The Association of the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Program and Intimate Partner Violence Related Emergency Department Visits

To examine the association of increasing access to affordable housing through the Low-income Housing Tax Credit Program with non-fatal intimate partner violence (IPV) among women.

We used 2005–2014 data from the State Emergency Department Database (SEDD) and the low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) program, a federal program providing tax incentives to support the construction of affordable housing units, to examine the association between the number of LIHTC units available and rates of IPV-related emergency department visits. We conducted generalized linear regression comparing state-years with above the median number of LIHTC units (> 28 units per 100,000 population) to those with below the median number of units (≤ 28 LIHTC units per 100,000 population). We adjusted the analyses for time-varying indicators of state median household income, percent population by race/ethnicity, percent population unemployed, violent crime rate, refundable Earned Income Tax Credits, maximum Temporary Assistance for Needy Families benefit for family of 3, and minimum wage.

We found that greater availability of LIHTC units (> 28 vs. ≤ 28 LIHTC units per 100,000 population) was associated with decreased rates of IPV-related emergency department visits among women (RR 0.90; 95% CI 0.84, 0.97).

Increasing access to affordable housing, an important social determinant of health, through the LIHTC program may be an important component of strategies to prevent IPV severe enough to warrant an ED visit.