In North Carolina, a radical experiment targets social determinants of health with fresh produce and safe housing
In North Carolina, a pilot program aims to comprehensively test and evaluate how increasing access to healthy food and safe housing can improve health outcomes.
Late last summer, Elizabeth Jacques brought her youngest daughter, Elena, for a medical checkup. At the time, Jacques and her family were experiencing housing instability after a two-year legal battle with their former landlord, who refused to clean up their unsanitary, unlivable conditions.
For Jacques, it was obvious she had to leave a housing situation that was putting her family’s health at risk. Black mold was growing on the walls of the trailer in which Jacques and her family had lived for five years. The mold caused everyone — Jacques, her husband, and her three younger daughters — to get more frequent headaches and stomachaches. It also impacted Jacques’ breathing because she is immune-compromised. “My ability to function as a normal human got worse and worse,” she said. Meanwhile, there were gaping holes in the trailer’s floor; Jacques fell through them in the bathroom twice.
What's Your Reaction?
