Obama Commits to Ending Veteran Homelessness
Published June 06, 2009 @ 04:26AM PT
Ending homelessness for over 160,000 veterans in five years is no small task. But the Obama administration has pledged to do just that. And with the recent creation of a new office, the U.S. Department of Veteran's Affairs' National Center on Homelessness Among Veterans, the administration is certainly moving in the right direction.
Although just one half of one percent of the VA budget is currently directed towards combatting veteran homelessness, perhaps this new office will change things up a bit. In the meantime, take a peek at their snazzy new website, it contains a lot of eye-opening information. Case in point: here are six figures that jumped out at me (all stats are from this page):
- About one-third of the adult homeless population have served their country in the Armed Services.
- Current population estimates suggest that about 154,000 Veterans (male and female) are homeless on any given night and perhaps twice as many experience homelessness at some point during the course of a year.
- Right now, the number of homeless male and female Vietnam era Veterans is greater than the number of service persons who died during that war.
- Almost all homeless Veterans are male (about three percent are women), the vast majority are single, and most come from poor, disadvantaged backgrounds.
- About 45% of homeless Veterans suffer from mental illness and (with considerable overlap) slightly more than 70% suffer from alcohol or other drug abuse problems.
- Roughly 56% of homeless veterans are African American or Hispanic.
Ending veteran homelessness in five years will take a serious infusion of resources, coordination of services, and overhaul of the way we treat our vets after their service. But there's no question that we can achieve this goal with the right leadership and support.
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Comments (13)
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Author
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Shannon has worked in homeless shelters and service organizations in San Francisco, the Triangle region of North Carolina, and currently in the greater Boston area. She is a graduate student studying housing and urban policy at Tufts University.
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YES HE CAN:
VA health care needs major boost in funding
For decades our government has done a very good job of saving taxpayers’ money with inadequate Veterans Affairs funding.
President Obama recently made excellent leadership appointments to Veterans Affairs. Even with their proven leadership abilities, and impeccable credentials, both Secretary Eric Shinseki and Deputy Secretary W. Scott Gould are facing the cumulative inadequacies of decades past. The tiny fuse of overmedication that has kept this whole VA system operational for 30-some years now desperately needs to be replaced with major re-wiring.
This young generation of veterans should not have to experience the palliative treatment of health care most veterans using the VA have experienced for decades. It would be great to see the VA step into the 21st century as the leader in world-class health care.
But after decades of under-funding, this proposed new VA budget is not enough. For our new leadership to achieve its full potential along with world-class VA health care, a one-time, additional funding of at least $17 billion is desperately needed.
The VA has many good doctors working there who will feel much relief to actually have the opportunity to treat their patients instead of just medicating their symptoms.
Posted by Pat Smith on 06/06/2009 @ 11:13AM PT
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that is a great Idea about our country. To ending homelessness for over 160,000 veterans in five years is no small task. Our president SAY that ? That is a good signe for our country. But the Obama administration has pledged to do just that. And with the recent creation of a new office, the U.S. Department of Veteran's Affairs' National Center on Homelessness Among Veterans, the administration is certainly moving in the right direction. I like that.
Posted by Pathiel Gach on 06/06/2009 @ 11:21AM PT
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I am a Vietnam vet who, thank God, has never needed what these so desperately need. For too long the Vietnam vet was reviled but we, for the most part, got over it and moved on. Bottom line, it does not matter in what era they served, WWII, Korea, Vietnam, actions between then and the current war on terrorism, they served and deserve a hell of a lot better than what they have been given. If this is not an empty promise, as have many before, then it is high time and long, long over due.
Posted by Thomas Kinney on 06/06/2009 @ 05:09PM PT
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Give me a break. Nobody cares about veterans. Obama's administration labels us as terrorists.
Get a clue. The US is like Rome now. We are welcome only when there is killing to be done. As soon as we come back the rich fat self entitiled liberals that would never lift a finger to defend the country don't want us around anymore.
Rome ended. There is your biggest clue. Study why.
Posted by Steve Tilson on 06/12/2009 @ 09:17AM PT
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It'll take lots of volunteers too. They have my two tiny hands.
Posted by Heather McClellan on 06/12/2009 @ 10:00AM PT
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“ As Shannon points out, this is going to take a reconfiguring of priorities: Right now, only one half of one percent of the VA budget is currently directed toward addressing veteran homelessness. “
In 2007 the VA budget funding was a whopping (1.15%) one point one-five percent of the whole Federal budget. Priority should be focused on restructuring the VA. Most people who were at least pre-teen in small USA hometowns nationwide should all remember when young veterans started returning home from Vietnam. To reduce the likelihood of returning warriors being homeless they should automatically be enrolled in a restructuring evaluation twice a month for their first six months as veterans. Two monthly payments of $500 dollars would insure their presence at the VA twice a month their first six months back home. If he or she did not show up twice a month for six months, that much itself would ring an alarm bell. And the paperwork already done would also provide for an easy transition to GI bill benefits. In 2007 the VA budget funding was a whopping (1.15%) one point one-five percent of the whole Federal budget. Priority must be focused on restructuring the VA.
Please stop calling apartment’s for veterans who were down on their luck names such as; The Smith apartment house for homeless veterans or they will never feel at home.
Posted by Pat Smith on 06/12/2009 @ 11:13AM PT
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I also am blogging to help end homelessness with the help of, you guessed it, the homeless themselves. The homeless are now gaining traction on the internet. Here's the blog of a prominent homeless advocate who is himself homeless:http://streatstv.blogspot.com/here's my blog:
http://projectjulio.blogspot.com/2009/06/hoblogging-or-twittering-without-nest.html
Posted by Julio James on 06/12/2009 @ 01:02PM PT
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It is really sad, and I'm shocked to hear of all the American soldiers who have suffered so badly mentally and physically to be treated this way. They offered their lives to serve your Country, they deserve your governments totall support and help. I hope this happens. From Australia
Posted by Jennifer Hodges on 06/12/2009 @ 04:58PM PT
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Taking care of our homeless veterans has become a priority for a few concern citizens in Summit County Ohio. We have a facility in nearby Portage County called Freedom House. This transitional housing facility not only gives our veterans a place to call home but helps them with their VA paperwork, health care, employment, integration back into society, becoming self sufficient, and permanent housing. This wonderful facility is the model we plan to follow in Summit County. We are currently awaiting grant approval from the VA Grant and Per Diem program, if this grant does not get awarded to us we are already working on Plan B. We have a very dedicated Executive Board and we have land donated for the facility from the City of Akron. Future plans will also include a facility for female veterans and their dependants. Our facility will be called Valor Home and we are very excited to be giving back to our veterans in Ohio.
Kim Schmidt
Secretary
Valor Home Committee
Posted by Kimberly Schmidt on 06/13/2009 @ 07:06AM PT
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Thank you Pat, for pointing out how difficult it is for veterans to hear the labels of helplessness. To regain their hope and dignity, veterans need the idea of a "a hand up, not a hand out" - a motto I noticed being used by the VA. Change begins with the language we use.
Vacancies for Veterans - that was my term project for my class in the Masters of Social Work program. I have been working with Veteran's who are homeless for the last two years as a student.
The idea was to create partnerships with local motels that are suffering in this economy. Emergency aid funds (stimulus?) or grant funds can be used to purchase (at a major discount in bulk), motel lodging coupons that can be redeemed to fill vacancies for veterans who are in need of brief temporary housing i.e. near a job site until the first paycheck can open up another option, the few days until that apartment becomes available or the coldest winter nights when those who served our nation are at the greatest risk of freezing to death.
Motels as businesses can be honored by the Chamber of Commerce for participating in the Vacancies for Veterans program with placards that show their support for the veteran in need, which is an advertising bonus along with a financial boost for rooms that would otherwise go unoccupied. Services like cleaning the room themselves could be an option to reduce costs. Most veterans I've met would jump at the chance to do something in return for help and it boosts morale.
Yes, this is only one 'band aid' idea, but it speaks to the community participating in the effort to support our veterans. It boosts the economy, and directly benefits the veteran with very little over head, because existing service agencies can easily screen and distribute the coupons.
They are not Vouchers, because there goes the dignity. They are coupons for Vacancies for Veterans used to honor the needs of Veterans who have served our country.
Grant and per Diem and permanent housing is the ideal. Most resources should go this way. Yet, sometimes, it is the 'band aid' that can make the immediate difference and restore hope.
Any veteran advocate anywhere can initiate this effort. Money for these small projects is available, the resource is intact – it just takes time and a passionate coordinator.
My class liked the idea, do any of you?
Posted by L W on 07/04/2009 @ 03:42AM PT
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LW,
This is a very good idea, and the best advocate’s for this would be veterans using this new GI bill. A coordinated effort by just a few college vets nationwide, would not require much of their time at all. Plus it is a fact; the best way to help you is to help other veterans. As it has been documented for decades now, we have even more veteran’s who just feel so cold and empty, like a lost soul out of place. While it would not solve all our problems we really need Something to Believe In;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xe71zCA5xFQ
Immediately click on the (HQ) button to avoid circles in center of screen
Posted by Pat Smith on 07/04/2009 @ 05:47AM PT
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7/30/09...Administration adds "additional" 10,000 HUD-VASH Vouchers to House App. Bill...this on top of the recent 10,000 vouchers just presented last month. This is a first!Also a small sample of how to "end" homelessness and begin "engaging with both veterans and non-veterans has just completed a two year equation. A 70% success factor where most partners are seeing 35-45%. The Equation r, (ee2) is credited and can be discussed at http://twozerothree.org in Pittsburgh. Talk is this has a national role model dialog already in place. Thank you Change.org I remain VR+ jim
Posted by Jim White on 07/30/2009 @ 08:19PM PT
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Along with homeless Vets, let's not forget the surviving spouse of of veteran. Upon his death ,his pension dissapears. Other than one less mouth to feed and at these ages they ain't eating much--All else stays the same. You will immediately reduce the survivor's economic status by more than a half and feel this is justified. Nothing has changed for the suvivor, except heartache and lonliness. Taxes are the same, utility bills are the same, insurance same and going up, maintenance on home same and going up because now you'll pay for what your spouse had done when allive. Savings are gone, Funeral paid for with last monies, husband gave lung for defense of country and you'll just go ahead and feel that this is the best deal you can offer your defenders of justice and truth. Truth be told ,this is not just. It is filthy actually and needs fixed. Didn't forget his name during the draft,don't forget it now !!!!!
Posted by Richard Fusia on 10/20/2009 @ 09:41AM PT
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