This article examines the cost-effectiveness of providing permanent supported housing to homeless people with mental illness. Through the use of billing records and frequency of use charts, researchers were able to map the service usage of a cohort of 268 homeless individuals from both urban and rural communities. The results suggest that…

Reviews prior research on homelessness and describes what remains to be done. Calls for greater attention to the socioeconomic causes of homelessness, its image in the media, and public attitudes toward the problem. (DM)

Describes family support programs implemented by major corporations and labor organizations such as the International Brotherhood of the Teamsters and Corning Glass. Relates the effects of child neglect and the housing crisis on a nine-year-old boy in New York. (FMW)

Examines subgroups of the homeless population and their needs for shelter. Argues that governments and charities should make distinctions among the highly diverse groups of the homeless and cease providing unlimited and unconditional aid to the able bodied, which tends to ensnare youth in the culture of dependency. (FMW)

Changes in homelessness since the 1950s and 1960s involve increasing numbers of homeless persons, striking differences in their composition, and marked deterioration in their condition. Beyond similarly high levels of mental illness and substance abuse, the new homeless are younger, poorer, often shelterless, and include more minorities, women,…

Discusses areas of disagreement between the Institute of Medicine's report, "Homelessness, Health and Human Needs," and the controversial supplementary statement, "Health Care for the Homeless," issued separately by 10 of the authors. (FMW)

Providing housing and supports for people with psychiatric disabilities, particularly those who are homeless, is a major public policy challenge. Summarizes ways in which the concept of these needs is rapidly shifting in the mental health field. This population is increasingly seen as capable of full-community participation and integration. (AF)

This supplementary statement, prepared by 10 members of the Institute of Medicine's Committee on Health Care for the Homeless, expands upon the Committee's report, "Homelessness, Health and Human Needs." Argues that the only broad, long-term solution to the health problems of the homeless is immediate action to provide decent, affordable…

Describes regional and federal responses to the homelessness crisis, including the author-sponsored White House Conference on Homelessness Act. Supports legislative measures to accomplish the following goals: (1) increased low-income housing; (2) treatment of mentally ill and alcohol- and drug-dependent individuals; and (3) new approaches to…

Recent research suggests that approximately one-third of homeless single adults suffer from severe mental illnesses. Discusses federal initiatives undertaken by the National Institutes of Mental Health (NIMH) to encourage research and improve services for this subgroup. Describes the target population, NIMH research findings, and current mental…

Discusses the need for critical review of expert scientific findings used in the development of social policy. Uses the case of dissent from the Institute of Medicine's report on health care for the homeless to illustrate the conflict between scientific and practical moral objectivity. (FMW)

Outlines a 10-year program to upgrade the condition of the homeless. Lists general economic and social goals. (FMW)

Homelessness is a growing problem in every part of the United States. Federal legislation requires state plans for educating homeless children, but will provide less than $23 per child. Summarizes some of the state plans and suggests steps school boards can take to provide homeless children with public education. (MLF)

Discusses the basic economic changes and previous conservative policies that have resulted in the increase of homelessness and the decrease in the supply of affordable housing. Argues that the solution to homelessness lies with federally funded, nonprofit housing in various forms. (FMW)