Los Angeles/Orange County HMIS Collaborative

Formed in December 2001, the Los Angeles/Orange County (LA/OC) HMIS Collaborative consists of four Continuum of Care (CoC) Systems in two urban counties:

In Los Angeles County, there are three CoCs: The cities of Glendale, and Pasadena each coordinate their own CoC; and the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) is responsible for the City of Los Angeles and the balance of Los Angeles County and in Orange County, OC Partnership.

Advantages of a Regional Approach

Homelessness is not isolated to a single city or county. Coordinating efforts across broader regions will result in an HMIS that better serves the needs of all the constituencies involved. Among the primary advantages of working at a regional level are:

• Some homeless service providers have programs in two or more CoCs;

• Homeless persons may travel between CoCs to receive all of the services they need;

• Los Angeles and Orange Counties will benefit from having regional data and reports;

• Los Angeles County, which is divided among three CoC systems, would benefit from having County-wide data and reports;

• Service providers in the two counties could benefit from coordinated planning.  This could lead to greater consistency in the information collected and reported, making it easier for agency staff to communicate issues and for clients to understand what agencies are asking.

Mission Statement: The LA/OC HMIS Collaborative will use HMIS to advance the provision of quality services for homeless persons, improve data collection, and promote more responsive policies to end homelessness in Los Angeles County and Orange County.