Philadelphia greenlights Allergy Technologies’ 5-year program

Allergy Technologies and the Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA) have launched a preventive program to keep bed bugs out of the city’s public housing developments.

PHA was awarded a $15 million, five-year contract to implement ATAHC in 6,000 residential units throughout Philadelphia, Pa.

Allergy Technologies Affordable Housing Control (ATAHC) and Prevention Program incorporated an initial facility-wide screening and subsequent treatment of infested residential units, immediately lowering the bed bug population. The installation of long-acting preventive measures property-wide ensures that the bed bug population stays under control.

The program was approved based on the success of a pilot program that was launched in the city in 2020.

Allergy Technologies will initially provide education for staff and residents as part of ATAHC’s implementation. In the pilot program, ATAHC was proven to cut bed bug incidents by over 99 percent in affordable housing communities over two years, with a goal of achieving zero bed bug infestations.

ATAHC was designed by Allergy Technologies to be an affordable and sustainable model of control and prevention of bed bugs in affordable housing. This first-of-its-kind pilot program launched has yielded results:

• Greater than 99 percent of residential units had no bed bug reintroductions.
• Facility managers realized a bed bug-related expense reduction of more than 40 percent.

“Our residents deserve homes free of this insidious pest,” PHA President and CEO Kelvin Jeremiah said in a news release. “The ATAHC Program was chosen for its proven effectiveness and sustainability attained through a preventive and collaborative approach. It’s not simply a reactive strategy aimed at killing bed bugs when reported, but rather a program that unifies residents, staff, and pest control professionals in partnership to deliver a prevention-based solution to this complex problem.”