The Homeless Veteran Crisis Theu.s. Housing And Urban...

The Homeless Veteran Crisis The failure of the United States government to sufficiently care for their men and women in the military can be seen in the number of homeless veterans. In fact, the U.S. Housing and Urban development (H.U.D.) reports there are over 39,000 members of the armed services living on the street (2016). The main causes of vagrancy among veterans include lack of housing, jobs, and access to health care (National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, n.d.). Men and women ex-soldiers run a higher risk of becoming homeless if they are: suffering from a mental illness or substance abuse problem; lack support systems; or are disabled (Ainslie Cooper, 2016). Nature and Scope The definition of a homeless veteran is a U.S. service members, with an honorable discharge, who is unable to find and/or sustain reliable housing (Ainslie Cooper, 2016). Many men and women leave their military life to find it difficult to assimilate back into civilian life which can cause homelessness. First, the occupations they held as soldiers do not convey in the private sector (National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, n.d.). Second, many ex-military members suffer from; PTSD and/or other mental health disorders, substance abuse, or co-occurring disorders (National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, n.d.). Last, they lack support from their family, friends, and community (National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, n.d.). Incidentally, homeless ex-service members served in