The Georgia Homeless in 2008
What is homelessness?
Homelessness is a difficult and complex issue. So much so, that there is even
disagreement over the definition of who is truly homeless and who is not. The
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) defines someone as
"homeless" if he or she:
resides in an emergency shelter or in transitional/- supportive housing for
homeless persons; or
- resides in a place not meant for human habitation, such as cars, parks, sidewalks,
abandoned buildings, encampments, and dilapidated buildings
The U.S. Department of Education uses an expanded definition that also includes
people who are:
- doubled up with family or friends due to economic condition
- living in motels and hotels for lack of other suitable housing
- migrant workers living in housing not fit for habitation
The State of Georgia, in the Act that created the State Housing Trust Fund for the
Homeless in 1988, defined homelessness as "persons and families who have no access
to or can reasonably be expected not to have access to either traditional or permanent
housing which can be considered safe, sanitary, decent, and affordable."1
Because of the important variations in the definition of homelessness, this report
primarily uses the more narrow HUD definition, except when otherwise noted.
What is chronic homelessness?
About 25% of the homeless population experience long spells of homelessness or
have had numerous homeless episodes.2 These chronically homeless individuals
use a disproportionate share of public services and are vulnerable to continued
homelessness. HUD considers someone chronically homeless if he or she is
unaccompanied, has a disabling condition and has been homeless continuously for a
year or has had at least four episodes of homelessness in the past three years.3
What is the impact of homelessness?
Homelessness has a profound impact on the individuals and families it affects
including increased health problems, increased mental health problems, difficulty
with maintaining employment, separation of families, and so on. Although we can
sympathize with people who are in difficult straits, it is fair to ask why homelessness
matters to the community at large. Homelessness affects more than just an
individual or family. It affects the whole community in a number of ways. The costs of
homelessness include:
- poor educational attainment and development among homeless children
- uninsured medical costs for a population with a high rate of disability
- public safety costs including police and jail costs for offenses such as
panhandling, loitering, or vagrancy
- sanitation and litter control in parks and public spaces where homeless people
congregate
- high cost of emergency shelters, transitional housing, and supportive services for
individuals and families experiencing homelessness
- high cost of crisis services such as emergency room and ambulance services
and inpatient hospitalization for acute and chronic health conditions as well as
mental health crises
- lost wages and revenue from individuals that would otherwise be able to work if
they had a permanent address
Myth: Homeless people are a fixed
A February 2006 article in the New Yorker relates the story of Murray Barr, a chronicallyhomeless man
living in Reno, Nevada. Police
Officers Patrick O'Bryan and Steve Johns had numerous interactions with Murray over many years. They began tallying costs such as arrests,
incarcerations, ambulance service, and hospitalizations over a ten-year period.
Officer O'Bryan said, "It cost us one million dollars not to do something about Murray."
Malcolm Gladwell, "Million Dollar Murray," The
New Yorker, Feb. 13, 2006
92% of homeless women have
experienced severe physical and/ or sexual assault at some point in their lives.
Violence Against Women Act, March 1, 2007
population who are usually
homeless for long periods of
time.
Fact: Research indicates that 40% of
homeless people have been
homeless less than six months,
and 70% have been homeless
less than two years.
University of Denver, Project Homeless Connect
www.du.edu/homelessness
Million-Dollar Murray
2007 Tri-J Homeless Census - Point-In-Time
Individuals Family Members Totals %
Unsheltered 2,071 44 2,115 31%
Emergency Shelters 2,027 359 2,386 35%
Transitional Housing 1,524 815 2,339 34%
Totals and % 5,622 (82%) 1,218 (18%) 6,840 100%
How many people are homeless in Georgia?
The difficulties of counting the homeless in any single community, much less a
large state, have been discussed in detail by both researchers and advocates for the
homeless. This report will not presume to provide a single, definitive, and indisputable
number of persons who are homeless in Georgia. However, it is important to have at
least some understanding of the magnitude and scope of the problem. Fortunately,
a significant amount of data from multiple sources is available to indicate how many
people in the state face the dreadful prospect of no place to live.
Point in Time Homeless Counts
The federal response to the problem of homelessness is embodied in the McKinney-
Vento Homeless Assistance Act, first passed in 1987. The McKinney-Vento programs
are administered by many federal agencies including HUD. In order to receive federal
funding, communities must organize services within a Continuum of Care umbrella.
In 2003, the U.S. Congress passed legislation requiring that the Continuums of Care
conduct point-in-time homeless counts once every two years. Accordingly, each of
Georgia's Continuums of Care (CoCs) have been engaged in an effort to count the
state's sheltered and unsheltered homeless population.
The CoCs that cover Chatham, Cobb, DeKalb, and Fulton Counties and the consolidated
governments of Athens-Clarke, Augusta-Richmond, and Columbus-Muscogee conduct
homeless counts annually or biennially. For example, every other year, the Metro Atlanta
Tri-Jurisdictional Collaborative on Homelessness (Tri-J), comprised of the City of Atlanta, Fulton
County, and DeKalb County, has over 500 volunteers and staff walk and drive the entire 750
square miles of the jurisdiction from midnight to 5 a.m., looking for unsheltered homeless people.This national best practice canvassing model is coordinated by Pathways Community
Network for the Tri-J. On the same night, the Tri-J conducts a census of its emergency
shelter and transitional housing beds. On January 25, 2007, the Tri-J count identified
6,840 sheltered and unsheltered homeless people in the two county area.4
Because the Balance of the State covers 152 counties, many of them rural, the Georgia
Department of Community Affairs (DCA) has always performed an annual assessment
of persons in shelters and transitional housing, but until 2008 did not have a feasible
way to count unsheltered homeless people. Beginning this year, DCA used a sampling
methodology and predictive model developed by statistics faculty at Kennesaw
State University.5 The methodology took the unsheltered homeless count in 23 counties to arrive at a predicted count of unsheltered homeless persons by county. The count data used
in the model included counts from 2007 and 2008. The counts conducted in the Balance of the State were done using surveys primarily collected at locations where people receive services.
All of the count efforts around the state, along with the model, indicate that there were over 20,000 people in Georgia who were homeless at a single Point-In-Time (a one-night snap shot)
during the last week in January. The homeless count surveys collected in January 2008 also
included a question about the length of time that people had been homeless. Using a weighted average of those responses provides an estimate of over 75,000 people who experience
homelessness in Georgia at some time during one year.
DCA and the other CoCs will be conducting new point-in-time counts during the last
week in January 2009. These counts will provide an opportunity to refine the count
methodologies and update our estimates for 2009. In addition, the counts will provide
trend data for the participating communities and the state as a whole.
Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) Data
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has also mandated that
Continuums of Care utilize a Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) for
their federally funded programs for the homeless. In Georgia, all of the Continuums
have adopted the use of the same system provided through Pathways Community
Network. Statewide, 277 homeless service providers use Pathways HMIS. In 2007, these
agencies enrolled 31,195 individuals and family members, in various service programs.
Who is homeless in Georgia?
As part of the point-in-time count in January 2008, 1,578 unduplicated surveys were
collected from people around the state who were having housing difficulties. The
surveys focused on the housing status of the survey respondents and their families
(2,041 people) on the night of January 27, 2008. The housing status of the survey
respondents and their families is shown in the table below.
861 428 556 196
The people categorized as "precariously housed" were staying with family or friends
or in hotels/motels. These people would be considered homeless under the more
expansive U.S. Department of Education definition of homelessness, but not under
the definition adopted by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Children were more likely to be in families that were precariously housed or living
in homeless shelters. About 71% of the survey respondents who were precariously
housed were women. The unsheltered homeless were generally middle aged adults,
59% of those survey respondents were men. The sheltered homeless were split almost
evenly between women and men. Using the broader definition of homelessness, the
majority of Georgia's homeless population are women and children.
What causes homelessness in Georgia?
Two factors play a huge part in the lives of people who become homeless: extreme
poverty and personal vulnerability.
Extreme Poverty
People can become homeless because of:
- very low incomes,
- unemployment, or
- the lack of available affordable housing.
Income and the cost of housing
People who are poor face a much higher risk of becoming homeless. Georgia's poorest
citizens, who earn 50% or less of the poverty level, are at particular risk.
Housing Wage6
Georgia Non-metro Georgia Atlanta MSA
Annual Income Needed to
Afford Fair Market Rent*
One bedroom apartment $25,712 $18,949 $29,640
Two-bedroom apartment $29,084 $22,257 $32,960
*income needed to pay rent and utilities, without paying more than 30% of income on housing
Dr. Larry Keating, then Professor of City and Regional Planning at Georgia Tech,
conducted a study looking at households with low or moderate-incomes who have
one or more housing problems (cost burden, over-crowding, and/or lack of plumbing
and complete kitchen facilities).7 Using data from the 2000 Census, Dr. Keating found
that 256,146 households (renters and homeowners) were spending 50% or more of
their gross incomes on housing. These are families for whom the cost of housing places
them in danger of becoming homeless. Using those averages, over 725,000 Georgians
live in households paying more than 50% of gross income for housing.
Number of persons living in poverty in Georgia in 2006: 1.3 million
Number of persons with incomes that are one-half or less of the poverty level (extreme poverty): 595,665
Nationally, for every 100 extremely low- income renters there were 78 rental units that they could afford, but only 44 were actually available. The remainder were occupied by higher income households.
In Georgia, a family needs a yearly
income of $29,084 to afford a two bedroom
apartment - well above the
poverty rate for a family of four.
Out of Reach 2007 - 2008, National Low Income
Housing Coalition
Severely Cost Burdened
Number of Households
Severely Cost Burdened Home
Owner Households*
97,224
Severely Cost Burdened Renter
Households
158,922
* low and moderate income households paying 50% or more of their incomes on rent/mortgage and utilities, based
on 2000 Census data
In December 2007, over 200,000 Georgians were receiving SSI (Supplemental Security
Income). The recipients of these funds are low-income aged or disabled persons. The
monthly SSI payment in Georgia (see below) is less than the Fair Market Rent for a onebedroom
apartment in the state.9
2008 Supplemental Security Income (SSI) in Georgia8
Monthly SSI Payment $637
Fair Market Rent for One-bedroom Apartment $643
Personal Vulnerability
The other factor that plays a role for many people that experience homelessness is a
personal situation that leaves them vulnerable to the loss of housing, such as:
- mental illness
- substance abuse
- developmental disabilities or brain injury
- physical disabilities or chronic medical problems
- family violence
- prior evictions or poor credit
- criminal background
Many individuals and families have personal vulnerabilities that place them at
significant risk of becoming homeless. Disabilities, including mental illness and drug
and alcohol abuse, exact a terrible toll on people. In the 2007 Metro Atlanta Tri-
Jurisdiction Survey, about 58% of the respondents indicated that they had one or more
disabilities. Of those, 22% had multiple disabilities. From a survey of 24 cities, the U.S.
Conference of Mayors estimates that about 22% of the homeless population suffers
from a severe mental illness.10
Domestic violence plays a significant role in homelessness among women and
children. In a 1998 study of homeless parents in ten U.S cities (most of whom were
women), 22% said that they had left their last place of residence because of domestic
violence.11
Past experiences and behaviors can also create significant barriers for individuals and
families who are trying to escape homelessness. Being homeless can lead to arrests
for behaviors such as trespassing and loitering. Criminal offenses such as these, and
certainly more serious convictions, can make it difficult to pass a required background
check when trying to rent permanent housing. Additionally, certain felony convictions
make it difficult to obtain a bed in an emergency shelter. Likewise, prior evictions and
poor credit can make it difficult to rent decent affordable housing.
Over 725,000 Georgians live in low
income households paying more than
50% of gross income for housing.
Larry Keating. Housing Needs in Georgia: How
Many and Who? December 21, 2004
2007 Poverty Guidelines
Family Size Poverty
1 $10,210
2 $13,690
3 $17,170
4 $20,650
5 $24,130
6 $27,610
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
http://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/07poverty.shtml
From July 1, 2007 to May 31, 2008
10,614 homeless adults and children
received services from the Georgia's
Department of Human Resources for
mental health or substance abuse.
If just 11% of the homeless in GA
received full SSI benefits they are
eligible for, the total ANNUAL amount
of federal dollars coming to these
households would be approximately
$10,412,963.
What is Georgia doing to help people who are homeless?
Statewide Initiatives
The State of Georgia and many of its communities have been actively working to
address the issue of homelessness for over 20 years. With the creation of the State
Housing Trust Fund for the Homeless in 1988, the State dedicated funding for helping
individuals and families end their homelessness. Today the State Housing Trust Fund
provides funding to over 200 grantees across the state to implement a variety of
strategies intended to address homelessness. The funding is a combination of State
and Federal dollars from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
These strategies include homeless prevention, emergency shelter, transitional housing,
supportive services, and permanent supportive housing. They also provide funding for
communities to hold resource fairs and participate in the homeless count.
The Housing Trust Fund provides rental assistance funding for over 1,200 units of
housing for individuals and families with disabilities. In addition, the Permanent
Supportive Housing Program at DCA provides funding for the development of new
supportive housing units. State and Federal funding enables local services providers to
provide support for residents.
The Department of Human Resources (DHR) has a number of programs that assist
individuals and families that experience homelessness, including funding for domestic
violence services through the Family Violence Unit, homeless outreach through the
Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness (PATH) program, and expedited
access to Social Security Disability Benefits through the SSI/SSDI Homeless Outreach
Access and Recovery (SOAR) initiative. The SOAR initiative works closely with the
Department of Labor and the Disability Adjudication staff to improve the social security
application process for individuals who are homeless.
The Department of Education, through the McKinney-Vento homeless liaisons in each
school district, provides services for children who are experiencing homelessness.
Services are provided to prevent children from falling behind in school because of
homelessness. The Department of Community Health, through the Healthcare for the
Homeless Program, provides funding to provide primary health care for individuals and
families who are homeless.
There are also several state initiatives to address the needs of individuals being
released from state prison. One of these initiatives is the Re-entry Partnership between
the State Board of Pardons and Parole, Department of Corrections, Criminal Justice
Coordinating Council, and the Department of Community Affairs. The Department of
Corrections also has a Faith and Character Based Re-entry Initiative. These programs
attempt to prevent ex-offenders from falling into homelessness by connecting them
with temporary housing and employment opportunities.
Coordination and Collaboration
To coordinate the various initiatives of all the State Agencies that work to
address homelessness, the State formed the Interagency Homeless
Coordination Council in 2004. The Council was able to develop the State of
Georgia Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness. The Council has representatives
from multiple agencies and meets quarterly.
The Georgia Coalition to End Homelessness (GCEH) is a statewide nonprofit
and advocacy organization that provides training and technical assistance to homeless
service providers, information and advocacy for policy makers, and a Help Line for
those facing homelessness. In 2007, GCEH reported providing 460 hours of technical
assistance and training to 132 homeless service providers.
School Aged Children and
Homelessness
Homelessness has a profound
impact on children. Data from the
U.S. Department of Education (DOE)
indicates that while 87% of homeless
youth are enrolled in school, only 77%
attend regularly. Homeless families
move frequently impacting their
children. An Institute for Children
and Poverty study showed that 51%
of homeless children transfer schools
two or more times. There are estimates
that 3-6 months of education are lost
to every move.
The Georgia Department of Education
collects data from each school district
on homeless school children. In the
2007-2008 academic year, 22,888
children in Georgia public schools were
reported to be homeless.
Mitchell
Permanent Supportive Housing Beds
Source: 2007 Continuum of Care Housing Inventories
Type
Individual
Beds Family Beds
Emergency Shelter 2,638 1,337
Transitional Housing 2,519 2,338
Permanent Housing 2,318 1,493
Total 7,475 5,168
Serving Georgia's Homeless:
2007 Statewide Bed Inventories
Local Initiatives
Two metro area planning bodies include the Regional Commission on Homelessness
in Metro Atlanta and the Chatham-Savannah Authority for the Homeless. There are
also a number of coalitions at the state and regional levels that participate in advocacy,
planning and service delivery.
A number of communities have used federal, state and local funding to create
innovative initiatives to address homelessness. Some examples of these innovative
initiatives include:
The 24/7 Gateway Se o rvice Center in Atlanta
has served more than 12,000 people over the
last two years. Gateway provides 300 beds
designated to various programs such as mental
health, employment and substance abuse.
There is also a women and children's center
with 30 beds.
o Athens recently held the first Project Homeless
Connect Athens, based on a national model
encouraged by the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness.
The Athens event had over 140 attendees who received a variety of services
including haircuts, health and dental screenings, legal counseling, food stamp
applications, and AIDS/HIV testing. Almost 50 service providers participated in
the event.
o An evaluation of the Education and Community Services Engagement
Linkage program (ECSEL) was initiated in the spring of 2005 by Georgia State
University in cooperation with the United Way of Atlanta and Grady Health
System. The evaluation was conducted to assess whether the ECSEL program
improves outcomes for homeless mentally ill clients better than traditional
case management services. The ECSEL approach provides more support for
homeless mentally ill patients than traditional case management. The study
found an average net savings of $5,200 per person due to improvement in
housing status and decreases in incarceration and hospitalization.12
o The Behavioral Health Services Program of
Union Mission, Inc. is provided through the
Savannah Area Behavioral Health Collaborative
(SABHC) in partnership with the Chatham-
Savannah Authority for the Homeless and
Memorial Health University Medical Center.13
The program offers mental health and
substance abuse treatment programs for
adults in Chatham and surrounding areas.
The services include diagnostic assessments,
psychiatric services, day treatment, group
therapy, community support, residential services, and medication assistance.
o Hope House, Inc. in Augusta held a Groundbreaking Ceremony in January 2008
for its Permanent Supportive Housing project called "The Highlands West."
Hope House, Inc. provides long-term housing needs and a "Best Practice"
therapeutic recovery program for women and women with children who are
suffering from the disease of chemical addiction and a co-occurring mental
health illness. The property consists of 5.22 acres of land and one building.
Rehabilitation of the existing building will be used as office space for Hope
House staff and clinical space to provide supportive services to its clients.
The development also includes the new construction of 42 new permanent
housing units for its clients. Construction is expected to be completed in a few months.
Cobb County non-profit organizations are working w o ith local health care
providers to develop alternative placement options for homeless individuals.
Alternatives are needed that provide more suitable care settings and reduce
overall costs to the health care system. Their research in Georgia and other
states indicates that buy-in by the health care system is key to developing
a sustainable program. They hope to initiate new options this year that will
reduce unnecessary hospitalization for homeless individuals, while more
efficiently using community resources.
o The Macon Housing Authority's Shelter Plus Care program successfully
combined housing assistance with supportive services for homeless persons
during the late 1990s. MHA provided the housing assistance and the River
Edge Behavioral Health Center provided the supportive services for assisted
families. However, both agencies wanted to improve the basic program model.
To better serve homeless persons with a mental health and/or a substance
abuse diagnosis, MHA, River Edge and In-Fill Housing, Inc. developed Grove
Park Village (see sidebar this page). This 40-unit multi-family development,
completed in 2005, provides affordable residential housing where residents
pay no more than 30 percent of their adjusted monthly incomes for rent. River
Edge staffs a fulltime case manager at Grove Park Village. The $3.2 million
development cost for Grove Park Village was provided by a DCA Permanent
Supportive Housing Program loan using resources from the federal HOME
program and the State Housing Trust Fund for the Homeless. When spread out
over the expected life of the development, the per unit cost is approximately
$2,700/year, compared to the $84,600 annual cost of hospitalizing patients for
mental health or substance abuse.
o After the 2000 Census, the City of Dalton became a CDBG Entitlement
community and was required by HUD to complete a Consolidated Plan. The
Needs Assessment for that Plan highlighted dismal housing conditions in
the community. In response, the City asked the Dalton-Whitfield Community
Development Corporation to help both city and county governments deal
with this issue. A Homeless Summit was convened in 2005 as the first activity
to address that request. The Committee for Housing Stability was formed as a
result of that Homeless Summit. The Committee is comprised of approximately
40 agencies which all share the need to find safe and decent housing for their
clients. The agencies have entered into a Memorandum of Agreement in order
to be able to work cooperatively to locate all resources available to their client
households. Working together, the Committee for Housing Stability is helping
address homelessness and housing stability in Dalton and Whitfield County.
Local 10-Year Plans to End
Chronic Homelessness
- City of Albany
- Metropolitan Atlanta (Regional
Commission on Homelessness
members: City of Atlanta and Cobb,
Clayton, Douglas, DeKalb, Fulton, and
Rockdale Counties)
- Athens-Clarke County
- Augusta-Richmond County
- City of Macon and Bibb County
- City of Savannah
United States Interagency Council on
Homelessness
Jennette and Macon's River Edge
Jennette was first introduced to the
River Edge Behavioral Health Center
in January, 2003. She entered the
facility for drug addiction. Upon
completing their 14-day long-term
treatment program, Jennette was
placed into an apartment in Macon
through River Edge's Shelter Plus
Care program where she lived for two
years. Three months after moving
to Macon and attending the DUAL
program, (which treats clients with
more than one addiction) she enrolled
in Central Georgia Technical College
where she graduated with honors
in June, 2004 receiving a Diploma in
Business Management/Supervisory
Development. In March of 2005,
Jennette was able to move into Grove
Park Village Apartments. Jennette
is still enrolled in Central Georgia
Technical College and will graduate
in June, 2008 with a second Associate
Degree in Administrative Office
Technology.
Grove Park Village
Macon, GA
Reunification
Homelessness can often be prevented
if individuals are able to reconnect
with family or other social support
systems. Over the past five years, over
8,000 people have been reunified
with their support systems through
Travelers Aid of Metropolitan Atlanta.
Next Steps
National research indicates that the
most effective strategy for addressing
homelessness is to move individuals and
families into permanent housing as quickly
as possible. Preventing or minimizing the
amount of time spent in the homeless
service system and providing services to
individuals within permanent housing
settings is more effective than long stays in
emergency and transitional shelters. This
change in our understanding of how to
best impact homelessness requires a shift
away from the traditional model of long shelter stays and two year transitional housing
programs. Strategies such as Housing First, Rapid Re-Housing, and Homeless Prevention
hold promise as better responses to the problem.
A constant challenge for homeless service providers is adequate resources, especially
for supportive services. HUD concentrates its focus on funding housing, with the
expectation that service funding will come from other sources. However, this puts
additional stress on the existing supportive services available in the State. It also makes
it difficult for service providers to help those that are hardest to serve, especially
chronically homeless individuals. Unfortunately, these are often the individuals who are
utilizing a great deal of state resources and who need help the most.
To better understand what is and is not effective in combating homelessness,
evaluations on the success of the programs is important. In SFY 2009, DCA is
implementing housing support standards which set a minimum level of service
standard and tracks the success of individuals and families utilizing the homeless service
system. It is expected that these standards and performance measurement will improve
the homeless service delivery system across the state.
Community awareness and public will are also challenges to addressing the issue of
homelessness. It is easy in suburban and rural areas to assume that homelessness does
not exist, while in urban areas, homeless individuals are seen as a public nuisance.
Increased education and awareness about the extent and causes of homelessness
would assist the communities of Georgia in coming together to address the issue. One
example of a community education initiative currently in place is the Union Mission
Homelessness 101 Curriculum in which volunteers are educated about poverty and
homelessness before they participate in volunteer activities.
A continual challenge for addressing homelessness is fully understanding the extent
and nature of the problem. We hope that this report is just the first step in increasing
our understanding of homelessness in Georgia.
Ms. Smith and SOAR
The DHR SOAR Project team first met
Ms. Smith under a bridge in downtown
Atlanta. It was 5:00 in the morning
and she had just fallen asleep after
having been awake all night due to her
crack use. Her psychiatric medication
had been stolen the night before.
She was dressed in an old, dirty tank
top and carried all of her belongings
in a ragged bag. She said that she
was ready to get off of the street and
away from the awful smells under the
bridge. Ms. Smith was very depressed
and did not have the energy to change
her clothes or go through her normal
grooming routine.
Ms. Smith has been diagnosed with
Bipolar Disorder and often experience
symptoms of posttraumatic stress
disorder. She has been using crack
cocaine for the last 20 years. The
drug gives her a momentary break
from her racing thoughts and manic
moods. Ms. Smith continuously
tries to get treatment for her mental
health symptoms but often finds her
depression and anxiety unbearable
and so she treats those symptoms with
substances. Her ability to function in
the community had been worsening
over the last 2 years. When we met her,
she had been homeless over a year.
Ms. Smith came with the team to
the Gateway homeless shelter and
began talking with us. Ms. Smith
had applied for SSI in the past and
been denied. She had most recently
applied a few months prior to our
first meeting. Upon calling the SSA
1-800 number, we found out that
she had been denied for failure to
communicate. Fortunately, we were
able to help Ms. Smith file a Request
for Reconsideration. Ms. Smith's
application was approved! Since we
were able to appeal her original case,
Ms. Smith received back payments and
currently receives $623 a month. She
is moving into her own apartment and
is receiving outpatient mental health
treatment. She still struggles with her
addiction, but is on the first steppingstone
to recovery.
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So your daughter wants to be Wonder Woman for Hallowe'en, or your son wants to be Batman. They're bo - The Evolution Of Vitamin B5 For Acne
I came across the benefits of Vitamin B5 6 years ago whilst searching for an acne treatment that act - Depression And Teens - Six Signs That Your Child May Be Suffering From Depression
Most people are now aware of the seriousness of depression. This has become much more common and mor - Parenting Teenager - Take Time For Your Teen!
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Pregnancy is one of the most physically enduring times in our lives, and it is more important than e - Sleep Separation And Your Child
It seems harmless enough, lying down with your child while he goes to sleep, but it could be that sl