The rapidly evolving field of street medicine — the practice of providing health care to homeless people living outside — is getting a jolt in California with a new player: a medical group devoted exclusively to homeless people. Health Brief is a coproduction of The Washington Post and KFF Health News. And it’s actually making money.
, who worked on federal Medicaid policy during his tenure in the Obama administration, helped spearhead a called in 2021 — and makes no bones about wanting to capture new money from the state and federal governments to treat and house homeless people. “Health-care issues cause homelessness, but they are also exacerbated by homelessness,” Jain told me. “And the dollars in health care are enormous.
” Around the country, Jain and street medicine doctors and nurses — who have long practiced on the fringes of the health-care system with little revenue — are becoming integral players in the Biden administration’s to address the consequences of homelessness. No longer reliant on inconsistent funding and charitable giving, many street medicine operations are taking advantage of billions in Medicaid dollars to provide social services, from helping patients find an apartment to paying their utility bills. Since October, the federal government has also for providers caring for homeless people in the field.
“We’re being brought into the insurance world, and we’re eligible for reimbursement now,” said , a longtime street medicine .