What are the long-term outcomes of permanent supportive housing for chronically unsheltered individuals? Does financial strain affect mental health and homelessness? These questions and many others are addressed in a special supplement focused on the homeless population in the April issue of Medical Care, rated as one of the top ten journals in health care administration.

“The supplement highlights the intersection of homelessness, medical illness and related social factors,” said Ben King, clinical assistant professor and epidemiologist at the UH College of Medicine. “It illustrates the complex realities of homelessness, the progress that has been made and the work that still needs to be done.”
King, who has done extensive work on issues related to homelessness, co-guest edited the supplement with Jack Tsai, Ph.D., of the VA National Center on Homelessness and University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, and Jen Elder. director of SAMHSA’s Homeless and Housing Resource Center.

The supplement includes 15 original papers examining special populations such as homeless youth, older adults, and veterans, along with medical and behavioral health conditions such as tuberculosis, HIV, and opioid use disorder. It also presents two editorials commenting on the history of homelessness and its association with suicide. The issue is open access and available to the public.

The issue and supplement can be read online.