The US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announces the award of $783,421 in grants to help increase veterans’ and servicemembers’ ability to live in specially adapted homes.
Awarded via the Specially Adapted Housing Assistive Technology (SAHAT) Grant Program, the grants will be used to develop technologies to help increase the options available for veterans and servicemembers to modify their homes to suit their needs.
Up to $200,000 each was awarded to the following grantees, per a media release from the VA: Auburn University for Touch-Voice-Eye Controlled Assistive Technology for Veterans and Servicemembers with Significant Disabilities, Philips Research of North America for Personalized Location-aware Assisted Technology for Improving Quality of Life and Independence in Individuals with Mild Cognitive Impairment, Simply Home LLC for an Assistive Technology Link Platform Interfacing the Simply Home LLC Firefly Platform and the Amazon Echo Device, and St Ambrose University for its Virtual Demonstration and Training Site for Home Independence.
“We’re excited and expect that the technology developed with these grants will augment veterans’ and servicemembers’ options for living independently in their own homes,” says Curt Coy, deputy under secretary for economic opportunity, in the release.
“New technology will serve veterans who currently live in specially adapted houses and open doors for more veterans looking to modify their homes to fit their needs,” he adds.
The technologies developed via these grants will be added to the list of home modification options under the VA’s Specially Adapted Housing program as they become available, per the release.
[Source: Department of Veterans Affairs]
