How Coordinated Entry Works

The Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness (ACEH), the US Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) Continuum of Care (CoC) Program interim rule, must establish and operate a Coordinated Entry (CE) system. CE is a tool designed to ensure that individuals experiencing homelessness are matched with the correct resources, interventions, and potential housing programs. CE standardizes the access and enrollment process for all clients.

Once a client completes or updates an assessment with an appropriate Access Point, the client is placed within the Alaska Homeless Management Information System (AKHMIS) prioritization list. All client referrals to participating housing programs are conducted through the prioritization list. All CE participating providers must fill housing program openings using the CE referral process. To facilitate prompt referrals and to increase utilization rates, participating providers must notify ACEH of any known or anticipated vacancies and/or openings as soon as possible. ACEH then works to identify the next household to fill the housing program vacancy from the prioritization list. ACEH shall endeavor to take all services provided by the partner into consideration, with the intent to navigate the most vulnerable household, that is eligible, into the open housing referral.

First, the housing provider must informs the CE Director, or the CE Specialist, that they have an opening in their housing program and explain what type of household would be eligible to fill the vacancy (Single Adult, Transitionally Aged Youth, or Family with minors). ACEH’s CE Director or the CE Specialist will then use the CE Prioritization policy to provide the referral.

Clients are prioritized based on their HUD Disability Conditions as reported in the CE Assessment. Each disability gives the client +1 point added to their prioritization. The only exception of this rule is “Alcohol Use Disorder”, “Drug Use Disorder”, and “Both Drug and Alcohol Disorder”. These are considered 1 point regardless of the combination of the answers. The scoring is unaffected if the client has only one or all three selected. Clients will receive 1 point total if any or all of these disorders are selected.

This prioritization scoring allows brackets of 0-6 points. Within these brackets the clients are then organized by age, from oldest to youngest. If there is a tie in prioritization scoring and age, the next factor is “length of time homeless.” The length of time homeless is determined by the oldest touch in AKHMIS without a 2-year break. The length of time homeless prioritizes those with the oldest interactions with AKHMIS.  

Clients with medical issues threatening life and limb may be elevated to the ‘top of the prioritization list.’ Medical elevation occurs at case conferencing and is at the discretion of the CE program director or their designee. Medical elevation first occurs at case conferencing and in special circumstances may occur through email correspondence between a case manager and CE Manager. These factors help identify which clients will best fit the housing program vacancy, thus serving the most vulnerable participants with the most appropriate intervention instead of a “first come, first served approach.”