1. Kyle McEvilly
Communications and Program Assistant
kmcevilly@nchv.org
National Coalition for Homeless Veterans
www.nchv.org
“Veterans and Homelessness in
Rural Areas”
April 22, 2014April 22, 2014
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2. A Presidential Push
“We will provide new help
for homeless Veterans because
those heroes have a home –
it’s the country they served,
the United States of America.”
-President Obama (March 16, 2009)
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3. Agenda
Background on Veteran Homelessness
Rural Veterans and Homelessness
Programs
Remaining Challenges, Existing Services
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4. NCHV Mission:
NCHV will end homelessness among veterans by shaping public policy,
promoting collaboration, and building the capacity of service providers.
Federal Strategic Plan:
Access to Housing – (Housing First, rapid rehousing)
Access to Health Care – (primary, mental, and rehabilitative
services)
Income Security – (employment, benefits counseling)
Prevention – (rapid rehousing, financial assistance, supportive
services)
The VA Five-Year Plan to End Veteran Homelessness is PART of the Federal
Strategic Plan – nothing stops at the end of FY 2015
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5. Background on Veteran Homelessness
Graph from The 2013 Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR) to Congress
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9. Homelessness and women veterans
o 1,380 in FY 2006 / 3,328 in FY 2010 / 4,456 in FY 2013
o Factors that impact total numbers
Data improvements and limitations; Impact of prevention and rapid re-housing;
Impact of HUD-VASH
Homeless veterans in families
o 2% of homeless veterans are part of a family
o Factors that impact total numbers:
National mainstream trends; impact of HUD-VASH and
prevention programs
OIF/OEF/OND veterans:
o 5% of all veterans are between the ages of 18 and 30
o 9% of homeless veterans are in this age group
Aging veterans:
o 42.3% of veterans in shelter are between the ages 51 and 61
Trends in Veteran Homelessness
Homelessness & women veterans: Homeless Women Veterans: Actions Needed to Ensure Safe and Appropriate Housing (GAO, 2011);
The 2013 AHAR to Congress
Homeless veterans in families, OIF/OEF/OND veterans: Veteran Homelessness: A Supplemental Report to the 2010 AHAR to Congress
Aging veterans: The 2011 AHAR to Congress 9
10. Needs Profiles of Homeless Veterans
Continuum varies--one description cannot fit all:
o Chronically homeless with multiple minor offenses
o Incarcerated veterans who are transitioning out
o Those with records of DUIs, substance abuse, firearm charges,
aggression charges
o Those fleeing domestic violence
Different organizations fill roles needed to support these
individuals
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14. Rural Veterans
Rurally located veterans in United States: 4 million
Rural, working-age veterans with disability: 20%+
Many OIF/OEF veterans return to rural areas
Statistics from Rural Veterans at a Glance, Economic Research Service (USDA)
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15. Veterans and Homelessness in Rural Areas
Veteran Homelessness
o 13.6% (or 7,898 veterans) were located in a BoS or statewide CoCs
Data limitations
What we DO know:
o Primary “homeless” living situations for people in rural areas:
Limited shelters
Overcrowded homes
Substandard housing
Outdoors
Statistic from The 2013 AHAR to Congress; other information from Rural Homelessness: Better Collaboration by HHS and HUD
Could Improve Delivery of Services in Rural Areas (GAO, 2010)
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17. Challenges with Serving Veterans in Rural Areas
Access to Medical Care
o Less frequent use of VA services
o Less access to community mental health services
o Increased stigma of service utilization
o Shortage of primary healthcare workers, specialists locally
Access to Income Security
o Higher and more prolonged unemployment
o Less access to public transportation services
o Low-skill/seasonal job prevalence
Access to Housing
o Disconnect between employment and housing location
o Restricted homelessness definitions
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18. Challenges with Serving Veterans in Rural Areas
Legal issues affect medical care, income security, housing access
Decreased access to housing alternatives
Restricted employment opportunities
Ineligible for VA benefits payments
Ineligible for VA medical services
Ineligible for Vet Center family counseling and mental health
services
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19. Resources on Veteran Homelessness
NCHV
National Center on Homelessness Among Veterans
Local VA Medical Centers (VAMCs)
Continuums of Care (CoCs)
DOL American Job Centers (AJCs)
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20. Programs for Homeless and At-Risk
Rural Veteran Population
Major Federal Programs
Medical Care
Income Security
o HVRP
o American Job Centers
o VA Benefits
o SSI/SSDI
Housing
o Continuum of Care
o Transitional Housing (GPD)
o HUD-VASH
Prevention Programs (SSVF)
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21. Programs for Homeless and At-Risk
Rural Veteran Population
Medical Care - Not VA eligible/mainstream services
County mental health services
Mobile health clinics
Target programs: elderly care, SME services
State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) through HHS
o provides health-insurance to low income children who do not qualify for Medicaid and
have no health insurance
Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) through HHS
o provides access to essential health care services for people who are low-income,
uninsured or who live in rural areas or urban neighborhoods where health care is
scarce.
o HRSA-funded health centers provide medical care to nearly 17 million patients at
more than 4,000 sites
o Funds programs to prevent child abuse and domestic violence
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22. Programs for Homeless and At-Risk
Rural Veteran Population
(continued)
Domestic violence support groups
RAINN support groups
Administration for Children and Families (ACF) through HHS
o Administers Temporary Assistance for Needy Families: providing assistance to an
estimated 4 million people Administers the national child support enforcement system
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23. Programs for Homeless and At-Risk
Rural Veteran Population
Income Security
Employment
o Homeless Veteran Reintegration Program (HVRP)
Objectives:
• To provide services to assist in reintegrating homeless veterans into
meaningful employment within the labor force
• To stimulate the development of effective service delivery systems that will
address the complex problems facing homeless veterans
o American Job Centers
Benefits
o SOAR
o Expedited VA benefits processing
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24. Secretary Eric Shinseki
Department of Veterans Affairs
“We are making great progress in
the rescue mission, but we must
work harder to succeed in the
prevention phase of our mission …
That is the only way we’ll truly end
veteran homelessness.”
May 30, 2012
NCHV Annual Conference
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25. Challenges for Prevention Mission
Poverty
• Number of veterans living in poverty: 1.4 million
• VA data estimates 1 in 9 will experience homelessness: 154,000
• Veterans exiting incarceration (5 years): 200,000
• Low rank veterans exiting military (5 years): 750,000
Lack of affordable housing
• Waiting lists for housing vouchers remain in most communities
• Housing First and rapid rehousing depend on adequate affordable
housing stock
• Housing crisis imperils veteran families – most areas need
mixed-population, services-enriched developments
First two statistics from U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; third statistic from U.S. Department of Justice
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26. Services to Reduce Risk of Homelessness
• Child care services
• Child support enforcement
• Legal assistance to remove barriers to housing, employment
• Financial and credit counseling services
• Financial guardianship
• Mainstream assistance for low-income veteran families
─ Food stamps
─ Family health care
─ Transportation assistance
─ Case management; peer counseling
─ State Vocational/Rehabilitation Employment Services
─ SSI and SSDI assistance
• Family counseling services, reconciliation assistance
• Driver’s license restoration assistance and photo ID services
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28. Kyle McEvilly
Communications and Program Assistant
kmcevilly@nchv.org
(202) 546-7086
National Coalition for Homeless Veterans
www.nchv.org
28
Notes de l'éditeur
The percentage of women among sheltered veterans increased by 1.8 percentage points between 2010 and 2011 and by 2.3 percentage points since 2009. Female veterans are twice as likely to be homeless as female non-veterans
Demographics are different from overall homeless veterans
Over recent years, the age distribution among sheltered veterans has shifted slightly. From 2009 to 2011, the share of veterans age 31 to 50 has decreased by 5.6 percentage points (from 44.7 to 39.1%), while the share of veterans age 51 to 61 has increased by 3.9 percentage points (from 38.4 to 42.3%). The proportion of young veterans in shelter has increased by 1.0 percentage points. Similar shifts have occurred in the oldest and youngest age groups of the total veteran population.
Data overall is reliable, but numbers of homeless women veterans may be undercounted. In 2011, HUD required communities doing the PIT to count the numbers of homeless veterans in unsheltered locations. This, paired with the VISNs efforts to ensure that all veterans in VA residential programs are likewise counted, has drastically increased the reliability of the data without statistical adjustment.
2.4% decline in homelessness among persons in families
Sheltered veterans in families are more likely than individuals to be women, younger, and belong to a minority group