Achieving Successful Community Re-Entry upon Release from Prison

This report examines the experience of individuals over a 12-month period following their release from a Washington State Department of Corrections (DOC) facility in SFY 2010 or 2011. We find that homeless ex-offenders who received housing assistance and transitioned to permanent housing had lower rates of criminal recidivism and higher rates of employment, Medicaid coverage, and substance abuse treatment, compared to other homeless ex-offenders. In addition, ex-offenders who received housing assistance were more likely to have Medicaid coverage, and treatment penetration rates were relatively high among substance abusers with coverage. Finally, as with housing assistance, homeless ex-offenders who had Medicaid coverage were less likely to be incarcerated or have a felony conviction in the follow-up period.