Kaiser Grants Support COVID-19 Prevention for Those Experiencing Homelessness

By Robert Davis

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Kaiser Permanente distributed four grants to homeless service providers and nonprofits focused on strengthening COVID-19 prevention and response for people experiencing homelessness.

The grants totaled $600,000 and will be distributed equally over the next 12 months between Metropolitan Denver Homeless Initiative (MDHI), Pueblo Rescue Mission, Community Health Partnership in Colorado Springs (CHP), and United Way of Weld County.

Overall, funds will go toward increase capacity for COVID-19 testing, support for individuals in obtaining stable housing, and training opportunities for staff, including active symptom monitoring protocols. However, each recipient can tailor their use of the funds toward the needs of their community.

For example, Pueblo Rescue Mission will use the funds to procure additional testing and provide active symptom monitoring for shelter residents. CHP plans to expand its Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) for the Homeless Isolation Shelter (HIS) and manage COVID-19 test tracking.

MDHI will use $100,000 for its Flex Fund, which helps ensure housing stability and access to health care for unhoused persons affected by COVID-19. The additional $50,000 will be distributed to shelters to purchase additional testing and protective equipment.

"We are incredibly grateful for the partnership of Kaiser Permanente, particularly in light of the pandemic,” Matthew Meyer, MDHI’s executive director, said in a statement. “This support will mean the difference between stability and instability for hundreds throughout our community. It will be what helps many become housed, and for countless others, it will be what ensures they remain safe. Ultimately, it will save lives."

According to Michael Ramsear, Kaiser’s regional president for Colorado, the investment is about providing critical resources at a crucial time of the pandemic.

Denver’s transmission rate and hospitalization rate have both surpassed their March highs. Meanwhile, the Department of Housing Stability estimates Denver lost more than 50 percent of its shelter bed space to implement social distancing, thus forcing more of the city’s unhoused out onto the streets.

“Our Colorado communities have been seriously impacted by COVID-19 and it’s clear people experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity are at significant risk,” he said in a statement. “We are making this contribution at a critical time in our state as we work to prevent and control the spread of the virus.”