Kalshi pledges $1 million to NYCHA Health Corps as New York sues it over gambling

The prediction market company Kalshi has committed $1 million over four years to a NYCHA program that trains public housing residents as community health workers, even as New York State pursues a lawsuit accusing the company of running an illegal gambling operation.

Kalshi, the Public Housing Community Fund, NYCHA and Rep. Ritchie Torres announced the new Kalshi Public Housing Health Fund on Thursday, Nov. 5, at the PSS Andrew Jackson Senior Center in the Bronx, according to The NYCHA Journal, the housing authority's resident news site.

What the money pays for

The fund anchors the NYCHA Health Corps, run by NYCHA's Department of Resident Health Initiatives with the Public Housing Community Fund. It covers members' living allowances while they serve. NYCHA says up to 35 residents from all five boroughs will be sworn in as the next cohort this December.

• Members are placed at NYCHA, the city Health Department, NYC Health + Hospitals and community groups, where they share information on chronic disease prevention, family wellbeing and other health needs, and support programs such as Healthy Start @ NYCHA.
• Up to 20 host organizations will provide on-the-job training and career sessions.
• The program's stated goal is to place 60% of graduates in health-related jobs or further education within four months of finishing.

Torres, who grew up in NYCHA, said the Bronx "has long ranked worst in health outcomes" in the state and called resident-led care an innovative fix. NYCHA CEO Lisa Bova-Hiatt said the program will now be "reliably funded" for four years.

The lawsuit in the background

The gift lands while Kalshi, which lets users trade on whether events such as elections will happen, is in a legal fight with New York. Attorney General Letitia James and Gov. Kathy Hochul sued the company in July, alleging it operates an illegal, unlicensed gambling business without a license from the State Gaming Commission, amNewYork and the Bronx Times reported.

Kalshi CEO Tarek Mansour said at the event that while he believes markets can predict nearly everything, they cannot solve every problem, and called the gift an investment in a healthier New York. Torres, who has embraced crypto and blockchain in Congress, introduced a bill in January to bar federal elected officials and congressional staff from insider trading on political prediction markets, the outlets noted.

It is not Kalshi's first local donation: the company previously announced a $3 million partnership with Housing Works to support the nonprofit's East Harlem clinic.