A whole host of factors — such as friends, housing and transportation — affect a person’s health and how much they need the social safety net. It’s time the government’s big health insurance programs took this reality into account, some lawmakers and policymakers are starting to argue.

As state and federal officials increasingly search for ways to curb rising health care costs, a decades-old idea is gaining traction: helping people with challenges that have nothing to do with medical care but everything to do with their health.

SAHF members believe that connecting residents of affordable housing with needed supports – such as educational resources or health services – can help vulnerable families and seniors achieve a better quality of life.

The Conway Center is a project of a nonprofit housing and services organization, So Others Might Eat, and a federally qualified health center, Unity Health Care, in Washington, DC.

This brief aims to bring attention to non-Medicaid funding sources that states could potentially blend or braid to address social determinants of health and other needs that are not typically covered by Medicaid.

Boulder County, Colo., pioneered the movement. What can others learn from their experience?