D: Managing the Key Transition Period

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Outline
Introduction
Policy Statements:
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20
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Additional Resources

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6: Housing providers have discretion in how they apply the bans.

In this chapter:

Overview

Recommendations:

A. Ensure interagency collaboration to effectively screen inmates for eligibility for TANF, Medicaid, supplemental security income, food stamps, and other benefits, and to facilitate successful prerelease application for these benefits.
B. Assess individuals in prison or jail for eligibility for veterans' benefits and services, and ensure access to those benefits for eligible individuals.
C. Help inmates identify and apply for appropriate benefits and identification as part of their transition plan.
D. Ensure that documents issued by departments of corrections are accepted as valid identification by other agencies.
E. Improve collaboration among agencies serving individuals re-entering the community.
F. Ensure timely access to Medicaid after release for eligible individuals by suspending, instead of terminating, Medicaid benefits during incarceration.
G. Facilitate access to "nonrecurrent" TANF benefits by individuals with criminal records who are re-entering the community.
H. Adopt a narrow definition of "in violation of a condition of parole/probation" for the purposes of TANF, food stamps, SSI & public housing.
I. Adopt balanced admission and eviction policies for public housing that consider individual circumstances.
J. Ensure continued Medicaid coverage for TANF families with parents who are released from prison or jail.

Research Highlights:

/Report/PartII/ChapterII-D/PolicyStatement24/ResearchHighlight24-6

Housing providers have discretion to shorten the three-year ban for people evicted based on drug-related criminal activity if those individuals successfully complete a rehabilitation program approved by the local housing provider or if the circumstances leading to the eviction no longer exist. The housing provider may permit such individuals to be admitted or to remain if they demonstrate that they are not currently abusing alcohol or illegally using drugs and that they have been rehabilitated in any one of three ways: (1) participation in a supervised alcohol or drug rehabilitation program; (2) completion of a supervised alcohol or drug rehabilitation program; or (3) successful rehabilitation in some other manner.

Reentry Policy Council

D: Managing the Key Transition Period

6: Housing providers have discretion in how they apply the bans.

In this chapter: