While ending veteran homelessness is a top priority of the Department of Veteran Affairs, it exceeded its goal of providing safe, stable homes in 2022. The VA confirmed it permanently housed 40,401 homeless veterans.
While the initial goal was to provide housing to 38,000 veterans, the VA said it exceeded that goal by 6.3 percent.
“There are thousands of formerly homeless Veterans who are going to sleep tonight in good, safe, stable homes—and there’s nothing more important than that,” Denis McDonough, VA secretary, said. “This is great progress, but it’s just the beginning: We at VA will not rest until the phrase ‘homeless Veteran’ is a thing of the past.”
These efforts are said to be a direct result of the “Housing First” approach, “which prioritizes getting a veteran into housing, then provides the veteran with the wraparound support they need to stay housed—including health care, job training, legal and education assistance and more,” MyChesCo.com reported.
According to the VA, the total number of homeless veterans decreased by 11% nationally since January 2020, while the total number of veteran homelessness in America declined by 55.3% since 2010.
“Not only did we lower the number of Veterans experiencing homelessness, but we made this progress during a global pandemic and economic crisis,” Jeff Olivet, executive director at USICH, said. “This proves that, even under the most difficult circumstances, we can take care of each other and address homelessness.”
In 2022, the VA said it focused on helping veterans find permanent housing like apartments or houses that veterans could rent or own with a subsidy to make it more affordable. The VA also “helped some veterans end their homelessness by reuniting them with family and friends,” MyChesCo.com reported.
“Under President Biden’s leadership, we at VA, Housing and Urban Development, and the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, will not stop until every Veteran has a good, safe, stable home in this country they fought to defend,” McDonough said.
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