Staff & Clients in the Community 

Atop the amazing work they do each day, our colleagues are in the community, providing a window into homelessness for the broader public.


 

In the news

2024

A housing program that kept Marylanders out of hospitals could get state funding—January 2024, The Baltimore Banner. A $5 million budget allocation from the state will keep some of the Maryland’s most vulnerable residents housed through a program called Assistance in Community Integration Services, or ACIS. 

2023

Trans Health Equity Act to provide care for low-income Marylanders in 2024—December 2023, The Baltimore Sun. Effective January 1, 2024, Maryland Medicaid now covers all gender-affirming treatment for eligible adults, joining 25 other states that have already expanded their programs. “We applaud the nonbinary and transgender community — and particularly the Trans Rights Advocacy Coalition (TRAC) — who led a multiyear advocacy campaign, often at great personal sacrifice; the legislative leaders who championed the bill’s passage; and the governor who, recognizing the humanity of all Marylanders, signed it into law.” 

As evictions and expenses rise, Maryland renter coalition pushes for more aid—December 2023, The Baltimore Banner. Lead Therapist Case Manager Tammy Montague joined 20+ Maryland organizations calling for funding from the state for eviction prevention. "Unfortunately, it's just devastating to people." 

Heath care nonprofit makes big changes to continue services for homeless population—December 2023, WMAR. “Throughout the pandemic, we have seen a dramatic increase in the number of people that we’re serving who are completely uninsured, and who are coming to us for care for which we cannot bill," says Kevin Lindamood.

For Baltimore non-profits pandemic funding recedes, need does not—December 2023, WYPR On the Record. President & CEO Kevin Lindamood joined host Sheilah Kast to talk about our 2024 budget and the critical need for access to care. 

Winter comfort: Handicrafters' gifts go to vulnerable Baltimoreans—December 2023, Catholic Health World. Christina Bauer, development director for Health Care for the Homeless, says for the organization's staff to be able to offer the winter accessories to their clients is a way of saying "I care about you."

Affordable housing, retail planned for blighted downtown corner—November 2023, Baltimore Business Journal. Two nonprofit developers received a key approval from the city’s preservation panel Tuesday afternoon to redevelop a blighted corner into housing on the west side of downtown. “We’ve been at this for 30 years, so we have the skills and our partners at [Health Care for the Homeless] have the expertise to pull this thing off,” Executive Director of Episcopal Housing Corporation Dan McCarthy said.

The Extraordinary Life of Anthony Williams—September 2023, Baltimore Beat. A powerful piece by Jaisal Noor about the life and legacy of activist, organizer and former Health Care for the Homeless client Anthony Wann Williams. “You don’t know how much power you have until we discover it and you use it,” Anthony once said. “And you see it working, not only working for you, but it’s also working for other people. My transition from homelessness in Baltimore has also helped me to help thousands of other people.”

Q & A With Health Care for the Homeless Hopkins Nurses—August 2023, Johns Hopkins Nursing. We caught up with three JHSON alumnae – Elizabeth Goldberg CRNP-PMH, Tyler Cornell CRNP, and Nicole Maffia CRNP – who work at Health Care for the Homeless, each in different capacities.

Overcoming barriers to prenatal care, with WYPR On the Record— May 2023, "A new partnership in Baltimore offers prenatal care to patients experiencing homelessness and connects families to essential services," with guests Dr. Iris Leviner, the Director of Pediatrics and Family Medicine for Health Care for the Homeless, and Dr. Yves-Richard Dole, an obstetrician/gynecologist with Metropolitan OB/GYN.

1.8 million Marylanders need to renew their Medicaid coverage. Many could lose it. — May 2023. "Organizations like Health Care for the Homeless help patients through the process of re-enrolling in Medicaid, which can include creating email addresses, locating necessary paperwork to enroll, and selecting insurance." Director of Client Access Muhammed Mamman talks to The Baltimore Banner about the impact of Medicaid reenrollment. 

Tackling homelessness a top priority for Baltimore City in 2023, WBALTV — "When people are supported in housing, emergency visits go down, hospitalizations go down, overall health goes up and public safety costs go down," says CEO Kevin Lindamood.

How do you solve homelessness?—January 2023, Baltimore Beat. “Housing, especially in the private market, has continued to increase, and we’re seeing it continue to increase again, far higher than wages,” says President and CEO Kevin Lindamood. “You see people just completely caught in that gap, where they can’t afford market-rate housing, and there’s not enough subsidized housing for them to access.”

2022

Permanent housing for homeless arrives in Oliver — October 2022, The Baltimore Sun. "Some 35 formerly homeless residents will be moving into their new, permanent apartments in the next few days at Sojourner Place at Oliver."

2021

We call on Gov. Hogan to be ‘anti-racist’ when it comes to housing security | COMMENTARY—June 2021, "Data tell us what we’ve heard time and again: Black and brown communities experience higher rates of illness and death from COVID-19, limited access to vaccines, adverse treatment from law enforcement and little expectation that their government will acknowledge and equitably address their suffering."

Housing is Health Care-Interdisciplinary Podcast—On episode 6, Cathy Ryan and Rebecca invites Coordinator of Community Health & Outreach Lilian Amaya and Family Nurse Practitioner Amelia Jackson to their Interdisciplinary podcast as they discuss model of care, how health care for the homeless resembles that and more!

Helping the homeless: How Maryland is attempting to vaccinate one of its most vulnerable communities—April 2021, CNS. "The organization has been vaccinating people out of their Fallsway clinic in downtown Baltimore, as well as through outreach programs at shelters and makeshift hotels-turned-shelters—something being done in many areas in order to provide much-needed housing while promoting social-distancing—in both the city and county. They have since administered over 2,000 doses—all Moderna except for 381 doses of the Johnson and Johnson—and vaccinated over 1,500 individuals fully," Tori Bergel said.

Johnson & Johnson’s Covid-19 Vaccine Emerges as Preferred Shot for Homeless—April 2021, CHICAGO— Johnson & Johnson ’s Covid-19 vaccine has found a niche among organizations that work with the homeless, who say the one-dose shot is better-suited for a population that can be difficult to reach twice. 

Vaccinating An Often Overlooked Population—March 2021, WYPR connects with President and CEO Kevin Lindamood and Maryland Health Secretary Dennis Schrader as they tour the site to discuss vaccinations for people experiencing homelessness.

Sojourner Place at Oliver — soon to be underway — aims to be a model for affordable housing—March 2021, Bizjournals, Kevin Lindamood, president and CEO of Health Care for the Homeless states, "There's always the challenge of creating the affordable housing to begin with, and then there's the challenge of financing the supportive services that are so necessary to end homelessness for those experiencing it. This project attempts to do both." 

Maryland working on expanding capacity to get more people vaccinated—March 2021, WBAL-TV, "If there are specific uses like this particular use here at Health Care for the Homeless, then we want to make sure that we're attentive to that," Maryland's acting health secretary, Dennis Schrader said.

Maryland Partners With Community Health Center To Vaccinate Baltimore Homeless Population—March 2021, MD Depth of Health, “Health Care for the Homeless works to ensure that people experiencing homelessness have access to the same integrated, high-quality care that each of us deserves,” said Mr. Kevin Lindamood, MSW, President and CEO of Health Care for the Homeless.

Vaccinating Homeless Patients Against COVID-19: 'All Bets Are Off'—February 2021, NPR covers Health Care for the Homelesss first day of their vaccine clinic. In many places throughout the U.S., vaccines are in short supply. But some states, including Maryland, prioritized homeless populations because someone without adequate housing tends to have other conditions that make them especially vulnerable to disease.

2020

Housing First and the Homelessness Crisis: What Went Wrong?—July 2020, Filter Mag connects with Chief Behavioral Health Officer, Lawanda Williams to discuss housing for people experiencing homelessness.

Maryland families fear ‘tsunami’ of evictions when courts reopen and federal aid dries up at the end of July—July 2020, The Baltimore Sun published Predsident and CEO Kevin Lindamood, "Homelessness is fatal for many reasons, and to think that we are poised to watch it increase so dramatically without taking available steps to prevent it is rather alarming.”

On The Front Lines: Give Them Shelter—June 2020, Baltimore Magazine features the people on the front lines of this deadly pandemic, including Health Care for the Homeless. 

Heroes of the Week—May 2020, The Baltimore Sun selected the nurses of Health Care for the Homeless as their “Heroes of the Week,” represented by provider Kristin McCurnin and Director of Nursing Catherine Fowler.

Homeless are especially vulnerable in pandemic—April 2020, WBAL-TV hosted President and CEO Kevin Lindamood to talk about the ongoing services and resources available at Health Care for the Homeless during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Coronavirus spreading in homeless shelters; many cases are asymptomatic—April 2020, The Baltimore Sun published CEO and President Kevin Lindamood and CMO Adrienne Trustman about the importance of using proactive measures to protect some of the most vulnerable people from COVID-19 after more than half the residents of a local shelter in Baltimore tested positive.

Public Health On Call: Homelessness and COVID-19—April 2020, President and CEO Kevin Lindamood joins Chief Medical Officer Adrienne Trustman and National Health Care for the Homeless Council Senior Director of Policy Barbara DiPietro to talk homelessness and COVID-19 with Dr. Joshua Sharfstein.

Poverty Policy Podcast—April 2020, Director of Housing Services Lawanda Williams, LCSW-C and Carrie Craig, MSW, LCSW from Colorado Coalition for the Homeless discuss resiliency, positivity, self-care and the role of policy advocacy in the midst of the global pandemic.

Coronavirus spreads in Baltimore homeless shelters—April 2020, The Baltimore Sun covers a COVID-19 outbreak in one of the largest shelters. “Despite all of our efforts, we are at the stage where it is in the shelter system and it is spreading," Lindamood said. "In order to contain it, we need widespread testing.”

Nurses weigh their principles versus safety in virus fight—April 2020, The Durango Herald interviewed multiples nurses across the country, including our own nurse practitioner Katharine Billipp.

"Like A War" Protecting Baltimore Homeless During Pandemic—March 2020, WYPR connects with President and CEO Kevin Lindamood and others to discuss the heightened risks of coronavirus for people experiencing homelessness.

Baltimore to screen people staying in homeless shelters for coronavirus, give them space to isolate—March 2020, The Baltimore Sun announced the city’s Emergency Response Plan for People Experiencing Homelessness and community reaction to the plan, including ours.

On the Record Health Care for the Homeless CEO: 'Glaring Holes In Our Social Safety Nets'—March 2020, President and CEO Kevin Lindamood joined Tom Hall for WYPR’s On the Record to talk about the effects the global pandemic will have on people experiencing homelessness.

Baltimore homeless, clustered in large shelters or living in encampments, are particularly vulnerable to coronavirus pandemic—March 2020, The Baltimore Sun published an article detailing the efforts from shelters, the government and Health Care for the Homeless to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Coronavirus and the homeless: Why they're especially at risk, ways to stop a spread 'like wildfire' —March 2020, ABC News connects with Senior Director of Policy, Barbara DiPietro, to outline the additional risks people experiencing homelessness face during COVID-19.

Give people a place to use drugs safely—March 2020, The Baltimore Sun shared CEO and President Kevin Lindamood’s op-ed, advocating for overdose prevention sites and their role in lowering overdose deaths.  

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