Homeless in the pandemic

DOORS OPEN FOR THE HOMELESS

PANDEMIC HITS VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES

SPREAD SIX FEET APART, vol- those living on the streets — has been in “We had a client very early on who unteers serve food behind plastic high demand since last March. had other medical issues and came to us for partitions, forming an assembly “The year before COVID-19, we dis- help,” Selo said. “He was scared about being line. Josh Selo, director of West tributed about $540,000 in rental assis- [in] a shelter because if he caught COVID, Valley Community Services, says the line tance to prevent homelessness or to move he was at greater risk for complications.” of people that they serve extend outside the folks into a home,” Selo said. “In the sec- The physically vulnerable positions of food pantry and around the corner. Mark- ond six months of last year, we distributed homeless individuals further highlights the ings on the ground enforce distancing as $1.4 million worth of rental assistance.” need for vaccine distributions among these clients wait to receive their meal. This is one Food assistance is also one of West of many ways his organization has adapted Valley’s major services. Every branch of to provide support to homeless individuals the organization offers a robust pantry to around the Bay Area. underserved community members, large-

The need for living assistance among ly consisting of products donated by grounderserved communities has skyrocketed cery stores. However, when grocery stores over the past year, according to Selo, whose agency has observed the pandemic’s impact on those without guaranteed shelter. “There’s been a lot of confusion and not a lot of vaccine, and were bought out and shoppers stockpiled products throughout the first few months in the pandemic, West Valley and oth“When a situation like COVID-19 hits it’s caused a lot of er food banks were forced to purchase and folks are out of anxiety, stress and food to make up for work, especially folks that were [in] the most frustration on many the loss in donations. While the need affected industries — levels.” for food assistance those with mostly low- dramatically iner wage jobs — those — JEFFREY SMITH, Santa Clara County creased among low folks were hit immediexecutive officer income communiately,” Selo said. “They ties, further challenghave no money to pay rent, no savings and es arose for Selo’s team as social distancing no prospects for work. They either fall be- guidelines were enforced. hind, and many people fell many months “We had to cut down on the number behind on rent, but people potentially of staff in our building, and we lost almost faced eviction as well.” all of our volunteers because most of our

Shelters and other services that assist volunteers are over the age of 68,” Selo said. underserved communities have withstood “It was this perfect storm of challenges.” unprecedented challenges as the number of people needing financial relief has rapidly Prioritizing homeless groups increased. Selo’s organization has stressed vac-

Rental and utility assistance — which cine priority for the homeless population, includes supplying deposit assistance for in- especially given that social distancing and dividuals to move into a home, purchasing sheltering-in-place are virtually impossible furniture or providing basic necessities for for many homeless community members.

populations. “If you’re living on the street, that heavily impacts your physical health; you’re sitting on the ground, you’re open to the elements, which could make you more susceptible [to COVID-19],” Selo said.

Vaccination plans

Since the start of vaccine distribution to homeless shelters on March 1, county health executives have voiced their frustration over a lack of communication from state officials, as well as confusing eligibility guidelines, according to Times Herald. After notifying the state of plans to begin homeless vaccinations early, the county waited 10 days for a response before beginning distribution two weeks before the state-sanctioned date.

After vaccines started to arrive in the county, state eligibility guidelines expanded, outpacing inventory supply. Due to the limited quantity of vaccines, Santa Clara County focused on populations at highest risk, such as those living in encampments and shelters.

“We picked out certain high risk populations like the homeless, and our interpretation of the rules was that a shelter or an encampment qualified as a congregate setting,” said Jeffrey Smith, executive officer of Santa Clara County. “Now, subsequently, the state specifically included homeless populations, but that was a month or so later. There’s been a lot of confusion and not a lot of vaccine, and it’s caused a lot of anxiety, stress and frustration on many levels.”

The county’s efforts to distribute vaccines have also been complicated by some homeless individuals’ unwillingness to undergo vaccination.

“We have a lot of individuals who are not interested in vaccinations,” Smith said. “It’s not a population that’s really happy with the government. Sometimes having somebody from the government show up and say, ‘I’ve got a shot for you and it’ll do you good,’ doesn’t always receive a positive response.”

While the county continues to work towards vaccinating the most vulnerable groups, Smith acknowledges that the issue has no absolute solution and requires continual efforts.

“There are probably tens of thousands of people who are affected by homelessness in the sense that they’re homeless from time to time or they’re couchsurfing or in some other way not visible,” Smith said. “We’re not going to ever get to a point where we can say, ‘Yeah, we finished vaccinating all the homeless,’ but we will continue to have them as a high priority.” v