A Sign of the Times: Homeless Veterans

We've all seen a homeless man on a street corner holding a cardboard sign that read something like, "Homeless Veteran... Can You Help?" We might have asked ourselves, "Could that sign be true?" The answer is yes!

How many homeless veterans are there? Who are these homeless veterans? How can a person who has served our country become homeless?

While we know from the US Census 2000 Veteran Data that there are 26,549,704 veterans living in the US and Puerto Rico , we do not know the exact number of U.S. veterans who are now homeless. Estimates of the total number of homeless veterans differ greatly.

For example, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) estimates that 154,000 veterans are homeless each night, while over 300,000 veterans are homeless at some time during the course of a year.

However, in 1996, The Urban Institute (UI) with the National Survey of Homeless Assistance Providers and Clients (NSHAPC) determined that of the 2.3 million to 3.5 million people who are homeless during the year in the United States, 23% or 529,000 to 840,000 of them are homeless veterans.

Regardless of the exact number of homeless veterans, there are two definitions that must be met in order for former military personnel to be classified as homeless veteran. First, a person must first qualify as a veteran for purposes of Title 38 benefits as one who has served in the active military, naval, or air service and was not dishonorably discharged.

Second, a person must meet the definition of "homeless individual" as established by the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act:

(1) an individual who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate 
nighttime residence; and
(2) an individual who has a primary nighttime residence that is 
-

(A) a supervised publicly or privately operated shelter 
designed to provide temporary living accommodations (including welfare hotels, congregate shelters, and transitional housing 
for the mentally ill);
(B) an institution that provides a temporary residence for 
individuals intended to be institutionalized; or
(C) a public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily 
used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings.

Who is a homeless veteran? Homeless veterans have one or more of the following characteristics:

• nearly 95% of homeless veterans are male, while 5% are female

• 45% of homeless Veterans have some kind of mental illness

• over 70% of homeless veterans suffer from alcohol or drug abuse

• 47% served in the Vietnam War

• 53% served in World War II, Korean War, Cold War, Grenada, Panama, Lebanon, Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan), Operation Iraqi Freedom, or the military's anti-drug cultivation efforts in South America.

• 67% served in the military for more than three years

• 33% served in a war zone

While it is unfortunate that anyone becomes homeless, veterans are more likely to become homeless than civilians. Why is this? No one knows for sure.

Researchers have found that military service is not a sole factor causing homelessness. Rather, studies suggest that military service can be a factor that can lead to personal experiences that can lead directly to homelessness.

For example, in "A Model of Homelessness Among Male Veterans of the Vietnam War Generation" from The American Journal of Psychiatry, authors, Robert Rosenheck and Alan Fontana pointed out that two military factors, combat exposure and participation in atrocities, contribute to "four post-military variables:

(1) low levels of social support upon returning home,

(2) psychiatric disorders (not including Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD),

(3) substance abuse disorders, and

(4) being unmarried (including separation and divorce)

Thus, the study determines that it is these "four post-military variables" that can directly lead to homelessness for many veterans.

Combat-related post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), has been found not to have a direct relationship with homelessness. Further, it has also been found that homeless combat veterans were no more likely to be diagnosed with PTSD than combat veterans who were not homeless.

Homeless veterans also face the same factors that challenge homeless civilians, including the shortage of affordable housing, unavailable employment opportunities and substance abuse.

What is being done to help homeless veterans?

Since 1987, the VA has been the only federal agency providing hands-on assistance directly to homeless people. However, over the course of a year, the VA only reaches 33% or 100,000 of homeless veterans. Thus, 200,000 veterans must seek assistance from local government agencies and service organizations in their communities.

The U.S. Department of Labor Homeless Veterans' Reintegration Program awards grants to grantees that provide case management approaches to link the veterans to training and employment opportunities.

Homeless veterans may find additional assistance through programs funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

On February 17th, President Obama signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Action 2009 which included $1.5 billion for the Homelessness Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP) through which grantees can provide services to prevent and house homeless people.

As we await the implementation of HPRP, possibly the most effective programs for homeless veterans at this moment are the 250 community-based, nonprofit, "veterans helping veterans" groups."

Pictured, in connection with this article, is the amazing sculpture, "Homeless Warrior," by legendary sculptor E.D., Miracle copyright 2008.

I look forward to your comments.

Comments

[Ginnie20886]

Great article, Christine.

From Itoldyouso: "Do they really expect us to believe that they recruited, trained, armed & deployed over 300,000 emotionally disturbed, substance abusing, mentally unstable individuals from broken homes?"

YES, they would prefer that you think that (even tho the logic reflects terribly on them). PTSD, and the VA's inability to deal with it, are a growing concern due to the number of traumatic brain injuries in Iraq and Afghanistan (this is a repeat performance for those of us who remember Agent Orange).

The effects of TBI, and its relationship to PTSD and other mental illnesses, are not understood yet. Government agencies wait a long time before they acknowledge certain illnesses, because until they prove cause and effect relationships, they don't have any liability. But mental illness rarely falls into neat little boxes that way.

Fortunately, we have come a long way since the days where returning vets were spit on in airports, and the AJP study proves just that with the high percentage of homeless Viet Nam vets. As a country, we now realize that we must support our vets even if we did not support their wars.

The IAVA is one of the most committed groups fighting for our veterans, and will be dealing with access to mental health care for years to come. I urge you to learn more about them and join their email list. They use technology effectively to make it easy to support them and their causes.

We must do better.

[ChristineSchanes]

Ginnie 20886,

Thank you for your comment.

And thank you for your kind words.

I agree with you and what you have written. It does defy logic that the VA does not acknowledge that PTSD is a primary cause of homelessness among veterans.

I particularly like your line, "As a country, we now realize that we must support our vets even if we did not support their wars."

I took your suggestion and went to the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) website at the following link: http://communityofveterans.org/

I've also contacted them by email so I can learn more about IAVA.

Thank you for the great referral. Please keep them coming.

Christine

[TexasDem0]

It is a disgrace that the wealthiest nation in the world does not provide shelters for the homeless, many of whom are mentally ill and living in the streets since GOP Patron Saint Ron Regan cut funding for mental health.

The GOP has no problem bypassing federal regulations to give no-bid contracts to their friends. They are outraged over calls for investigations of Billions of dollars in fraudulent billing. Under the claim that the free market will sort it all out, they allow oil futures speculators to artificially jack up fuel prices. They stonewall investigations into criminal negligence that allows our military personnel to be electrocuted in the shower. They want to eliminate “government interference” to allow food processors to ship salmonella contaminated products.

Heaven forbid we spend a dime on some unfortunate individual who cannot help himself. Saint Ron would not approve. GOP Christianity is hatred, intolerance, and obsessive greed by the rich who steal from those who were not born into privilege.

[ChristineSchanes]

TexasDemo,

Thank you for your comment.

Greed, as you write, is it. Greed everywhere. Greed about everything. From big greed of whole countries and political parties to the small greed of landlords who increase rents to unreasonable levels as well as our greed in small everyday activities.

The solution to eliminating greed, I think, is compassion. Simple compassion. Remembering that we're all brothers and sisters, I believe, is the way to open our hearts and change our behavior towards one another. We can learn, remember and understand that by helping others, we truly help ourselves.

Please keep in touch,
Christine

[itolduso]

Christine -I just had to question the statistic claiming that P.T.S.D.'s do not lead to homelessness, so I asked where you found them, thanks, I figured the V.A. had to be your source, they still insist on denying the PRIMARY SOURCE of many of the problems that veterans face. POST TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER. Do they really expect us to believe that they recruited, trained, armed & deployed over 300,000 emotionally disturbed, substance abusing, mentally unstable individuals from broken homes? Or are the self medicating, depression, rage, nightmares, sleep disorders, substance abuse and domestic problems symptoms of an untreated psychological condition caused by constant & repeated exposure to trauma (such as is found in combat situations)? The longer the V.A. continues to delay & deny treatment, the more our streets will be haunted by soldiers that never made it all the way home.

[ChristineSchanes]

itolduso,

Thanks for your comment.

I agree with your assessment of the VA.

Imagine if the 1996 number of homeless veterans published by the Urban Institute is correct - 529,000 to 840,000 homeless veterans in 1996. With all the military conflicts we've had since then, I can only imagine what the true number of homeless veterans is today.

I am continuing to research the PTSD connection to homelessness. Do you have any references the would be helpful? I would like to find research that links PTSD directly to homelessness.

Anyone who is aware of the pervasive symptoms of PTSD, as you've listed, knows that it is direct cause of homelessness.

All I can think of is that the VA is a victim itself of politics for denying that PTSD is caused by military service in combat and that PTSD is a primary cause of homelessness.

Please keep in touch,
Christine

[scooperss]

Thank you Christine. Yes, I see the ones holding up signs at the local Walmart entrance until they are run off. I give when I can, what I can to veteran's groups.

[ChristineSchanes]

Scoopers,

Thanks for your comment.

And thanks for all you do to help homeless veterans and veteran's groups.

It is my belief that no one should be homeless, least of all a veteran. Helping homeless people is not rocket science. It is the natural expression of compassion, love in action, for our homeless brothers and sisters. As you know, everyone can help. Working together, we can end homelessness.

Please keep in touch,
Christine

[MelanieMatthias]

Though some of us end up homeless through no fault of our own, others end up this way from a series of bad decisions. Regaurdless of how you become homeless, it is one of the most horrible things that can happen to you. Unless you have experienced it, I don't think you can understand the horror, pain and degrading feeling it is.
I think it is beyond terrible that in one of the richest countries in the world we have homeless people. There are thousands upon thousands of empty houses and buildings that could be used to help people. Our whole system is just unbelievable, dogs in doggie hotels for $40,000.00 a night? It is so hard to understand.
This thing with Veterans though, being a homeless person and looking at a Vet who is homeless, you have this kind of burning rage where you know it isn't right. They above all, along with children should never, ever be homeless. They paid a price for a roof over their heads for all time. Niether should they ever be hungry.
America needs to take care of her own and not let her children be hungry and homeless, maybe one day they won't be. Veterans,hungry and homeless, should never have happened, and should never be tolerated.

[ChristineSchanes]

Melanie,

Thank you for your comment.

I don't know if I'm interpreting your words correctly, but I am sorry if you have been homeless yourself.

Regardless of your current economic status, please know that I feel that homeless people are among the bravest people on the planet.

I agree with you that to have served one's country and end up homeless is a commentary on the United States, not the homeless veteran.

Please keep in touch,
Christine

[ChristineSchanes]

itolduso,

Thanks for your comment.

I totally agree with you! After working with homeless veterans for over 20 years, I was shocked by what I learned by researching this topic. The picture of E.D. Miracle's amazing sculpture reminded me what an important topic homeless veterans is so I did extensive research to see what I could learn.

Everything that you write about is backed by the research that I've done.

Thanks for your continuing comments. I look forward to hearing from you.

Christine

[Dynamohum]

After reading your post I have concluded that we need better tracking data. The percentages of homeless veterans primarily include VietNam vets and WWII vets. What about Bush HW's Iraq war and the current War in Iraq/Afghanistan? The statistics are woefully outdated.
However, thank you for bringing the information to light.

[ChristineSchanes]

Dynamohum,

Thank you for your comment.

Absolutely, we need better tracking data! The Department of Veterans' Affairs (VA) estimates that 300,000 veterans are homeless over the course of the year. However, the 1996 estimate from the Urban Institute is a much, much higher number - 529,000 to 840,000 veterans are homeless over the course of a year.

The VA has complained in the past about not getting funding for homeless veterans. But, a large part of getting funding is justifying the amount of money you're requesting by estimating the number of people you intend to help with the funds you're asking for.

If the VA estimates a small number of veterans who are homeless, they can only justify a small appropriation of funds.

It is to everyone's benefit to get the true data on the number of homeless veterans we have in this Country.

Please stay in touch,
Christine

[TexasDem0]

Dynamohum, Veterans returning home with PTSD may not realize that they have it. It can take years, or even decades, for the symptoms to manifest. These figures will undoubtedly be very different in 10 to 15 years, as there will be fewer veterans from WWII, Korea, and Vietnam, and more Iraq and Afghanistan veterans will begin to show symptoms over time.

[ChristineSchanes]

TexasDemo,

Thanks for your comment.

I appreciate your knowledge about PTSD. Are you in the health field and/or well read on the subject?

Do yo have any references about PTSD and it's relationship to causing homelessness? Or perhaps you are an authority yourself on the subject. Whatever you might be able to share with me and others would be helpful.

I have a question: is there any treatment in the short term that can lessen the symptoms or end PTSD before the 30 - 40 year condition ends on its own?

Please keep in touch,
Christine

[itolduso]

Thank you Christine. So many of our soldiers end up lost & alone on the streets of America, & I'm afraid it's only going to get worse, those serving now are already isolated. In our current wars, only 1% of the population is serving...for the rest of us it barely exists. As Stephan Colbert pointed out- "The war must be over, it's no longer on the news". After the attack on Pearl Harbor, the entire country united and sacrificed­...million­s enlisting in the armed forces, and those at home shared in the pain & cost, rationing of gas, rubber, nylon, sugar, ect., it was considered a 'patriotic duty' to do without.....war bond rallys, volunteering to roll bandages, serve at canteens and train stations, blood drives...all joined in the effort. Compare that to our response to the attacks on 9/11, when we were called on to "go shopping", and the complete lack of shared sacrifice and coordinated effort today. The true costs of this war remain hidden and are born by too few, it's time for the rest of us to finally start shouldering our share.