POLICY MATTERS
A monthly update on policy issues in the fight against homelessness in NYC.
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Remembering People Who Needlessly Died
Without Housing in New York City Last Year
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In a moving Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day program on December 21st, Care for the Homeless and our partner organizations mourned the loss of people who died in 2017 without stable housing in New York City, and advocated for policies and programs to provide homeless people with the stable housing and services they need to end homelessness as we know it.
Read more here.
In the Memorial portion of the program, 188 names of people who passed away in New York City this year without stable housing were read aloud. As each name was read, information about that person was projected on a screen, a bell tolled, and a candle was lit to honor them. The name reading paused several times as four eulogies were delivered. The program included a sing-along, lead by musicians Krystal Bordoni-Cowley and Gillian Orwoll. Audience members added several names to the Memorial ceremony at its conclusion.
“The 188 names represent just those we at Care for the Homeless, colleague organizations and service providers gathered, and are just a small portion of the actual number of people who needlessly died without housing this year,” Nashak explained.
Read more here.
It’s part of the CFH mission to advocate for policies and programs to fight, prevent and end homelessness. Ava Conner concluded the program saying, “we ask that each of us recommit ourselves to ending homelessness, so that some day these sad Memorials will no longer need to be held.”
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As We’ve Been Saying: Housing Homeless People Results in Better Health Outcomes and Financial Savings
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For years Care for the Homeless has been advocating that stable housing results in both better health outcomes and savings of public resources, and that “Housing is Healthcare”. So, we like to point it out when a major study backs us up. Last month the well-respected Rand Corporation think tank study, “Evaluation of Housing for Health”, called homelessness “…a pervasive public health issue.”
They’re right, of course. Our Care for the Homeless health care providers have long said that any medical or mental health condition, and almost any treatment, is improved with stable housing. Care for the Homeless Executive Director George Nashak recently said if Care for the Homeless providers could write just one script, it wouldn’t be for a wonder drug, it would be for stable housing.
Read more here.
The study documents that for people experiencing homelessness who were given supportive housing “…use of medical and mental health services dropped substantially, including ER visits and inpatient use,” resulting in “…costs, correspondingly, also decreasing.” In the first year of stable housing they found emergency room visits decreased 1.64%, the duration of inpatient hospital stays decreased by more than four days, and outpatient visits decreased by an average of four visits.
In the Rand study the “…average public service utilization cost in the year prior to housing totaled $38,146; in the year after receiving housing it totaled $15,358”. Evan after factoring in the cost of housing and administration the study found a 20% net cost savings year-over-year.
If housing is healthcare, and healthcare is a basic human right, then providing stable housing to vulnerable people is the right thing to do. Because stable housing equals better health outcomes, it’s the right health policy. And the Rand study is more documentation that, over time, fighting and ending homelessness is also the least costly thing to do.
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Big Win for Tenant Advocates
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At the end of the year City Council passed a bill expanding the Certificate of No Harassment (CONH) program adding to several victories tenant advocates have had in the last year, including the first citywide community land trust and creating a right to counsel in housing court. The CONH requires developers to prove that they have not harassed tenants in the last five years before applying for construction permits from the Department of Housing Preservation and Development. If found to have a history of harassment, developers can only proceed by guaranteeing that 20% of the units in a new building, or 25% of the units in a renovated building, will be set aside as permanent affordable housing. The pilot program expands the current CONH to the 11 neighborhoods that the city has slated for rezoning as part of the Mayor’s 10 year affordable housing plan (30,000 units of affordable housing by 2026).
These victories come at a time when New York City is going through an affordability crisis with an unprecedented number of people at risk of eviction and homelessness. Rising rents has led to a decrease in affordable housing options and has disproportionately affected people living in areas such as East Harlem, Bed-Stuy, Bushwick and East New York. Developers and landlords have contributed to the problem by pushing tenants out of rent-stabilized apartment buildings to increase the rent and reach the deregulation limit of $2,700, at which point they can charge market rent rates. With this incentive, unscrupulous landlords have employed harassment tactics to push people out of rent stabilized apartment buildings. Source of income discrimination has also prevented rental subsidy recipients from finding market regulated apartments that accept vouchers, further increasing the burden that very low income people face in trying to find affordable homes.
On November 29th Theatre of the Oppressed NYC presented
Apartment Complex, a show that addressed the very issue of housing voucher discrimination and tenant harassment that Care for the Homeless and other advocate organizations have advocated so hard about. The play was created and performed by the Housing Works Theatre Troupe and featured three CFH client leaders Gayle Dorsky, Helene Tenzer and John Manago, while Nathalie Interiano (CFH Policy Associate) participated in the policy panel.
Read more here.
The most effective way to fight homelessness is to keep people from becoming homeless in the first place. The current administration has made great strides in curbing displacement of low income tenants. Programs like CONH are a great victory for the City and its residents.
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The Busy Advocate's January Calendar
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Thur., Jan. 4th, Next session day for U.S. Senate in Washington
; also scheduled for session every week in January, including most weekdays.
Mon., Jan. 15th, Martin Luther King Day
– celebrate by volunteering!
Mon., Jan. 22nd, First scheduled session day in the new year for U.S. House of Representative
s, Washington, D.C.
Wed., Jan. 24th, 12:30 p.m., CAB Client Leader Meeting
, CFH Conference Room, 30 E. 33rd Street, Manhattan, NY.
Tue., Jan. 30th, 8:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m., Policy Forum on Homeless
sponsored by Homeless Services United.
Mon., Feb. 5th, 5:30 pm., CFH “First Monday” Policy Briefing
, CFH Conference Room, 30 E. 33rd Street, Manhattan,
NY. RSVP here.
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A monthly update on policy issues in the fight against homelessness in NYC.
Thank you for your generous support of our mission.
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