Memphis Housing Authority and Knight Development Celebrate First Clinic with Matter Health, Providing On-Site Health Interventions to Affordable Housing Residents
July 20, 2023 – MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The Memphis Housing Authority (MHA) and Knight Development welcomed Matter Health, project stakeholders, and residents to a Clinic Grand Opening at the newly renovated senior building of College Park, located at 838 Walker Boulevard in Memphis on July 20, 2023. The first clinic to open in MHA communities, Matter Health will now provide preventive primary care to low-income senior residents with additional clinics and mobile support planned for future Knight Developments.
“Clinics, such as the one at College Park, are part of a growing trend to improve health and achieve health equity by connecting health and housing in affordable housing communities,” said Dexter Washington, Chief Executive Officer of Memphis Housing Authority. “For Memphis Housing Authority and Knight Development, our shared goal is to help our residents maintain a healthy home during their stay with us.”
At College Park, Matter Health will deliver a boutique primary care experience for residents who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid, allowing them access to a personalized, holistic, and high-touch approach to the patient/provider relationship. With an inviting patient lounge and exam room, the new clinic provides convenient and comfortable access to physical and mental health support where residents need it most, at home. Services include wellness exams, chronic care management, lab services, preventative screenings, prescription management, specialty care referrals, and more.
“The barriers to holistic healthcare are plentiful for older adults in affordable housing communities such as College Park. Our mission with Matter Health is to solve this problem,” said Mason Mercy, Co-Founder and CEO of Matter Health. “A lack of education and easy, immediate access to care creates poor outcomes and a high-cost strain on the system. We exist to serve these individuals most in need of quality healthcare through a convenient, location-based system.”
“There are strong early indicators that bringing convenient, holistic care to the home drives better outcomes and a better experience for those we serve,” said President and Co-Founder Austin Sohr.
College Park is part of the MH Strategies Family RAD & RAD II affordable housing developments still currently under renovation. The $70M combined community investment is a Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program that will rehabilitate 472 units to address the need for more modern, efficient, and affordable rental opportunities in the Uptown and College Park neighborhoods.
Matter Health is a preventive primary care provider that caters to low-income senior residents (62 and older) who live in affordable housing communities. Currently, Matter Health operates in Chattanooga, Memphis, Knoxville, and Nashville, Tennessee in addition to its newest clinic in Atlanta, GA.
Memphis Housing Authority – Since 1935, the Memphis Housing Authority has been a frontrunner in the public housing movement when Memphis became the second city in the nation, following New York, to establish a local housing authority. Today, the Memphis Housing Authority offers 2,093 units of permanent housing to low- and moderate-income families through its Public Housing program & assists 8,356 households through the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program. For more information, visit memphisha.org.
Knight Development is an award-winning developer that specializes in working with Public Housing Authorities and non-profit organizations to create and rehabilitate affordable housing. With offices in Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas, and Arkansas, the Knight Development portfolio includes 4,208 units of affordable housing developed in five years and 66 PHA RAD consultations and partnerships across 14 states. For more information, visit knightdev.co.