A.

COMING HOME
Presentation to the Council of State Community Development Agencies
September 16, 2008 ~ Williamsburg, Virginia
Julie A. Stanley, Director of Community Integration for People with Disabilities
Office of the Governor, Commonwealth of Virginia
National long-term care policy for seniors and people with
disabilities is changing rapidly and dramatically
from institutional to community living.
States are rebalancing their entire systems of funding and
delivery of long-term services and supports—
and they face enormous challenges in assuring a supply
of affordable, accessible community housing.
Even though thousands of new units of affordable and
accessible housing have been developed, there remains
an undeniable lack of integrated, affordable, accessible,
and visitable housing from which people with disabilities
and seniors may choose.
The lack of affordable, accessible housing is frequently
cited by a wide range of organizations and individuals
as the single largest barrier to full inclusion and
community integration of persons with disabilities.
Why?
Individuals with disabilities often have extremely low
incomes and cannot even afford most governmentassisted housing produced today.
Breaking down housing barriers for
individuals with disabilities and seniors is
one the most important community
development needs of our time.
The Need Becomes More Urgent Every Day

One in five individuals living in the United States has
one or more disabilities.

Many of these individuals live in institutions, yet many want to
come home, and states have an obligation to offer them an
opportunity to do so.

More and more wounded warriors are coming home to live with
permanent disabilities. In the Iraqi War alone, as of this summer
over 31,000 had come home wounded.

By the year 2020, one in six Americans will be 65 years
or older.

The nation's stock of public housing for seniors and
persons with disabilities is aging -- along with all of us.
At the Federal Level…

In a $1.75 billion initiative, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services (CMS) awarded “Money Follows the Person” funding to 31
states to assist over 37,000 people to move from institutions to the
community in the next four years.

CMS identified housing as a critical element for state systems that
support individuals moving to the community.

HUD asked PHAs to collaborate with state HFAs, CMS, and local
disability organizations to provide integrated, affordable, and
accessible community housing options. PHAs were specifically
encouraged to set local preferences and use public housing units,
Housing Choice Vouchers, and Mainstream Vouchers to support
people with disabilities and seniors in their move to the community…

…But no HUD funding has been targeted for these individuals.
In Virginia….

1,041 seniors and individuals with disabilities will come home
under “Money Follows the Person” to a:




Home
Apartment
Setting in which no more than four unrelated persons live
To increase options:


Governor Kaine personally contacted PHAs in Virginia
Secretaries of Health and Human Resources and Commerce
and Trade appointed a Housing Task Force to recommend ways
to increase accessible, affordable housing for these individuals
Also in Virginia…

Medicaid-reimbursed home modification funding is being
made available to thousands of individuals who had no
access to it previously

Virginia Department of Housing and Community
Development is working with the State Medicaid agency in its
Money Follows the Person Project, contributing $0.5 million
per year for:

Home modifications that exceed the $5,000 per year
maximum Medicaid amount

Temporary rent between signing a lease and completion
of modifications
And More in Virginia…

Over $3 million in Federal Part B funding was
set aside by the State Independent Living
Council to work with PHAs and other housing
agencies to positively impact local housing
policies for seniors and individuals with
disabilities

Ongoing and sustained efforts to break down
communication barriers between housing and
health and human service worlds

Easy Living Coalition
COSCDA Can Help People Come Home By…

Advocating for the integration of the needs of seniors and
individuals with disabilities in the community development goals of
the states and at the federal level

Developing policies and recommendations on how states can best
accomplish this integration

Supporting the Frank Melville Supportive Housing Investment Act of
2008 (HR 5772)

Helping states creatively use funds that come from the National
Affordable Housing Trust Fund to increase affordable and
accessible housing

Keeping your members informed about federal and state
developments in policies related to long-term care for seniors and
people with disabilities
Resources You Can Use

Public Housing: Distressed Conditions in Developments for the
Elderly and Persons with Disabilities and Strategies Used for
Improvement. Government Accounting Office, GAO-06-163,
ACCNO A42937 (12/09/2005)

PRICED OUT IN 2006:The Housing Crisis for People with
Disabilities. Ann O’Hara, Emily Cooper, Andrew Zovistoski, and
Jonathan Buttrick (April 2007)

Funding Sources Successfully Used by States to Support
Development of Integrated, Affordable, and Accessible Community
Housing. Independent Living Research Utilization (November 2007)

The Hidden Housing Crisis: Worst Case Housing Needs Among
Adults With Disabilities. Kathryn P. Nelson (April 2008)
For More Information
One Community—Virginia’s Community
Integration Initiative http://www.olmsteadva.com
Virginia’s Money Follows the Person Project
http://www.olmsteadva.com/mfp
Virginia’s Office of Community Integration
[email protected]
(804) 371-0828