September 24, 2026 | Vol. 30 No. 13 | Archives
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- Homelessness on the Hill
- Immigration Updates
- HCH Spotlight
- Medicaid
- FY26 CoC NOFO – Litigation Update
- Reminders for the HCH Community
- What (Else) We’re Reading
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New Legislation Introduced: No Homeless Detention Centers Act
Representative Frost introduced the No Homeless Detention Centers Act, which would prevent federal funding from funding programs that force people experiencing homelessness into shelters, camps, or other facilities.
House Hearing: “Fixing Fraud in Federally Funded Homelessness Services”
The House Oversight and Government Reform DOGE Subcommittee held a hearing that perpetuated harmful narratives about people experiencing homelessness and service providers, including attacks on Housing First and harm reduction. Several subcommittee members, including Reps. Frost, Stansbury, and Tlaib, pushed back on these claims and used storytelling to underscore the real-world impact of homelessness.
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Call the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 and ask your House representative to co-sponsor the No Homeless Detention Centers Act!
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Public Charge Rule Takes Effect
The new Public Charge guidance went into effect on September 18th (read more in the August Closer Look blog) and is expected to result in a sharp reduction in the use of public services due to fear and confusion. Days before the rule took effect, two separate lawsuits were filed: one by a coalition of 22 states and DC, and another by a group of cities and counties led by New York City, alongside Chicago, San Francisco, Santa Clara County, Seattle, and King County.
Impacts on Families and Health Care Access
The rule is expected to have large impact on many immigrants, including people entering the U.S. legally. Meanwhile, the administration continues to destabilize families and traumatize children. In one recent incident, federal agents detained a man in the parking lot of a Community Health Center in Santa Fe, New Mexico, while he was accompanied by his minor child.
Resources:
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If you’re a direct service provider, sign onto the Providers Against Public Charge letter as an individual. Organized by Protecting Immigrant Families, the letter thanks the State Attorneys General who joined the Public Charge litigation and encourages the remaining states to join the lawsuit.
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States have started to move forward with work requirements by sending initial outreach notices to beneficiaries. These materials vary in how clearly they explain exemptions, compliance requirements, and self-attestation. A new study finds that about 20% of eligible adults could lose coverage because of insufficient or inconsistent work hours. Native Hawaiians are also not exempt from the requirements, despite exemptions for other Indigenous groups, and millions of young adults could lose Medicaid coverage. As these changes go into effect, support for a government-run health care system has increased, including across democratic and republican voters.
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Other H.R. 1 Impacts Include:
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State directed payment caps will cut billions from states’ Medicaid spending, on top of the cuts from work requirements.
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A $50 billion Rural Health Transformation Fund which lacks transparency as CMS and some states are not sharing information about where those funds are going.
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Food is Medicine programs in 13 states that are using Medicaid dollars to pay for healthy meals are at risk of being cut as states grapple with the budget impact of Medicaid cuts.
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New Medicaid Work Requirement Lawsuit Filed
On September 18th, a new lawsuit was filed against CMS arguing that the Interim Final Rule narrowed the definition of medical frailty and did not allow for adequate exemptions which will result in millions of people losing coverage. The lawsuit is asking the court to vacate the rule.
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FY26 CoC NOFO – Litigation Update |
A judge stayed the ruling to vacate the FY26 CoC NOFO, meaning that HUD can proceed with the NOFO for now, until the Circuit Court hears both sides during the appeal. That process could take months, and HUD is moving forward with the FY26 application and deadline in the meantime. HUD has reopened the NOFO with a new deadline of September 30.
Related reading:
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| Reminders for the HCH Community |
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Flu season is approaching! Offer flu and COVID vaccines onsite for patients and staff. New reports found that people experiencing food or housing insecurity were twice as likely to remain unvaccinated against flu and 1.5 times more likely to remain unvaccinated against COVID last year.
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Family planning services. A new analysis found that 21 million women who need subsidized birth control live in counties with limited access to contraception. Health centers are required to provide voluntary family planning services, so clinics should make sure to ask adolescent and adult patients about their reproductive goals and provide the appropriate care.
- Talking about homelessness: It can be incredibly difficult and exhausting to talk about homelessness with people who don’t have lived experience or work in this space. This article offers strategies and talking points for how to have productive conversations about homelessness.
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What (Else) We're Reading |
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The Council's Merch Shop is Open 24/7 |
Make a statement. Support the movement.
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| Laura Brennan
Senior Policy Manager
National Health Care for the Homeless Council
lbrennan@nhchc.org
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| Your support is crucial!
All our advocacy work — including this newsletter! — is funded by dues from NHCHC's members and private donations. Consider joining the Council or donating to support this work!
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Copyright © 2026 National Health Care for the Homeless Council, Inc.
www.nhchc.org | (615) 226-2292
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