COUNTERING MILITARY RECRUITMENT
Articles: Leaving Military: Veterans
Report: Veteran Homelessness on the Rise
Terry Howell, military.com
June 18, 2007
The
wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have contributed to a sharp rise in the
number of homeless military veterans, a recently completed
Congressional Research Service report on homeless veterans says, and
lawmakers are beginning to take notice.
The report shows female veterans were as much as four times more likely
to become homeless than non-veteran women, with male veterans nearly
twice as likely to become homeless than non-veterans.
Though many believe homelessness plagues Vietnam draftees
disproportionately, the largest group of homeless vets comes from those
who enlisted after Vietnam, the May 31 CRS report showed.
And although experiences in combat and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
are contributing factors to homelessness, studies have "found no unique
association between combat-related PTSD and homelessness," the report
said.
In addition, "research has determined that homeless combat veterans
were no more likely to be diagnosed with PTSD than combat veterans who
were not homeless," CRS said.
Since Vietnam, most veterans do not normally become homeless within the
first 10 years of separation, the CRS report said. But a December 2006
"Iraq Veteran Project" study prepared by the Swords to Plowshares
veterans' advocacy group, troops who've served in Iraq and Afghanistan
are becoming homeless sooner than their predecessors - seeking housing
services within months after returning from Iraq.
"New veterans are falling through the cracks, and they are shocked and
angry at the lack of care afforded them," said Iraq Veteran Project
report author, Amy Fairweather. "They stand at the precipice of chronic
homelessness unless there is a concerted effort to address their
needs."
And Congress is taking notice.
Illinois Democrat and presidential hopeful, Sen. Barack Obama, told the
Associated Press at an April 6 campaign rally that "veterans are far
more likely to be homeless than non-veterans and part of it is because
we're not providing services to them as they transition out of the
service,"
"Part of it is because there is just not enough affordable housing," he added.
In April, Obama introduced legislation dubbed the "Homes for Heroes
Act," which would establish grant and voucher programs to encourage
development of affordable housing targeted for veterans.
In addition, Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-Hawaii) has introduced a bill that
would institute a program in which the VA and DoD would work together
to identify returning members of the armed services who are at risk of
homelessness.
On the other side of the aisle, Sen. Larry Craig (R. Idaho), is lending his clout to the problem.
"The number of homeless on any given night is too high and we are
working hard on Capitol Hill to turn those numbers around," said Craig,
who recently received the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans 2007
Congressional Award.
According to the Iraq Veteran Project report, the VA has created a list
of factors that can help prevent homelessness, including employment
assistance, transition assistance, rehabilitation, medical care,
commensurate employment, compensation award and work therapy.
In response to congressional pressure, the Pentagon recently partnered
with several federal agencies to create an online portal called "Turbo
TAP" designed to help veterans get the information, counseling, and
access to the services they need to ensure a successful transition from
military to civilian life.
The CRS report adds there are currently five federal programs
specifically designed to assist homeless veterans, these programs will
require about $270 million in 2007, and future costs are on the rise.
Other research indicates that VA homeless programs have already served
as many as 600 returning OIF/OEF veterans and over 1,000 more have been
identified as being at risk of becoming homeless, CRS added.
This leaves many veterans' advocates concerned that the current VA
budget and infrastructure will not be able to respond to the needs of
an ever-increasing number of homeless and at risk veterans in the
coming years.
"VA has consistently underestimated the homeless veteran problem," said
Larry Scott, veterans' advocate and founder of "VA Watchdog.org."
"And, even when presented with hard data on the number of homeless vets
in America, VA continues to under fund outreach, rehabilitation
programs and facilities designed to help this vulnerable population."
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