Poor health can contribute to being homeless, and being homeless can lead to poor health. Limited access to health care can make it worse. That's why the health of homeless people in the United States is worse than that of the general population. Common health problems include
- Mental health problems
- Substance abuse problems
- Bronchitis and pneumonia
- Problems caused by being outdoors
- Wound and skin infections
Many homeless women are victims of domestic or sexual abuse. Homeless children have high rates of emotional and behavioral problems, often from having witnessed abuse.
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Homeless(Dept. of Housing and Urban Development) - http://www.hud.gov/homeless/
Also available in Spanish http://espanol.hud.gov/homeless/index.cfm
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Food Stamps and Other Nutrition Programs(Social Security Administration) - http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/10100.html
Also available in Spanish http://www.ssa.gov/espanol/10978.html
- Help for Homeless Veterans(National Coalition for Homeless Veterans) - http://www.nchv.org/veterans.cfm
- Homeless Veterans(National Coalition for Homeless Veterans) - Links to PDF - http://www.nchv.org/docs/HomelessVeterans_factsheet.pdf
- Persons with Mental Illness Who Are Homeless or Missing: A Guide for Families(NAMI) - http://www.nami.org/Template.cfm?Section=Helpline1&template=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=4859
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Understanding SSI: Spotlight on Homelessness(Social Security Administration) - http://www.socialsecurity.gov/ssi/spotlights/spot-homeless.htm
Also available in Spanish http://www.ssa.gov/ssi/spotlights/sp-spot-homeless.htm
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Healthy Shelter Living
(American College of Physicians Foundation) - Links to PDF - http://foundation.acponline.org/hl/shel_en.pdf
Also available in Spanish http://foundation.acponline.org/hl/shel_sp.pdf
- Homelessness Initiative(Dept. of Housing and Urban Development, Dept. of Health and Human Services) - http://www.cms.hhs.gov/homelessnessinitiative/01_overview.asp?
References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
- Article: Stranded in San Francisco. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18790323&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Churches lose faith in US health care. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18697249&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: A Taxonomy of medical comorbidity for veterans who are homeless. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=18677085&tool=MedlinePlus
- Homeless Health Concerns -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=homeless+persons[majr]+NOT+homeless+youth[majr]+AND+english[la]+AND+north+america[mh]+NOT+(letter[pt]+OR+editorial[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus
- Homeless youth health issues -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=homeless+youth[mh]+AND+english[la]+NOT+(letter[pt]+OR+editorial[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus
- Bureau of Primary Health Care Service Delivery Sites(Bureau of Primary Health Care) - http://findahealthcenter.hrsa.gov/
- Food Bank Locator(America's Second Harvest) - http://www.feedingamerica.org/zip_code.jsp?show_nce=1
- HUD-Approved Housing Counseling Agencies(Dept. of Housing and Urban Development) - http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/sfh/hcc/hccprof14.cfm
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Local Homeless Assistance(Dept. of Housing and Urban Development) - http://www.hud.gov/homeless/hmlsagen.cfm
Also available in Spanish http://espanol.hud.gov/homeless/hmlsagen.cfm
- National Runaway Switchboard - http://www.1800runaway.org/
- Family and Youth Services Bureau(Administration for Children and Families) - http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/fysb/
- National Center on Family Homelessness - http://www.familyhomelessness.org/
- New Number of Homeless Vets Announced(National Coalition for Homeless Veterans) - http://www.nchv.org/news_article.cfm?id=353
- America's Homeless Children(National Center on Family Homelessness) - Links to PDF - http://www.familyhomelessness.org/pdf/fact_children.pdf
- Running Away(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/kid/feeling/home_family/running_away.html
- Veterans and Military Health - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/veteransandmilitaryhealth.html
- Social/Family Issues - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/socialfamilyissues.html