Homelessness in the Unites States Term Paper

Total Length: 1001 words ( 3 double-spaced pages)

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This is exacerbated by the "...growing gap between wage earnings and the cost of housing in the United States which leaves millions of families and individuals unable to make ends meet." (Homelessness in the United States) Low Incomes and minimum wage workers also add to the problem. A further cause of the high levels of homelessness is the cuts in programs like Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).

Policy change such as the shift in medical policy from institutional to community-based care and treatment for mental patients has been cited as major cause of homelessness. The shift towards community-based care began in the 1960' and has been criticized in some quarters. Critics of the policy change state that this has resulted in a number of patients becoming homeless due to a lack of proper care and supervision once outside of the institutional framework. This is also related to another factor namely the "failure of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to provide effective mental health care for many veterans, particularly those of the Vietnam War." (Homelessness in the United States)

An increase in the instances of domestic violence and the serious increase in marriage breakups has also been mentioned as a significant cause of homelessness - with one survey indicates that "...as many as 35% of women experiencing homelessness report domestic violence as a cause.

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Solutions

The solution to homelessness, according to many experts, lies in the paying attention to the main cause of this social phenomenon. This includes dealing with the economic root of the problem by upgrading low wages and dealing with the important issue of affordable housing. It has also been suggested that project such as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families be refurbished and improved.

Another point-of-view is that homelessness is part of larger problem which has to do with the way the social system in the country works. "Ending homelessness does not mean fixing broken people. It means fixing a broken system." (Homelessness & Poverty) This view tends to se the root cause and the solutions to the problem as one which demands an integrated assessment of the entire social, health-care and housing system in the United States.

In conclusion the problem of harmlessness has many contributing causes. One of the main causes is economic and the disparity between the poor and rich is seen as a central factor in dealing with the problem. However, there are many other contributing factors, including policy shifts and social and health-care issues that need to be addressed in order for the problem to be solved......

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"Homelessness In The Unites States" (2005, October 14) Retrieved May 7, 2024, from
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"Homelessness In The Unites States" 14 October 2005. Web.7 May. 2024. <
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"Homelessness In The Unites States", 14 October 2005, Accessed.7 May. 2024,
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/homelessness-unites-states-69743