Allying health care and housing.

There is a wealth of evidence that health is inextricably linked to housing. For instance, research has shown that those in substandard housing have poorer health outcomes than other groups, and they often must forgo costly medication in order to pay for housing. Further, the health care and housing concerns faced by the underserved often compound one another--people with poor health often have trouble maintaining housing, and those with substandard homes, in turn, often have trouble maintaining their health. Three groups are especially vulnerable to the health care risks associated with housing issues: children, seniors, and the chronically homeless. As the research suggests, substandard housing is a contributing factor to the U.S. health care crisis. Therefore, as part of its efforts to reform the nation's health care system, the ministry should address housing issues as well. Seven Catholic health systems are doing this through the Strategic Health Care Partnership. The partnership, in collaboration with Mercy Housing, enables the seven organizations to work together to create healthy communities. The partnership's key goal is to increase access to affordable housing and health care. Just providing homes often is not enough, however. A holistic approach, through which supportive services are offered to the underserved, is most effective.