The Garden Grove Housing Authority (“GGHA”) is one of four housing authorities operating within Orange County that administers the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (“HUD’s”) Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (“HCV”) Program. The HCV program assists very low-income, elderly, and disabled families so that they can afford decent, safe, and sanitary housing in the private market. Throughout Orange County, the Anaheim Housing Authority, Santa Ana Housing Authority, and GGHA administer the program within their respective city jurisdictions, while the Orange County Housing Authority administers the program in all other Orange County cities and unincorporated areas. Despite each housing authority administering its own HCV Program independently, they have long established a collaborative working partnership and regularly engage in concerted efforts to enhance service delivery for voucher holders throughout Orange County.

Over the last several years, these housing authorities have been awarded new funding to manage additional rental assistance programs commonly referred to as Special Purpose Vouchers (“SPVs”) such as the Emergency Housing Voucher program, Stability Voucher program, Mainstream Voucher program, Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing, Non-Elderly Disabled program, Family Unification program, and Foster Youth to Independence program. While the new funding is a significant benefit for our communities, it has given rise to an increasing need for supportive services. The rising need for supportive services can be attributed to the diverse needs of families and individuals that face different health challenges and barriers to leasing up with their voucher. Supportive services, traditionally not the primary focus of housing authorities, have become essential to ensuring the success and well-being of our voucher holders (“program participants”).

In line with the commitment to offer comprehensive services to all program participants, discussions among the four housing authorities have led to the creation of the proposed joint Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”) with the Orange County Health Authority, a public agency doing business as CalOptima Health (“CalOptima”), to provide referrals for supportive services through the Cal-AIM program. CalOptima is Orange County’s single largest health insurer and provides health care coverage for Orange County low-income residents who are eligible for Medi-Cal. CalOptima participates in the CalAIM program, which offers services directed at supporting some of the most vulnerable populations in Orange County, including people experiencing homelessness, older adults, children with complex care needs, and people involved with the justice system. Under the MOU, each PHA will request the voluntary written interest and consent of program participants. With consent from a program participant, CalOptima will assess program participants for eligibility and refer eligible participants to CalAIM providers for Community Support and Enhanced Care Management (“ECM”) services. In addition to ECM services, the Community Support services include but are not limited to:

1. Housing transition navigation services;

2. Housing deposits;

3. Housing tenancy and sustaining services;

4. Short-term post-hospitalization housing;

5. Recuperative care;

6. Respite services;

7. Day habilitation services;

8. Asthma remediation;

9. Medically tailored meals/medically-supportive food;

10. Community transition services/nursing facility transition to a home;

11. Personal care and homemaker services;

12. Environmental accessibility adaptations (home modifications); and

13. Nursing facility transition/diversion to assisted living facilities, such as Residential Care facilities for elderly and adult residential facilities.

This joint MOU is designed to establish a referral framework and facilitate access to CalAIM’s program resources for GGHA’s SPV program participants. It may also be expanded to HCV program applicants in the future. The objective is to provide program participants with county-wide access to valuable resources and streamline referrals to supportive health services. This joint MOU would allow GGHA to leverage CalOptima’s existing resources and expertise in healthcare and social services. As a result, GGHA can seamlessly refer program participants to supportive services at no cost. By participating in this joint MOU, GGHA can best serve the public by facilitating referrals to essential health services, improving the overall health of our community, and contributing to the efficient use of resources.

There is no fiscal impact associated with this action.

It is recommended that the Housing Authority:

• Authorize the Executive Director to execute the MOU, including any minor modifications as appropriate, and any other pertinent documents necessary to effectuate and/or implement the Agreement.