Aging and Mortality in Homeless Veterans

Abstract

In this chapter the authors describe and discuss two emerging related issues in the homeless Veteran population: aging and mortality. To facilitate the presentation of the current status of these issues, the authors have divided the chapter into four sections. The first section provides an overview on the current state of homelessness in Veterans and a perspective on the factors contributing to Veteran homelessness. The second and third sections present reviews of aging and mortality in homeless Veterans. These are two separate yet related issues, given that the homelessness is disproportionately represented in older Veterans, the Veteran homeless population is aging, and homeless Veterans have increased mortality risk across the age range but especially in older age. The last section provides a summary with comments on intervention strategies for older homeless Veterans.