The Reaching Home Campaign has created new material to help policymakers and others see how supportive housing can help keep people with complex challenges from the revolving doors of expensive systems. Prevention, coordination and followup - connected to an affordable home - can help people with mental illness, chemical dependency or chronic health problems find stability and success, making them far less likely to wind up in emergency rooms, prisons, nursing homes and other costly settings.

In an era of government budget shortfalls, the cost-effectiveness of supportive housing is a strong selling point. The first item documents the experiences of Dave, a supportive housing tenant. In his last year of homelessness he consumed approximately $283,000 in various systems that failed to break the cycle of homelessness and addiction. His most recent year of supportive housing cost approximately $26,000 – a savings of over $250,000. Put another way, his time in homelessness cost 10 times as much as supportive housing. Dave's story is available here.

Research from around the country demonstrates the reduced burden on systems that Connecticut can benefit from as it ramps up supportive housing creation. For a compilation of data on cost-effectiveness from the Corporation for Supportive Housing, click here.

Fact Sheets:

• Supportive Housing: Cost Effective, Better Outcomes
  Supportive housing is permanent, independent and affordable housing combined with on-site or
  visiting case management and support and employment services. It has proved to be a permanent, cost-effective solution to long-term homelessness.
• Across the Country People Are Realizing Supportive Housing Is Cost-Effective
  Research from around the country offers overwhelming evidence that supportive housing leads individuals and families from homelessness to stability and success. It reduces their use of high-cost public services like emergency rooms (ER), prisons, and nursing homes. Supportive housing is remarkably cost-effective, as demonstrated across the country.