How Inglewood’s Homeless Seniors Are Finding Relief Through Housing and Trauma-Informed Care

October 4, 2026

Los Angeles County's Pathway Home initiative is addressing homelessness among seniors by converting motels into interim housing with integrated medical care and case management services. The program has housed over 2,300 people in temporary accommodations since 2023, though only 892 have transitioned to permanent housing due to severe affordable housing shortages. Seniors like Gilbert Ramirez and Jacqueline Thomas, who developed serious health complications while living unsheltered, have found the combination of stable housing and wraparound healthcare services critical to their recovery and rehabilitation.

Who is affected

Unhoused seniors ages 55 and older in Los Angeles County (19,104 individuals in 2026)
Gilbert Ramirez, 70-year-old formerly incarcerated man with fentanyl addiction and severe leg wounds
Jacqueline Thomas, 67-year-old with multiple chronic health conditions
Black residents experiencing homelessness (21,822 people disproportionately represented)
People experiencing homelessness for the first time after age 50 (43% of senior homeless population)
2,361 people moved into interim housing through Pathway Home
892 people who moved into permanent housing
Families waiting for housing vouchers in Inglewood (unable to receive new vouchers due to funding freeze)

What action is being taken

Pathway Home outreach workers are moving unsheltered residents from street encampments into converted motels serving as interim housing
Venice Family Clinic physician assistants like Carrie Kowalski are operating mobile clinic vans and providing medical treatment, wound care, and addiction support supplies to clients
The program is providing wraparound healthcare and case management services to interim housing residents
Pathway Home teams are working to connect people from interim to permanent housing
Los Angeles County is funding the program with $59.5 million for fiscal year 2026-27
Inglewood is serving as a logistical partner for the initiative
Inglewood is exploring motel master leasing options

Why it matters

This initiative addresses a compounding crisis where age-related health vulnerabilities intersect with homelessness, creating life-threatening situations for seniors who cannot manage chronic illnesses, medications, or medical recovery while living on the streets. The combined approach of housing and healthcare demonstrates that stable shelter itself functions as a critical medical intervention, enabling wound healing, medication storage, disease management, and prevention of conditions that develop from street exposure. With seniors representing 26% of the county's homeless population and that number growing by nearly 5% in one year, the program tackles an increasingly urgent demographic trend. The disproportionate impact on Black residents and the prevalence of first-time homelessness after age 50 reveals systemic inequities in affordable housing and income support that this intervention attempts to address, though the severe shortage of permanent affordable housing remains the primary barrier to lasting solutions.

What's next

Ramirez is gathering medical records needed to secure a housing voucher for a local senior complex through Pathway
Thomas is hoping to acquire a computer and take tax preparation courses to build job skills
Inglewood is considering adding a homeless services coordinator funded through Los Angeles County's Measure A in June 2026

Read full article from source: The San Diego Voice & Viewpoint