Ask & Code: Documenting Homelessness Throughout The Health Care System
Year Developed: 2016
Resource Type: Publication.Primary Audience: Administrative Staff C-Suite (CEOs, CFOs, CIOs, COOs, CMOs, etc) Clinicians Enabling Staff Outreach Staff
Language(s): English
Developed by: National Health Care for the Homeless Council (See other resources developed by this organization).
Resource Summary: Emerging health care financing models require much more sophisticated actuarial calculations than previous payment arrangements, often taking into account risk factors such as homelessness. Homelessness also has direct implications for clinical treatment decisions and integrated care models and should be noted in individual patient records. This policy brief provides a rationale for using the ICD-10-CM code for homelessness, outlines the challenges to maximizing this code, and offers strategies to consider to ensure health care providers ask about homelessness and record patients’ housing status.
Resource Topic: Special and Vulnerable Populations
Resource Subtopic: Patient-Centered Health Outcomes.
Keywords: Persons Experiencing Homelessness Health Systems.This project is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of an award totaling $6,625,000 with 0 percentage financed with non-governmental sources. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by HRSA, HHS, or the U.S. Government. For more information, please visit HRSA.gov.