As more seniors become homeless, shelters try to adapt : Shots

The Medically Vulnerable Persons (MVP) Shelter in Sandy, Utah, is a renovated two-story brick hotel. It serves people ages 62 and older, as well as people with health conditions that make life in a typical homeless shelter difficult.

Aaron Bolton/Montana Public Radio

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Aaron Bolton/Montana Public Radio

Just outside Salt Lake City, in Sandy, Utah, sits an old, two-story brick hotel that now has a new life as a homeless shelter for seniors.

The Medically Vulnerable Shelter, or MVP Shelter for short, is for people ages 62 and older. But it is also aimed at young adults with chronic health problems.

Instead of sleeping in a large shared space with multiple beds or bunks, the MVP shelter has semi-private rooms designed to accommodate wheelchairs or other mobility needs. Each small bedroom has its own bathroom, allowing dignity and privacy for seniors struggling with incontinence.

Unlike the MVP shelter, most homeless shelters are not equipped to help seniors, especially those 65 and older. It’s the fastest-growing homeless population nationally, according to Dennis Culhane, a researcher at the University of Pennsylvania. Not only are people experiencing chronic homelessness getting older, but many older adults are experiencing homelessness for the first time in their lives.

Getting in and out of bunks, managing medications and getting to a shared bathroom on time are some of the major challenges of living in a senior shelter. Staff at traditional shelters sometimes ask seniors to leave if they are unable to care for themselves.

The MVP shelter is unusual because it offers on-site medical care to better serve its residents as they age.

When Jamie Mangum tripped and fell in her room at the MVP shelter, she didn’t have to go far to get help. Mangum, who is in her 50s and suffers from lung cancer, only had to walk downstairs, where she saw an emergency medical technician at the clinic. Her swollen wrist was quickly wrapped and she returned to her room. She said this wouldn’t have been possible at the other shelters she stayed at.

“There, I would have to wait for hours instead of enter here – be seen” Mangum said.

On-site emergency medical technician Emily Woolsey wraps MVP shelter resident Jamie Mangum’s swollen wrist after a fall. Mangum says that at other shelters, she probably would have had to make her own way to an urgent care office to get treatment. She credits the shelter for helping her deal with all of her medical issues.

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At other shelters, Mangum said, she probably would have had to find her own way to an urgent care office or get transported by ambulance. At the MVP shelter, specialized case managers also helped her arrange treatment for her lung cancer.

The shelter can accommodate clients with complex medical needs. “We have clients who need memory care. Maybe they were living independently before, but they weren’t able to maintain that and were kicked out because of dementia or other things like that,” said Baleigh Dellos, who manages the MVP shelter for The Road Home, a local nonprofit.

Immediate care and assistance is provided by paramedics and specialized medical case managers, but primary care doctors and therapists come weekly. Residents can even receive physical therapy in private spaces on-site.

A path to better health and stability

The MVP shelter partners with the Fourth Street Clinic in Salt Lake City to provide on-site medical care.

The first thing most new residents need help with is medications, according to Matt Haroldsen of the Fourth Street Clinic.

When people live on the streets, their usual medications can be lost or stolen. “Their medications are diverted while they are in their camps,” Haroldsen said.

Homeless diabetic patients often bury their insulin to keep it cold. But they might forget where they buried it, or the vials might get too hot and spoil, he added.

Helping MVP shelter residents obtain and store their medications can stabilize their health, Haroldsen said. This allows them to focus on other priorities, like obtaining ID or other documents they need to apply for disability, Social Security, and various support programs that can eventually help them obtain more permanent housing.

Nonprofit organizations and local governments have opened similar shelters in Florida, California and Arizona to meet the needs of homeless seniors.

Having access to specialized shelters can mean the difference between life and death, said Caitlin Synovec, deputy director of the National Homeless Health Council.

In cold-weather states, denying elderly people a bed because of their mobility and other health concerns can be especially risky. In 2022, a senior citizen in Bozeman, Montana froze to death after being asked to leave a shelter due to incontinence.

Complex medical needs can pose a danger to other residents that most shelters are not prepared to handle.

“A typical shelter doesn’t allow a person on oxygen to come in because it poses such a fire hazard,” she said.

Giving seniors better access to health care in shelters is the best way to help them succeed once they have access to more permanent housing, Synovec said. That’s because health problems are a common reason older people can’t afford or maintain housing, she said.

Shelters for seniors popping up in other states

The MVP shelter model shows promise, both in Utah and elsewhere.

“More than 80 percent of the people who participated in our program last year moved into stable or permanent housing,” said Jacob Torner, vice president of programs for the Task Force to End Homelessness in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The nonprofit organization operates a shelter called Elder Haven.

Jeff Gregg plays fetch with his dog, Ruffy, outside the MVP shelter in Sandy, Utah. He says specialized medical services helped him stop using opioids and get surgery for chronic back pain. He hopes this will allow him to find a job and afford an apartment.

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The MVP shelter near Salt Lake City is also successful. It was able to permanently accommodate 36 elderly people during the first 11 months of 2025.

Yet more seniors need shelter than it can accommodate. Dellos, the shelter director, said the waiting list is around 200 people. The shelter prioritizes people based on medical need, she said, not time spent on the waiting list.

A place to reset and recover

For residents who secure a room, this opportunity can be life-changing.

Outside the shelter, Jeff Gregg, 62, played fetch with his dog, Ruffy.

Due to an old back injury, Gregg remained hunched over while throwing the ball. The injury also fueled an opioid addiction for decades, he said, creating a cycle that was difficult to escape.

“Fighting this, having a job, having insurance, and then losing my job, not having insurance, going out on the street and getting into this bullshit, and I would find myself in the same position,” he said.

Gregg said sobriety took a backseat to his more immediate needs, like finding food and a bed at a shelter. For him, the shelter has become the first place where he can relax and focus on his recovery.

“I managed to clean myself up. It took me a few months, but I kept snatching,” he said.

He said the experience allowed him to have surgery again. He hopes that with less back pain, he can eventually find a job that will help him pay for an apartment.

This story comes from NPR’s health reporting partnership with Montana Public Radio And KFF Health News.