Local organizations are joining together to distribute COVID-19 tests to Kentuckians experiencing homelessness.
The Brighton Center, Welcome House, Emergency Shelter of Northern Kentucky and Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Medicaid announced last week that they are working together to provide COVID-19 tests to Northern Kentucky’s ”underserved” homeless population.
Leon Lamoreaux, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Medicaid president in Kentucky, said the pandemic has “exacerbated the inequalities” facing “our most vulnerable neighbors.”
Anthem has pledged to distribute 5,000 tests across the Commonwealth, according to a press release.
More than 4,000 people in the Commonwealth will experience homelessness on any given day, according to the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness.
Many unhoused Kentuckians are also living with pre-existing or undiagnosed health conditions that make them more susceptible to contracting COVID-19, hospitalization, and death. The Homelessness Research Institute says medical history and the reduced ability to socially distance and properly sanitize as contributing factors to increased rates of COVID-19 transmission and mortality among individuals experiencing homelessness.