VA Homeless Programs
Message from Monica Diaz, Executive Director, VHA Homeless Programs Office
June 2024
Taking care of our health can sometimes take a back seat in our busy lives. For those experiencing homelessness, especially unsheltered homelessness, seeing a doctor falls even further down the priority list.
Our mobile medical units (MMUs), which we rolled out in select locations nationwide, have been bringing much needed health care directly to vulnerable, unsheltered Veterans who frequently contend with unmet medical and mental health needs.
I’m excited to announce that our initial MMU offering is now fully deployed—with the 25th MMU recently hitting the road in San Francisco.
These fully equipped vans and trucks move from one location to another providing primary care, women’s health care, mental health care, and more. Since they travel directly to the patient, they eliminate many of the roadblocks that unsheltered Veterans experience when trying to access care, including lack of transportation, phone, and internet.
And these MMUs don’t just help Veterans get healthier. They are also used to connect Veterans with vital homeless program services that can help them find safe shelter—bringing us closer to ending Veteran homelessness in the United States.
As we applaud the success of this program, I’d also like to celebrate another accomplishment—our work to make VA a welcoming, inclusive place for everyone we serve. Several national observances in June remind us to be sure that everyone, regardless of race, gender, gender identity, or sexual orientation, feels safe coming to VA for help.
This Pride Month, we join the nation in honoring the contributions of the LGBTQ+ community. We strive to ensure that LGBTQ+ Veterans facing homelessness receive the additional support they need to feel safe throughout all the phases of their journey, whether they’re sleeping on the street, seeking a bed in a shelter, or interviewing with a landlord for an apartment.
As the number of women Veterans grows, we continue to encounter many who have served our country and yet are left without a home. In honor of Women Veterans Day on June 12, I invite you to read the stories of several women Veterans who drew on diligence, perseverance, and strength when they asked VA to help them exit homelessness.
Finally, Juneteenth is our newest federal observance, commemorating the day that the freedoms granted by the Emancipation Proclamation finally made it to the last enslaved Black Americans in Galveston Bay, Texas on June 19, 1865.
Unfortunately, the inequity stemming from our nation’s sad legacy of slavery still haunts Black Americans today. Though they’ve served our nation bravely and selflessly, Black Veterans are no exception. They are disproportionately affected by homelessness, accounting for more than 33% of homeless Veterans while making up only 13% of the total Veteran population.
As we celebrate this day as America’s Second Independence Day, we double down on our commitment to correcting the racial inequities that affect the Black Veterans we serve. We rededicate ourselves to raising them out of homelessness by giving them the tools and access to services that they need and deserve.
