Aug. 11, 2025

Dear COHHIO Members, Partners, and Advocates,

We recently received notice that the Trump Administration plans to shut down the SSI/SSDI Outreach, Access, and Recovery (SOAR) Technical Assistance Center on Aug. 18.

Funded by the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), SOAR has helped thousands of people with serious mental illness or physical disabilities overcome and avoid homelessness. Providers using the SOAR model can greatly increase the approval rate for applications to the Social Security Administration’s disability income benefit programs.

With rates of homelessness among individuals with disabilities increasing in recent years, we believe the Administration’s decision to defund the SOAR Technical Assistance (TA) Center is extremely shortsighted.

However, the end of the national SOAR TA Center will not end the use of SOAR in Ohio. SOAR remains a best practice that providers can continue using to help clients recover and regain stability. The Social Security Administration will continue prioritizing SOAR applications.

As Ohio’s SOAR state lead, COHHIO remains committed to ensuring that homeless services providers continue to have access to SOAR training and technical assistance in the absence of federal support. COHHIO will ensure providers continue to have access to SOAR training and TA by:

  • Working with public and private partners to fund the SOAR Ohio program
  • Hiring a SOAR Coordinator to implement the program
  • Collaborating with SSA on a SOAR Ohio process for applications
  • Building up a strong network of SOAR specialists to apply the model
  • Continuing to provide T&TA to SOAR specialists

In the meantime, we recommend that you:

  • Download materials from SAMHSA’s SOARWorks website before it shuts down on Aug. 18.
  • Watch this recorded webinar on how organizations can sustain their work using the SOAR model without the TA Center.

Please check back to the SOAR Ohio website for updates as they occur, and feel free to email soarohio@cohhio​.org with any questions.

Thank you,

The COHHIO Team