When seniors have access to convenient, quality in-home healthcare, it can be transformative. That’s the powerful reality Columbia Residential and Matter Health are creating for nearly 1,000 households across seven senior residential mixed-income communities in Atlanta.

In 2023, Columbia Residential and Matter Health launched an innovative pilot program to expand healthcare for seniors. This effort has grown into a comprehensive wellness initiative that is making it easier for seniors to access preventative care—right where they live.

Enhancing Lives Through Personalized, Convenient Healthcare

The journey began at Columbia Heritage Senior Residences in April 2023, where Columbia Residential partnered with Matter Health to open its first on-site primary care clinic. The concept was simple yet revolutionary: bring personalized, holistic healthcare directly to seniors (ages 62+) who face the greatest barriers to accessing care.

“Columbia Residential is making our vision of increased access to healthcare services for our senior residents a reality,” explains Jennifer Owens, Vice President of Resident Services, who helped cultivate the partnership. “The success of that first clinic paved the way for something much bigger.”

This June, the partnership expanded dramatically, bringing Matter Health’s in-home, preventative care services to five additional Columbia Residential senior housing communities: Mechanicsville Senior, MLK Senior, Tenth and Juniper, Legacy at East Lake, and Edgewood Senior. This expansion reaches an additional 711 households, bringing the total to 973 senior households across seven communities.

Breaking Down Barriers To Healthcare

What makes this partnership unique isn’t just the convenience of on-site care for seniors. It’s the comprehensive approach to wellness that addresses the intersection of housing and health.

Matter Health’s team of providers and caregivers meets residents wherever they need support, whether that’s in designated on-site wellness spaces or through in-home health service options.

The range of services is impressive and practical:

• Annual comprehensive wellness and physical exams
• On-site point of care testing
• Management of chronic conditions like diabetes and high blood pressure
• Urgent care for common illnesses and health concerns
• In-home follow-ups and care coordination after hospital stays
• Social and resource support for residents navigating benefits or services

Lives Transformed Through Accessible, Quality Care

The true measure of this partnership’s success lies in the individual stories of residents whose quality of life has been transformed by accessible care.

Consider the resident who hadn’t seen a doctor in more than two years due to mobility issues and lack of transportation. When they met with a Matter Health team member in their building, the provider quickly recognized signs of poorly managed diabetes. Lab results revealed the patient’s A1C was dangerously high—over 14. The provider took time to sit with the patient, patiently walking them through insulin management and ensuring they felt supported every step of the way.

“When healthcare services are convenient and built on trust, it breaks down barriers, allowing us to solve health problems that would otherwise go unaddressed,” explained Austin Sohr, Co-Founder of Matter Health.

In another instance, a resident thought they were having a heart attack and called 911. Because the Matter Health team was already in the building, they were able to assess the situation immediately and determine it was actually a muscle spasm, helping the resident avoid an unnecessary and costly emergency room visit.

A Model Built on Prevention and Presence

As a value-based care company, Matter Health’s entire model focuses on keeping people healthy and at home. By investing more in preventive care and delivering it in a way that’s easy, convenient, and built on trust, they’re helping prevent unnecessary emergency room visits and avoidable hospitalizations.

“We focus on dense communities because that’s where we can have the greatest impact, fastest,” explained Sohr. “When care is close, consistent, and part of everyday life, we’re able to respond quickly, build trust deeply, and deliver better outcomes. Our model isn’t just about access; it’s about presence. And when we show up with compassion and real solutions, people feel seen, supported, and empowered to stay healthier.”

Looking Toward a Healthier Future

The partnership between Columbia Residential and Matter Health represents more than just expanded healthcare access for seniors. It is a blueprint for addressing the unique challenges faced by older adults in affordable housing communities. When care is proactive, accessible, and rooted in real relationships, it creates measurable differences in people’s lives.

Together, Columbia Residential and Matter Health are working toward their collective goal: increasing long-term health for senior residents while reducing emergency room utilization and preventable hospitalizations. With strong initial utilization across all seven communities and momentum building as residents experience care firsthand and share their stories with neighbors, this partnership is poised to continue growing.

“Our partnership with Matter Health reflects Columbia Residential’s deep commitment to our senior residents and to creating communities where they can truly thrive. By bringing healthcare directly to our residents, we’re helping ensure they have the support they need to age in place with dignity, stability, and wellness,” said Carmen Chubb, President of Columbia Residential.

For seniors who have long faced barriers to quality healthcare, this collaboration offers something invaluable: the peace of mind that comes with knowing help is close by, and the dignity of receiving care that truly puts their well-being first.

Columbia Residential, founded in 1991, is an award-winning Atlanta-based developer, owner, and manager of affordable and mixed-income housing, managing more than 10,000 apartments across Georgia, Texas, Florida, Louisiana, and Tennessee. Matter Health is a preventative primary care provider specializing in serving low-income senior residents in affordable housing communities, with operations in Tennessee and Georgia.