High-need Medicaid beneficiary rent subsidy & transitional housing support
Contact Don Wiggins, Housing Specialist, Olmstead Housing Subsidy Program, dwiggins@wilc.org or call 914-682-3926 (voice), 914.259.8036 (VP).
The Olmstead Housing Subsidy (OHS) program is a statewide program to establish a rental subsidy and transitional housing support service program for high-need Medicaid beneficiaries. The program provides assistance to persons who live in a nursing home or who are otherwise unstably housed with choosing, accessing, and maintaining an independent apartment.
Eligibility
- In a nursing home or a skilled nursing facility who otherwise would be homeless or unstably house
- Medicaid enrolled
- Spent at least one hundred and twenty (120) consecutive days in a nursing home
- Age 55 and over or chronically disabled
- Have the ability to live safely in the community, with the necessary supports and services
Services
The Olmstead Housing Subsidy provides the following services, as needed:
- Apartment selection assistance, to locate safe and affordable housing that meets the needs of the participant
- Essential furniture and household furnishing purchases
- Rental stipend to assist with meeting rent and utility obligations
- Monthly contact
- Assistance in applying for Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher
The Olmstead Housing Subsidy program is a statewide program. WILC covers the entire Lower Hudson Valley which includes Ulster, Dutchess, Sullivan, Orange, Putnam, Rockland and Westchester counties.
The OHS subsidy is modeled after the Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) and Nursing Home Transition and Diversion (NHTD) waiver subsidy programs in that the individual will be required to pay 30% of their monthly income, less allowances. There is also funding available for “community transition services” which can include security deposits, moving expenses, utility payments and household establishment purchases.
