Fresh Start Foundation

Fresh Start Foundation, a Philadelphia-based nonprofit, is the prime recipient of federal contracts and grants for Healthcare for Homeless Veterans (HCHV) program services delivered to the Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Health Administration, specifically Veterans Integrated Service Network 4 (VISN 4). The organization competes in full-and-open (non-set-aside) procurement and operates as a 100% prime contractor with no subcontracting footprint. Fresh Start Foundation is a subsidiary of Merakey USA, a larger nonprofit organization.

Fresh Start Foundation's entire customer base is concentrated within the VA. All 29 recent awards—17 contracts and delivery orders, 7 federal grants, and 5 other VA contract vehicles—fund VISN 4 or VA health administration programs totaling $63.6 million in combined potential value. VISN 4 alone accounts for all $63.6 million across 17 awards. The Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Health Administration Under Secretary for Health issues federal grants to Fresh Start Foundation for per diem funding supporting transitional housing operations for homeless veterans, with the most recent award made August 28, 2023, carrying an ultimate completion date of September 30, 2025.

Fresh Start Foundation holds a dominant position under a single-award indefinite delivery contract (VA24417D0107) with VISN 4, the primary vehicle anchoring its federal footprint. This IDC, awarded October 1, 2025, carries a ceiling of $14.7 million and runs through September 30, 2030, with work scoped to 24/7 community-based residential care services under the HCHV program, including Low Demand Safe Haven (LDSH) and Contracted Emergency Residential Services (CERS) operations. The contract serves approximately 195 veterans annually across two program levels: $9,125 per veteran daily rate for Emergency Residential Services and $7,300 per veteran daily rate for Safe Haven services. Place of performance encompasses facilities supporting the Philadelphia and Coatesville VA Medical Centers, with administrative oversight at 3900 Woodland Ave, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and geographic scope within Philadelphia and Delaware, Chester, or Montgomery Counties. Under this IDC, a $2.759 million delivery order issued October 8, 2025, covers HCHV program services through September 30, 2026. Four additional IDCs (36C24424D0035, 36C24425D0133, 36C24423D0070, 36C24423D0133) carry smaller ceilings ranging from $539 thousand to $4.3 million and performance periods ending between June 2024 and September 2024.

Concrete recent work includes a $2.452 million firm fixed-price delivery order awarded December 31, 2023, for HCHV services in Philadelphia (completion December 30, 2024); a $1.246 million delivery order issued April 1, 2023, for housing and rehabilitation services in Coatesville (completion February 1, 2024); and a $2.887 million delivery order dated April 1, 2022, for Philadelphia HCHV services (completion September 30, 2023). Most recent award was a $138.4 thousand delivery order issued October 2, 2026, for HCHV program services with completion November 30, 2026. Award frequency has been uneven, with seven awards in 2023, followed by one in 2024, two in 2025, and one in 2026; only one award faces recompete within the next twenty-four months.

Service Contract Inventory data shows Fresh Start Foundation reported $7.1 million in invoiced federal service revenue across FY2024 and FY2025, with zero SCI reportage in FY2022 and FY2023. The organization deployed roughly 20.1 FTEs in FY2024 and 29.8 FTEs in FY2025 against SCI-reportable contracts. Government-paid hourly rates on federal service contracts median around $65.70/hr, ranging from $60.99/hr at the 10th percentile to $70.41/hr at the 90th percentile. Fresh Start Foundation performs all delivery work in-house; across SCI-reportable prime contracts, subcontractors account for 0% of contractor hours. Primary NAICS categorization reflects the work: 17 awards fall under Temporary Shelters (NAICS 6251), while PSC coding shows 12 awards under Social Services—Social Rehabilitation and 5 awards under Social Services—Other.