AirTalk® | February 5, 2020
The “housing first” model calls for getting
people experiencing homelessness into stable housing first and foremost. Those
who advocate for addressing homelessness with this model believe there
shouldn’t be any preconditions for people getting permanent housing and that
solving other problems, like addiction and mental health issues, should come
after.
The Trump administration’s new homelessness
czar is speaking out about potential shifts in
the longstanding model that’s existed in cities across the country since the
1990s. Robert Marbut, the head of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness,
says he wants local municipalities to have more control over setting policy,
according to a report from the Wall Street Journal. Some long-time advocates
agree that the housing first policy isn’t a silver bullet and the lack of
development so far is problematic. Los Angeles voters approved a measure in
2016 that subsidizes construction of 10,000 permanent housing units for
homeless residents. But according to Curbed LA, only one complex
funded by the measure has opened. Other experts argue focusing on getting
residents permanent housing first allows them to then tend to mental health or
substance us needs after. Today on AirTalk, we look at the pros and cons of the
housing first model as homelessness becomes an ever-growing crisis in
California communities and across the country.
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