The traditional approach is to try and treat the underlying problems of the chronic homeless, so that then they are stable enough to keep a home. It turns out that actually getting the chronic homeless into a home makes it a lot more likely that their underlying problems will get successfully addressed. Just as the people of Utah.
'Our system has a fundamental bias toward dealing with problems only after they happen, rather than spending up front to prevent their happening in the first place. We spend much more on disaster relief than on disaster preparedness. And we spend enormous sums on treating and curing disease and chronic illness, while underinvesting in primary care and prevention. This is obviously costly in human terms. But it’s expensive in dollar terms, too. The success of Housing First points to a new way of thinking about social programs: what looks like a giveaway may actually be a really wise investment.'
Home Free?
Credit Illustration by Christoph Niemann
