Los Angeles County’s Homelessness Emergency Response Bolstered by $114 Million Investment

L.A. Care Health Plan and Health Net are investing $114 million over multiple years to help address the homelessness crisis in Los Angeles County. Earlier this year, the county Board of Supervisors officially declared a state of emergency to expedite resources to support the unhoused.

In collaboration with the Los Angeles County Homeless Initiative or CEO-HI, the investment will fund two initial strategies:

   Secure leases on as many as 1,900 housing units and pay for vacancy coverage, damage repair, trash services, greenspace, maintenance and/or pest control.

   Identify the needs of unhoused people through field assessments to determine who requires assistance with Activities of Daily Living to move into permanent housing, which is especially important due to the growing number of seniors and people with disabilities experiencing homelessness.

Unit Acquisition

Every year, a combination of local, state and federal funding supports various permanent and time-limited housing vouchers that are used to house people experiencing homelessness in the county. But a recent study found only 65% of people issued a voucher are able to lease a unit, and it takes an average of 122 days for those fortunate enough to find a rental location. L.A.’s tight rental market is partly to blame, but so is illegal landlord discrimination against voucher holders, the majority of whom are people of color.

L.A. Care Health Plan and Health Net’s investment will be used to help the county secure housing units in the private rental market to serve people experiencing homelessness who have rental vouchers. This could include leasing entire apartment complexes, expanding opportunities for shared housing, providing additional support to landlords and more. Leases could run from three to 10 years.