Effective Housing & Health Multi-Sector Collaborations in Boston, MA
• Moderator– Margaret Reid, Boston Public Health Commission
• Panelists– Indira Alvarez, Boston Inspectional Services Dept.– Eugene Barros, Boston Public Health Commission– Dion Irish, Boston Office of Fair Housing and Equity– John Kane, Boston Housing Authority– Megan Sandel, Boston University Schools of
Medicine and Public Health
Timeline of Boston Healthy Homes Collaborations
1999
BPHC establishes
Healthy Housing Office
2005
Breathe Easy at Home is piloted
2006
Healthy Pest Free Housing Initiative
2010
BHA announces
smoke free housing
2012
Rental
Registration and
Inspection Ordinance
2014
Office of Fair
Housing and
Equity
Foundations of our Working Relationships
• What responsibility does each organization have for healthy housing?
• What key functions do we bring to the collaboration?
• How does each organization benefit from this collaboration?
• How we work together? – Facilitating factors? – How have we operationalized our work?
Breathe Easy At Home Partnership• Piloted in 2005, Kick-off 2006• Partnership between Inspectional Services
Department (ISD), Boston Public Health Commission and medical partners like Boston Medical Center
• Medical Providers register and make referrals via internet directly to ISD
• ISD puts updates on website and email• Award winning collaboration (NACCHO, EPA)
0
50
100
150
200
250
16
60
128
176182
171
219
233 238
Breathe Easy at Home Referrals, 2005-2013
2005 PILOT2006 LAUNCH2007 PT Coordinator2008 FT Coordinator20092010201120122013
Year
# o
f re
ferr
als
Healthy Pest Free Public Housing• Supported by W. K. Kellogg Foundation• Partnership between Boston Public Health
Commission, Boston Housing Authority, Committee for Boston Public Housing and Boston University School of Public Health
• Multi-pronged intervention with standardized IPM contracts for developments, resident education, and pesticide buy back
• Reductions in work orders for pests
Smoke Free Public Housing
• Boston Housing Authority began process to go Smoke Free with all rental housing in 2010 and implemented in 2012
• Collaboration between Boston Housing Authority, Boston Public Health Commission and Committee for Boston Public Housing for resident outreach/education
• Boston Public Health Commission also began Smoke free rental housing list serve and technical assistance/training
2006 2008 20100
5
10
15
20
25 23.6
16.4
13
2220.5
23.7
9.48.1
9.8
Current Asthma Among Boston Adults by Housing Type
BHARANeither BHA nor RA
Year
% o
f adu
lt w
ith
asth
ma
Rental Registration and Inspection Ordinance
• In 2012, Boston City Council Passed a Rental Registration and Inspection Ordinance
• Requires annual registration of all 150,000 private rental units in Boston with contact phone number, in state agent
• All units inspected every 5 years• Important advocacy to pass ordinance from
medical providers, tenant advocates, public health partners
Timeline of Boston Healthy Homes Collaborations
1999
BPHC establishes
Healthy Housing Office
2005
Breathe Easy at Home is piloted
2006
Healthy Pest Free Housing Initiative
2010
BHA announces
smoke free housing
2012
Rental
Registration and
Inspection Ordinance
2014
Office of Fair
Housing and
Equity
Office of Fair Housing and Equity
• In 2014, Boston’s Office of Fair Housing was renamed to include Equity
• Includes health equity as an important principle and goal of fair housing
• Protects the rights of the disabled to healthy housing.
• Promotes healthy housing opportunities– Smoke-free housing registry– Resident and landlord outreach
• Home to 25,000 residents
• Section 8 administrator
• IPM policy • Smoke free housing• Healthy design and
construction• Resident education
• BEAH referrals• Assessing patient
for env health• Research• Medical legal
partnership support• Policy advocacy• Grant writing
• Inspection (20,000 yearly)• Rental Ordinance• BEAH inspections
• Data monitoring/collection
• Investigation• Enforcement• Education and outreach• Adopting smoke-free
homes registry
• Health data• Public awareness and
information• Asthma Home Visits• Research and
evaluation• Grant writing• BEAH management
Inspectional Services
Boston Office of Fair Housing and Equity
Boston Housing Authority
Boston Medical Center
Boston Public Health
Commission -Community Residents-Clients-Patients-Advocacy groups-Tenants groups- Public Officials