Interview with Doug Scott, April 21, 2017

Partial Transcript: And Doug, I think the Zaban Room is a good place to start...

Segment Synopsis: Doug Scott talks about his position as an administrator of federal funds in the Department of Community Affairs. Scott describes how the funding was used for the development of permanent supportive housing programs in the state of Georgia. Scott defines Permanent Supportive Housing as housing developments made to assist those with disabilities, the chronically homeless, and in general people who require housing support after leaving medical or penitentiary institutions. Scott talks about a one-page paper he wrote which compared the cost on society of the chronic homelessness cycle to the cost of developing Permanent Supportive Housing. Scott explains how the cycle of chronic homelessness, in which someone alternates between institutions and homelessness, places a high monetary burden on society as opposed to developing Permanent Supportive Housing.

Keywords: Department of Community Affairs; Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH); The Corporation for Supportive Housing

Partial Transcript: What's amazing about that one-pager is that...

Segment Synopsis: Scott talks about how Bill McDonald, the mental health adviser to Georgia Governor Sunny Purdue, utilized the paper written by Scott to fund permanent housing for 4,0000 people in the state of Georgia. Scott adds that additionally, of those who were provided housing, 78-85% of people in permanent housing were able to keep such housing in Georgia. Talley Wells, the interviewer, relates how he utilized the paper written by Scott to pursue housing for those with mental disabilities who wanted to integrate into the community from mental hospitals under the Georgia's Olmstead planning act.

Keywords: Americans with Disabilities Act; Department of Human Resources; Department of Justice; McKinney–Vento Homeless Assistance Act; Olmstead Act; Sonny Purdue; William McDonald

Partial Transcript: But what's probably more exciting to me was when it got into settlement...

Segment Synopsis: Scott talks about how his experience in creating housing projects such as CHRISKids, Atlanta, led him to become the recommended Director of Supportive Housing at the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities. Scott stresses the importance of housing as an asylum for those suffering from mental illnesses. Scott talks about his first days on the job as director of supportive housing, and his job developing a model of supportive housing for the Georgia v. Department of Justice Olmstead implementation settlement agreement.

Keywords: Atlanta Housing Authority; CHRISKids, Atlanta; Department of Community Affairs; Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities; Moving to Work, Atlanta; William McDonald

Partial Transcript: I got there in I think November...

Segment Synopsis: Scott talks about his initial days on the job as the developer of a model of supportive housing for the Georgia v. Department of Justice settlement agreement over the Olmstead decision implementation. Scott talks about how he eventually came to model the system as a tenant-based rental assistance program. The interviewer, Talley Wells, talks about his experience in working as a legal aid for an Atlanta-assisted living project, Moving to Work, which he claims lacked housing support for those suffering from mental disabilities. Scott talks about how, in contrast, the Supported Permanent Housing Plan accounted for the difficulties faced in maintaining a housing situation for those suffering from mental disabilities. Scott explains the process used to attain housing, which begins with determining eligibility for attaining supportive housing, and eventually receiving housing with the aid of a regional transition coordinator. The interviewer, Talley Wells, talks about how he applied Scott's supportive housing model to patients transitioning out of nursing homes and mental hospitals.

Keywords: Atlanta Housing Authority; Atlanta Legal Aid; Department of Behavioral Health; Department of Community Health; Georgia Department of Behavioral Health Developmental Disabilities; Moving to Work, Atlanta

Partial Transcript: So we recognized that people who had been in the state hospitals for more than 90 days...

Segment Synopsis: The interviewer, Tally Wells, talks about how the bridge funding method utilized in the funding of Money Follows the Person (a program which provides assistance to those transitioning from nursing care to community living) was also applied to those coming out of state mental health hospitals. Scott describes the importance of bridge funding as a way of providing reliable funds for this kind of reintegration into the community. Scott talks about the benefits of keeping the supportive housing care plan simple, with fewer policies and regulations, which he claims prove effective in providing supportive housing in an efficient manner. Scott talks about how nonprofit companies such as United Way in Atlanta provide housing for homeless persons. Scott talks about how the homeless population in Georgia has decreased, which the interviewer accredits to the development of the Georgia Supportive Housing Plan.

Keywords: Assertive Community Treatment (ACT); Money Follows the Person; United Way; state hospitals

Partial Transcript: So for all those academic researchers who are listening to us, what would you want researched?

Segment Synopsis: Scott describes his wish for research to be conducted documenting the effects of supportive housing on the individual. Scott talks about how those who have received supportive housing generally require rental assistance in the first year, which he claims develops into eventual independence by the second year. Wells talks about how voucher funding allows for better integration of those with disabilities into the community. Scott ends the interview stating his wish for the effects of the Georgia v. Department of Justice settlement agreement to help people for future generations.

Keywords: Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities; Supportive Housing