CDCLI and JP Morgan Chase Foundation launch healthy homes pilot program

Community Development Corp. of Long Island (CDCLI) and JPMorgan Chase Foundation have launched a pilot program designed to improve housing conditions and health outcomes for low-income residents, according to Marianne Garvin, president and CEO for CDCLI, and David Walsh, division manager of community development banking in the Northeast Region for JPMorgan Chase. Garvin explained that while many of CDCLI's current programs, such as those that improve energy efficiency and handicap accessibility improve occupant health and safety, the time has come to have a fully integrated approach to healthy homes. She said, "We have a unique opportunity working with JPMorgan Chase, the Village of Hempstead Housing Authority, NuHealth Family Health Centers, and NeighborWorksAmerica to achieve positive health outcomes for low income Village residents. We will be able to improve the safety of apartments and private homes, make the homes more suitable for aging in place, and establish linkages with health care providers for better access to services." Walsh said, "At JPMorgan Chase, we believe we have a fundamental responsibility to help the communities where we live and work navigate complex social challenges. Thought leaders in the health care and affordable housing fields have long observed the connections between quality, stable housing and health. This is why we are so excited about our $200,000 grant to CDCLI, which will support a pilot program to rehabilitate and weatherize public housing units, identify needed repairs for homeowners, and track the effect these improvements have on health outcomes." The total budget for the pilot program is $600,000, with $200,000 provided by the JPMorgan Chase foundation. Other sources of funding include NeighborWorks America, and New York State Homes and Community Renewal. NuHealth will be providing health care services and linkages. Von Kuhen, senior vice president of CDCLI, said, "The pilot program will consist of three distinct activities. The first will be renovations, energy efficiency improvements, and aging in place modifications at 30 Village of Hempstead Housing Authority family apartments. The second will be similar improvements at 10 single family owner-occupied homes, and the third will be the establishment of health baselines and health provider linkages for housing authority tenants and assisted homeowners." The Village of Hempstead was chosen for the pilot program due to several key demographic indicators, as reported by the US Census Bureau: The village's median income is only 54% of the Long Island median; a large percentage of the population is below the poverty level; 13% are unemployed; more than 20% receive assistance under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program; and, most significantly, that 28% of the residents have no health insurance. The percentage of village residents without health insurance is 2½ times higher than the overall New York State population. David Nemiroff, executive director, of Long Island Federally Qualified Health Centers, said that "providing quality health services to underserved residents of the Village is a high priority for the NuHealth Family Health Centers. We are pleased to coordinate with CDCLI and the Housing Authority by offering health screenings and our full range of services." Rosemary Olsen, executive director of the Village of Hempstead Housing Authority, stated that the Housing Authority is undertaking an ambitious capital improvement plan with respect to all of their 281 apartments. "We welcome the opportunity to work with CDCLI and JPMorgan Chase to make our units more energy efficient, safer and healthier. The Housing Authority is excited to be part of this pilot program and to be able to make health services more readily available to our tenants."