Just In Reach: Supportive Housing Program to Break Cycles of Homelessness and Re-Incarceration

Los Angeles County Launches 'Just In Reach' a Pay for Success Project aimed at Reducing Jail Recidivism and ending Homelessness

This innovative public-private partnership uses a “Pay for Success” financing model to maximize public resources and ensure positive outcomes for individuals in Los Angeles County.

People struggling with homelessness and mental illness often find themselves in a recurring cycle of criminal justice and emergency health care systems, rather than connected to the permanent solution of housing. This vicious cycle is costly and leads to poor health outcomes. Residents of Los Angeles (LA) County are no exception: “Nearly 60,000 people currently experience homelessness in LA County on any given night,” said Judge Peter Espinoza, Director of DHS’s Office of Diversion and Reentry.

To address this challenge, Los Angeles County launched Just in Reach (JIR) in 2017, a health-based housing program that is working to reduce jail recidivism and help end homelessness among people experiencing repeat jail stays. Over four years, JIR is placing 300 homeless individuals who are currently in custody within the county jail and who have a mental health and/or substance-use disorder into permanent supportive housing.

“For individuals cycling through our criminal justice system, overcoming homelessness can be deeply challenging and short-term fixes aren’t enough. Just in Reach is a huge step toward reducing reincarceration by connecting people to permanent, stable homes,” Judge Espinoza said

The Project

This innovative public-private partnership is Los Angeles County’s first program to be funded through a “Pay for Success” financial model. Pay for Success uses up-front private funding to ensure the most positive outcomes for individuals and communities, reduce the financial risk to government, and maximize public resources.
Pay for Success has emerged as a viable strategy to finance supportive housing in places such as Los Angeles County, where there is a concerted and community-backed effort to end chronic homelessness. Pay for Success-funded projects that expand supportive housing have been implemented in Oregon, Santa Clara and Utah.
The program is managed by the Los Angeles County Office of Diversion and Reentry. People who are participating in the program are connected to permanent supportive housing mental health, substance-use treatment, and physical health services. Additionally, they receive intensive case management before, during and after securing housing to help them remain housed and to reduce their likelihood of returning to jail.
Just in Reach builds on the success of two DHS initiatives: the Office of Diversion and Reentry, whose mission is to divert people living with a mental and/or substance-use disorder away from the justice system and into community-based treatment; and the Housing for Health program, which has provided supportive housing to over 3,500 people, 96% of whom have remained in housing for 12 months or more.
The initiative’s key partners include the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services (DHS), Corporation for Supportive Housing (CSH) and the National Council on Crime & Delinquency (NCCD) today known as Evident Change, in partnership with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department (LASD) and the County CEO’s Office (CEO).
The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation and UnitedHealthcare have invested a combined $10 million in the program. Awards from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the California Board of State and Community Corrections support various program activities and evaluative work. Through the Nonprofit Finance Fund, the James Irvine Foundation provided grant funding to engage Third Sector, which conducted the feasibility assessment and contributed to the financial modeling for the Pay for Success contract.