Considerations for Combining PACE with Housing

In recent years, there has been a recognition of the importance of social determinants of health, including the impact of where a person lives on their overall health and well-being. This is especially true for older adults, for whom safe, accessible, housing with integrated health and long-term care services (such as home care, housekeeping, and nutrition support) is the key to remaining in the community.

Housing providers have been increasingly interested in seeking programs and developing relationships aimed at enabling older residents to remain safely in their homes for as long as possible. In Massachusetts, there are many organizations that operate programs designed to assist older adults. These range from organizations that provide companionship, villages that support affinity groups, home health agencies that provide in-home assistance with activities of daily living, adult day health centers, adult foster care, and care coordination programs.

The Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) offers all these services and more and has proven to be a valuable partner to housing agencies that operate affordable housing for older adults.

Massachusetts recently launched an initiative to expand PACE to every zip code in the Commonwealth, making this an ideal time for housing agencies to learn more about PACE and PACE-Housing Partnerships.

There are already many PACE-Housing partnerships in place across the state, and while these models can vary in their design and structure, all PACE-Housing models seek to maximize the ability of residents to remain in their homes through access to housing stabilization services, enhanced support, health-related services, and collaboration between PACE Organizations and housing partners.

This document is designed to introduce and provide examples of PACE-Housing partnerships to stakeholders in the housing arena (e.g., landlords, property managers, developers, etc.), and to highlight opportunities for housing agencies to further support tenants through relationships with PACE Organizations.

Continue reading this article by downloading the Considerations for Combining PACE with Housing PDF here.