The Pierce County Human Services Homeless Programs team is working closely with local, state, and national health officials to slow the spread of the coronavirus. We are dedicated to continuing our collaboration and coordination efforts closely to support residents experiencing homelessness in Pierce County. If you are a local human services provider please check here for the most updated information.
So far in our homeless response efforts, we have supported the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department (TPCHD) in creating an infographic for vulnerable populations, collected guidance from the state and federal government to distribute to providers and contributed similar materials to the Emergency Operations Center and TPCHD.
Here are the latest updates in our homelessness response as of March 23, 2020:
- We are actively coordinating homeless shelter supply requests with the TPCHD
- The Department of Commerce awarded us $1.6M to support current shelters, stand up new shelter capacity and pay for quarantine and isolation beds. This may include staffing support, personal protective equipment, hotel or motel vouchers, additional space to meet distancing recommendations from the TPCHD and additional hygiene capacity, for example.
- We have identified $2.25M to work on our highest priority needs, which include additional shelter units, rental assistance and space for quarantine and isolation
- We are working with the City of Tacoma, TPCHD and others to determine how to use the funds
We continue to engage with our agency partners and the provider community on a daily basis about how we can support their needs, including maintaining capacity and caring for people experiencing homelessness. We are committed to transparency and will keep you informed as this situation continues to evolve. For more information on how to slow the spread of COVID-19 visit here.