Glossary

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H

Halfway House:
Halfway houses reintegrate formerly imprisoned inmates into the community before full release from custody. Halfway houses offer programs including educational opportunities and work release to help inmates make the transition from confinement in a Department of Corrections facility to enjoying the rights and responsibilities of being a free citizen.
Source: Department of Corrections, District of Columbia

Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA):
Former name of the government agency now called the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Source: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

Health Care for the Homeless Veterans Coordinator:
A representative with the local Veterans Affairs (VA) medical center who assists veterans who are homeless with the eligibility and enrollment process for services offered by the Veterans Health Administration to homeless veterans.
Source: Department of Veterans Affairs

Health Care Provider:
A person who is trained and licensed to give health care. Also, a place licensed to give health care. Doctors, nurses, hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, some assisted living facilities and certain kinds of home health agencies are examples of health care providers.
Source: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act (HIPAA):
A law passed in 1996 which is also sometimes called the "Kassebaum-Kennedy" law. This law expands health care coverage if an individual loses his or her job or moves from one job to another. HIPAA also protects individuals and families who have: pre-existing medical conditions and/or problems getting health coverage.
Source: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

Hmong and Highland Laotians:
Persons who were members of a Hmong or Highland Lao tribe when the tribe assisted the U.S. Armed Forces during the Vietnam era, and their spouses, unmarried widows/widowers, and unmarried dependent children are eligible for food stamps under the same rules as United States citizens.
Source: Refugee Welfare and Immigration Reform Project, 1999

Homeless Individual:
Title I of the McKinney Act provides the following definition of homelessness:

a) In general, the term "homeless" or "homeless individual" or "homeless person" includes -

(1) An individual who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence; and
(2) An individual who has a primary nighttime residence that is:

(A) A supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary living accommodations (including welfare hotels, congregate shelters, and transitional housing for the mentally ill);
(B) An institution that provides a temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized; or
(C) A public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings.

(b) Income eligibility

(1) In general, a homeless individual shall be eligible for assistance under any program, only if the individual complies with the income eligibility requirements otherwise applicable to such program.
(2) Exception Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a homeless individual shall be eligible for assistance under the Job Training Partnership Act (29 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.).

(c) Exclusion

The term "homeless" or "homeless individual" does not include any individual imprisoned or otherwise detained pursuant to an Act of the Congress or a state law.
Source: U.S. Code - Title 42, Chapter 119, Subchapter I, Section 11302 - General definition of homeless individual

Homeless (The Food Stamp Program):
As defined by the Food Stamp Program, an applicant is considered homeless if he or she 1) has no place to sleep; 2) lives in a shelter or halfway house; 3) lives in someone else’s home temporarily (fewer than 90 days); or 4) lives in a doorway, lobby, bus station, or some other place where people do not usually live.
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food Stamp Program

Homeless Veterans Outreach Coordinator:
A representative with the local Veterans Affairs (VA) regional office who assists veterans who are homeless with the eligibility and application process for VA Compensation and other VA benefit programs.
Source: Department of Veterans Affairs

Hospice:
Hospice is a special way of caring for people who are terminally ill, and for their family.This care includes physical care and counseling.
Source: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services