“. . . until we reach a day when not a single Veteran sleeps on the street, our business is unfinished.” -- President Obama remarks during a March 26, 2009 online town hall meeting.
June 5. The U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, chaired by Congressman Bob Filner, held a hearing this week on “A National Commitment to End Veterans’ Homelessness.” In opening remarks at Wednesday’s hearing, Chairman Filner noted that the Committee and VA Secretary Eric Shinseki, who is also the current chair of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, have made ending Veterans homelessness a priority and encouraged the four panels of witnesses to tell the Committee “what’s working, what’s not, and what you need” to accomplish this goal.
The Committee received testimony from U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Labor officials, national and community based organizations, and researchers on the effectiveness of service and treatment programs being provided to homeless Veterans directly by the VA and in partnership with other federal agencies, local governments, and community based organizations. During the hearing, attention was also focused on the special needs of homeless and at risk women Veterans and on expanding outreach/marketing and early intervention efforts to prevent homelessness. Witnesses widely praised the VA’s Homeless Providers Grant and Per Diem program, the VA’s largest collaborative effort with local communities that has resulted in the development of nearly 14,000 supportive transitional housing beds for homeless Veterans with funding for another 1000 beds due to be awarded later this summer. Several recommendations were made for improving administration of the program, including the calculation and payment of the per diem rate, and increasing the program funding level to $200 million a year.
Testifying on behalf of the VA, Homeless Programs Director Pete Dougherty, who is also the Acting Executive Director of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, told the Committee that Secretary Shinseki’s goal is to eliminate homelessness among Veterans in five years. Mr. Dougherty spoke of the “unprecedented commitment and collaborative relationships at the Federal, state, territorial, tribal, and local government level . . . and the more than 500 community, non profit and faith based service providers working in tandem with the VA’s health care and benefits staff.”
Mr. Dougherty told the Committee the VA has estimated from local data that there were approximately 131,000 homeless Veterans on any given night in 2008, a 33 percent reduction in homelessness over the last three years. “This progress demonstrates to us that this scourge of homelessness, while difficult to address, is not impossible,” he said. He reviewed with the Committee members progress being made through existing programs and new initiatives being developed, particularly those focused on homelessness prevention including a congressionally authorized VA-HUD pilot prevention program for at risk Veterans and their families and a VA-Department of Labor pilot effort which will begin in FY 2010 to demonstrate effective homeless prevention approaches for Veterans being discharged from institutional settings. Department of Labor Deputy Assistant Secretary for Veterans Employment and Training John McWilliams also testified on the Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program.
Additional presenters at the hearing were: John Driscoll, National Coalition for Homeless Veterans; Dwight Radcliff, Sr, US Vets; Marsha Four, Vietnam Veterans of America Committee on Women Veterans; Sam Fann, Manna House-Johnson City, TN; Phil Landis, Veterans Village of San Diego; Carol Adams, Ph.D, Illinois Department of Human Services; George Basher, VA Advisory Committee on Homeless Veterans; and Carol Caton, Ph.D, and Brendan O’Flaherty, Columbia Center on Homelessness Prevention Studies, which is the nation's only NIMH-funded research center on more effective approaches to homelessness prevention. Center Director Caton provided a brief summary of the Center’s work that has included studies on the efficacy of Housing First and Critical Time Intervention strategies, and several ongoing and upcoming studies.
New York City Department of Homeless Services Commissioner Rob Hess reported on the continuing progress of the City’s efforts to end Veteran homelessness led by the 2006 Operation Home initiative of Mayor Michael Bloomberg and then VA Secretary James Nicholson which charged a Task Force with “creating a dedicated veterans service system outside the transitional homeless service system that would meet the unique needs of homeless Veterans and tie them to the rich array of resources already provided by the VA.” A first goal of housing “100 veterans in 100 days” while the Task Force completed its work was not only exceeded when 135 Veterans were housed but since then 1900 more Veterans have moved from temporary shelter into permanent housing.
Between December 2006 and May 2009, the number of Veterans living in New York City shelters has been reduced by 60%. The City’s new system includes a multi-service center which became operational in May 2008 serving as a single point of access for homeless Veterans and for those at-risk of becoming homeless which integrates DHS intake services with access to medical, mental health and substance abuse treatment available through the VA medical system, as well as housing and other support services. The Center also makes available preventive services needed to divert those Veterans who are at risk of becoming homeless. Soon to open is a Veteran specific Safe Haven, a housing model proven to be particularly effective at engaging those living on the streets. Mr. Hess credited the “creation of specific and measurable goals” as a major factor in the City’s success so far and also spoke of the importance of “federal partners in bringing initiatives to scale.” He noted that of the 1000 HUD-VASH funded vouchers the city received from the $75 million funding made available nationally last year, 701 had already been distributed by May 1. Commissioner Hess was accompanied by Mr. Ronald Marte, who after serving in Iraq had become homeless and has been able to move from a shelter into permanent housing with a HUD-VASH voucher.
Visit the Committee’s website to read the witnesses’ prepared statements and Committee members statements.
(note: The Committee held a special roundtable in May on women Veterans issues. On Thursday, the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Health considered and approved with an amendment legislation, HR 1211, on health care services for women Veterans. Also this week, New York Senator Chuck Schumer, along with cosponsors Senators Durbin of Illinois, Menendez of New Jersey and Brown of Ohio, formally introduced S 1160, the Homes for Heroes Act of 2009, housing assistance legislation for homeless and very low income Veterans and their families which had been championed by President Obama when he was a Senator.)
Did You Know?
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VA staff include Homeless Veterans Outreach Coordinators at every Veterans Benefit Administration regional office who network with other community agencies to identify homeless Veterans, advise them of any VA benefits and services for which they are eligible, and assist them in receiving expedited claims processing.
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VA is the nation’s largest integrated health care system and provides health care to over 100,000 homeless Veterans annually. VA has adopted strong performance measures and a Mental Health Uniform Service Package to ensure that homeless Veterans receive prompt access to mental health and substance abuse care.
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VA’s 42 Domiciliary Care programs treated nearly 6000 homeless Veterans in FY 2008.
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As of April 2009, 7300 Veterans have received HUD-VASH housing vouchers and data reveals that 12% of the units are occupied by women Veterans and 14% have one or more children in residence.
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The best strategy to prevent homelessness is early intervention. Outreach efforts to combat theater Veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan are especially important. Community organizations and 10 Year Plan implementation efforts can become familiar with the health care and other benefits available to these returning Veterans by visiting the VA’s Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom website at http://www.oefoif.va.gov/. Each VA Medical Center also has an OEF/OIF Care Management Team ready to welcome OEF/OIF Veterans and help coordinate care.
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The United States Interagency Council on Homelessness continues to encourage every state, county, or city jurisdictional 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness to include specific strategies for preventing and ending Veteran homelessness. Some examples of 10 Year Plans with veteran specific strategies are provided on our State and Local page where you can also find contact information for our Regional Coordinators.
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