Document Type

Opinion

Publication Date

6-5-2014

Department 1

English

Abstract

U.S. government efforts to help homeless veterans in America are not enough.

When I first began grappling with homelessness issues in my local community quite a number of years ago, Dave, then-director of the local homeless shelter in our small town, told me a story that illustrates some of the special circumstances faced by homeless veterans in America.

Dave said a community of homeless vets had based themselves in caves in the hills outside of town, and after one was stricken with pneumonia and had to be hospitalized, his ongoing recovery left health care providers with a thorny dilemma. Clearly, the man was ready to be released from the hospital, but they were loathe to send a recovering pneumonia patient to his home in the caves. [excerpt]

Required Publisher's Statement

This piece originally appeared on the Fair Observer:

http://www.fairobserver.com/region/north_america/dereliction-duty-homeless-veterans-america-74320/

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