Does the New River Valley Need Permanent Supportive Housing & is this a Program that New

River Community Action Should Pursue?

NEW RIVER COMMUNITY ACTION (NRCA)CLIENT DATA: JANUARY 2015 – DECEMBER 2016KYLE MIDLAND – AMERICORPS VISTA

Introduction This presentation has a dual-purpose in mind:

1) We must educate our strategic partners in the New River Valley, located in Southwestern Virginia, about available housing and homelessness programs.

2) The homeless population in the New River Valley could potentially benefit from access to Permanent Supportive Housing. We must therefore justify the need for additional federal funding in order to lease physical housing units from local landlords and better serve our customers in the long run.

Current Services Offered at NRCA New River Community Action currently offers clients the following hierarchy of housing assistance levels. Starting from the lowest level:

1) Emergency Assistancea. Short term rental or mortgage assistanceb. Utilities assistance

2) Housing and Homelessness Programsa. Housing Counseling – confidential conversations between the client and counselor.b. Renter’s Education – offered to renters and landlords.c. Rapid Re-Housing – long term financial housing assistance with a soft time limit of 24 months.d. Prevention – generally an option after graduating from Rapid Re-Housing to keep clients housed and

avoid repeated homelessness.3) To Our House – men’s winter shelter for homeless single men offered during the winter.

Permanent Supportive Housing, a fourth level of housing assistance, is not available in the New River Valley.

What is Permanent Supportive Housing?

Similar to Rapid Re-Housing, Permanent Supportive Housing is another type of long term financial housing assistance. The difference is there is no time limit and optional wraparound services are offered to encourage successful outcomes.

Permanent Supportive Housing is the highest level of housing assistance and is only intended for those experiencing chronic homelessness.

What is Chronic Homelessness? Chronic homelessness is defined by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as: An individual or family is literally homeless and has third-party, intake worker, or household

documentation of the following:I. Has been homeless for at least one year continuously or on at least four separate occasions in the

last three years, where the cumulative total of the four occasions is at least one year (Stays in institutions of 90 days or less will not constitute a break in homelessness, but such stays are included in the cumulative total) in a place not meant for human habitation, a safe haven, or an emergency shelter; and

II. Has an adult head of household (or a minor head of household if no adult is present in the household) with a diagnosable substance use disorder, serious mental illness, developmental disability post-traumatic stress disorder, cognitive impairments resulting from a brain injury, or chronic physical illness or disability, including the co-occurrence of 2 or more of those conditions.

To summarize, the chronically homeless have been in need of assistance for an extended period of time AND are diagnosed with a disability that is impeding their daily lives.

Who Qualifies for Permanent Supportive Housing?

Starting in fiscal year 2014 – 2015, New River Community Action implemented an evidence based survey called the VI-SPDAT to more accurately prioritize homeless clients. Vulnerability Index – Service Prioritization Decision Assistance Tool (VI-SPDAT) All other housing providers in the New River Valley followed suit in the following fiscal year.

The VI-SPDAT is only administered to those who are currently homeless – i.e., people who are not living in a habitable location. A score is determined for each client based on responses given to questions regarding current living

conditions and medical issues. The clients with the highest scores may qualify for Permanent Supportive Housing.

What Type of Questions are on the VI-SPDAT?

There is a slight difference in how the VI-SPDAT is administered between individual and family clients.

Both individual and family clients are asked questions from the following main sections: History of Housing and Homelessness Risks Socialization and Daily Functions Wellness

Only family clients are asked questions from the following additional sections: General Information (Family Composition) Family Unit

Explanation of the VI-SPDAT Score The VI-SPDAT score sorts clients into a likely categorical need of assistance:

1) Limited Local Funds [lowest] – individuals (0-4 points) or families (0-5 points) who do not require intensive support but may still benefit from access to affordable housing, short term assistance such as emergency assistance, or housing counseling.

2) Rapid Re-Housing [medium] – individuals (5-9 points) or families (6-11 points) with moderate health, mental health, and/or behavioral health issues, but who are likely to be able to achieve housing stability over a short time period through a medium or short-term rental subsidy and access to support services.

3) Permanent Supportive Housing [highest] – similar to Rapid Re-Housing, but includes optional wraparound services to keep the client stably housed. Individuals require at least 10 points and families require at least 12 points.

As discovered in the following bar charts, a majority of New River Community Action clients qualified for Permanent Supportive Housing during the previous fiscal year and 24 months. Important caveat to note: the VI-SPDAT does not provide a definitive analysis on chronic homelessness as it does not clearly define length of homelessness or disability diagnosis.

Individual (Jan 2015 - Dec 2016)

Individual (FY 2015 - 2016)

Family (Jan 2015 - Dec 2016)

Family (FY 2015 - 2016)0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

11 6 12 6

55

32 4021

102

59 51

29

168

97 103

56

NRCA ClientsVI-SPDAT Assistance Placement

Limited Local Funds Rapid Re-HousingPermanent Supportive Housing TOTAL CLIENTS

Family (FY 2015 - 2016)

Family (Jan 2015 - Dec 2016)

Individual (FY 2015 - 2016)

Individual (Jan 2015 - Dec 2016)

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

11%

12%

6%

7%

38%

39%

33%

33%

52%

50%

61%

61%

NRCA ClientsVI-SPDAT Assistance Placement %

Limited Local Funds Rapid Re-Housing Permanent Supportive Housing

Are too many clients qualifying for Permanent Supportive Housing?

Surprisingly, there is a greater than expected need for Permanent Supportive Housing in the New River Valley. The condition known as Tri-Morbidity, which is found in the Wellness section on the VI-SPDAT, might be a contributing factor. Tri-Morbidity is when medical, mental, and substance abuse issues are experienced simultaneously. Tri-Morbidity accounts for a minimum of 3 points on the VI-SPDAT. These points boost the probability that a client might also qualify for Permanent Supportive Housing.

The following bar charts shows exactly that: a majority of New River Community Action clients who qualified by score on the VI-SPDAT for Permanent Supportive Housing also qualified for Tri-Morbidity during the previous fiscal year and 24 months.

Individual (Jan 2015 - Dec 2016)

Individual (FY 2015 - 2016)

Family (Jan 2015 - Dec 2016)

Family (FY 2015 - 2016)

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

62

3438

19

40

25

13 10

102

5951

29

NRCA ClientsTri-Morbidity Impact on PSH Qualification

Potential PSH w/ Tri-Morbidity Potential PSH w/o Tri-Morbidity TOTAL POTENTIAL PSH CLIENTS

Family (FY 2015 - 2016)

Family (Jan 2015 - Dec 2016)

Individual (FY 2015 - 2016)

Individual (Jan 2015 - Dec 2016)

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

66%

75%

58%

61%

34%

25%

42%

39%

NRCA ClientsTri-Morbidity Impact on PSH Qualification %

Potential PSH w/ Tri-Morbidity Potential PSH w/o Tri-Morbidity

Any Other Factors Impacting PSH?

There are a few questions on the VI-SPDAT that have an overwhelming number of New River Community Action clients who responded in the positive range and received points.

For NRCA individual clients during the previous fiscal year and 24 months: Over 70% practice risky behavior and/or sleep at a location other than a shelter. Over 90% are struggling financially. Over 80% are unhappy day-to-day. Over 70% prefer to be left alone and/or are taken advantage of. Almost 70% appear disheveled – according to an observing housing counselor. Over 80% are affected by a mental disadvantage. Over 70% have experienced some form of past trauma.

Other Factors Impacting PSH (cont’d)

For NRCA family clients during the previous fiscal year and 24 months: Over 70% have young children or are pregnant. Over 70% practice risky behavior and/or sleep at a location other than a shelter. Over 90% are struggling financially. Over 80% are unhappy day-to-day. Over 70% prefer to be left alone and/or are taken advantage of. Over 80% are affected by a mental disadvantage. Over 70% experienced some form of past trauma.

Answering each question in this manner grants a single point on the VI-SPDAT and alone would not significantly skew the scoring results. However, the responses collectively, in addition to Tri-Morbidity, creates a bonus pool of points such that a client can more easily qualify for Permanent Supportive Housing.

Locality Observation New River Community Action serves the following 5 localities in the New River Valley:

Montgomery County Pulaski County City of Radford Giles County Floyd County

As depicted in the following bar chart and maps, the same NRCA client data confirms that Montgomery county had the greatest need for housing assistance during the previous fiscal year and 24 months. On the New River Valley maps, 1 white dot represents approximately 5 clients and the dots are

randomly scattered throughout the localities as a visual representation.

Individual (Jan 2015 - Dec 2016)

Individual (FY 2015 - 2016)

Family (Jan 2015 - Dec 2016)

Family (FY 2015 - 2016)0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

160

180

5 4 2 28 6 9 4

39

20 1910

54

28 3318

62

39 4022

168

97 103

56

NRCA ClientsNew River Valley Locality Breakout

Floyd Giles Radford CityPulaski Montgomery TOTAL CLIENTS

NRCA ClientsIndividual (Jan 2015 – Dec 2016)

NRCA ClientsIndividual (Fiscal Year 2015 – 2016)

NRCA ClientsFamily (Jan 2015 – Dec 2016)

NRCA ClientsFamily (Fiscal Year 2015 – 2016)

…What are the Next Steps Moving Forward?

While not as effective as intended, the VI-SPDAT has opened our eyes to the need for wraparound services and the cooperation of other partners to serve this population. Every additional quarter analyzed has produced the same results for individuals and families.

Moving forward, NRCA senior management has determined that we should proceed with the competitive funding application for Permanent Supportive Housing in FY 2017/2018 pending board approval. At the very least, there is a need for additional federal funding in order to provide Permanent

Supportive Housing in the New River Valley. It is clear that Montgomery county would be the ideal location to partner with local landlords. It is also clear that we need to identify community partners with the expertise to provide necessary

wraparound services. We will compile the final two data sets identifying chronic homelessness, length of time homeless and

disability diagnosis, to best quantify the number of Permanent Supportive Housing units needed.