"More investment in permanent housing is needed so people have a place to go and don’t get stuck in interim beds where they eventually get fed up or kicked out," says BHHI Director Dr. Margot Kushel MD.
https://ow.ly/3XNQ50YMSbS
Housing Is the Foundation We All Need to Thrive
Whether housed or homeless:
"Relapse is absolutely part of the journey (with addiction), so we should expect it...
You want to make sure that any relapse is not punished with homelessness because to do so may turn...a short backward step into a deep fall."- Margot Kushel MD.
During #SecondChancesMonth, remember: housing is a critical part of stability.
When systems discharge people from institutions into homelessness, they set them up for instability, poorer health, and repeated cycles through jails, hospitals, and the streets.
🔎 https://lnkd.in/gEm44RVT
#ReEntry
85% of people experiencing homelessness with complex behavioral health needs can thrive in permanent supportive housing.
Homelessness is driven primarily by the gap between housing costs and incomes—stricter consequences won't change that.
What helps people with behavioral health challenges thrive?
âś… Stable housing, harm reduction, voluntary treatment & continued access to care.
Learn more: https://ow.ly/fhVh50YJ8Ho
Mark your calendar!
BHHI Director Margot Kushel MD will deliver the keynote at the 2026 Arizona Housing Coalition (AZHC) Conference: There's No Place Like Home.
đź“… May 12-13, 2026 | Phoenix Convention Center
We hope to see you there!
https://azhousingcoalition.org/2026-annual-conference/
SAVE THE DATE: April 21–23, 2026
BHHI Director @mkushel.bsky.social will deliver a keynote on homelessness at this year's UT Health San Antonio Health Care Institute Conference.
We hope to see you there!
keeplearning.uthscsa.edu/11th-annual-health-care-...
Shelter can’t solve homelessness without enough housing on the other side. Without it, some people have no choice but to return to the street after their shelter stay ends.
➡️ Learn how to reduce homelessness by balancing shelter, prevention, and housing:
https://ow.ly/cV4250YECSP
It is possible to resolve encampments in a way that listens & responds to the needs & desires of people who live there. This is true for people who live in oversized vehicles.
Read our interim report on a Berkeley City encampment resolution. 🧵⬇️⬇️⬇️
Helping people stay housed helps reduce homelessness.
In our #CASPEH study, most people said modest support could have prevented their homelessness.
Read CASPEH: https://ow.ly/P8BC50YzqBR
Learn about CA prevention: calmatters.org/housing/homelessness/202...
BHHI Director @mkushel.bsky.social joined leaders from across the world at UK’s Pathways from Homelessness conference, sharing research to help systems improve care access for people experiencing homelessness.
Solving homelessness requires addressing health as part of the same crisis.
The interim findings point to a larger lesson: programs work better when they are flexible, low-barrier, and centered on what residents need to move toward permanent housing.
However, long waitlists for subsidies and supportive housing remain a major challenge.
🧵 (5/5)
Read more: buff.ly/Fm4EHhH
“On the street, you're always in fight or flight mode and there's always an emergency… And you can't have nothing because you got to live out of a backpack. You can't have any paperwork. It is just impossible. So, I’d given up on ever getting out.” - Participant, Berkeley RV Encampment Resolution Program
Most people participating in the shelter program are doing well. 8 residents have returned to permanent housing; 8 more expect housing soon; most are now document-ready and have connected with health and social services.
🧵 (4/5)
Read the Report: buff.ly/Fm4EHhH
Offering to buy my vehicle to get me off the street is a fantastic idea, because that's actually what was holding me to the street at that point... It was my shelter...my house... So, to leave that, I'm worried. And then to have to sell that or having somebody buy that at the same time, it was just like two birds with one stone. And it made everything sort of believable that I could actually do it. - Berkeley Encampment Resident
This pairing mattered because many residents viewed their vehicles as both shelter and a critical asset. The evaluation found that offering a buyback helped build trust, provided residents with flexibility, and encouraged participation in the shelter program.
🧵 (3/5)
Learn more: buff.ly/Fm4EHhH
29 of 32 oversized vehicle owners accepted the buyback offer, and 41 of 54 eligible encampment residents moved into non-congregate shelter
The first-year findings are notable: 29 of 32 oversized vehicle owners (mostly RVs) accepted the buyback offer, and 41 of 54 eligible encampment residents moved into non-congregate shelter. Residents could participate in either program or both.
🧵 (2/5)
Read the Report: buff.ly/Fm4EHhH
Interim evaluation: Berkeley Encampment Resolution RV Buyback Program
🚨 New BHHI Report: Our interim evaluation of Berkeley’s Encampment Resolution and RV Buyback Program finds that pairing low-barrier non-congregate shelter with vehicle buyback brought most eligible residents indoors and helped close the encampment.
🧵 (1/5)
Read: buff.ly/Fm4EHhH
Happening today: BHHI Director Margot Kushel MD delivers the keynote at Georgia State School of Public Health‬'s Research Symposium.
We look forward to connecting with the next generation of public health leaders!
https://publichealth.gsu.edu/kreuter_katz_symposium
The evidence is clear: when we disinvest in basic supports, people suffer. - Margot Kushel, MD
As federal housing decisions come into view, research shows what helps: affordable housing, rental assistance, & prevention.
Housing costs are outpacing incomes—when supports fall short, more people lose housing, health worsens, and homelessness rises.
https://homelessness.ucsf.edu/resource-center
On #EqualPayDay, we’re reminded how undervaluing care work can impact housing stability.
BHHI research shows home health workers—often women—can lose both income and housing when a client dies or enters institutional care.
Read the solutions: https://ow.ly/QX4L50YmbWX
#Caregiving
Dr. Margaret Handley’s essay on spending time with her father at his storage locker reminds us that people’s belongings hold more than material value. They hold history, memory, and dignity—our responses to homelessness should reflect that.
Read: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adn4676
People are homeless because they can't afford housing.
Pushing people around won’t solve homelessness.
What will?
🏠Deeply affordable housing
🧠Housing navigation/case management
🤝 Voluntary, accessible health + social services
It’s not fast or simple. But if we fund what works, we can end homelessness.
Learn how: https://ow.ly/lP3A50YypsT
Over half of #olderadults experiencing homelessness in our HOPE HOME Study face food insecurity—5x the rate of older adults overall.
This presents a direct threat to their health and safety due to poor health and chronic conditions.
Learn more: https://ow.ly/fEmN50YmAvo
#NutritionMonth
Poor health increases people's risk of homelessness. Homelessness worsens people's health.
(2/2) Learn more about the connection between health and homelessness: homelessness.ucsf.edu/resource-cen...
Work requirements could kick thousands of homeless Californians off #MediCal due to paperwork requirements that are even tougher to meet while homeless.
This group has high rates of chronic illness and disability. We need to reduce barriers, not add them. (1/2)
calmatters.org/health/2026/...
Behavioral Health Challenges increase the risk of homelessness. Homelessness exacerbates behavioral health challenges.
National Drug & Alcohol Facts Week: Let’s separate myth from evidence. Substance use & homelessness can overlap—but housing affordability is the main driver. Once someone is unhoused, trauma and poor sleep can worsen challenges. We need housing + care.
Learn more: https://ow.ly/ZOAs50Ymz4Z
#NDAFW
Latino/a homelessness is rising in the US.
Our new paper highlights the need for culturally centered solutions designed around the realities Latino/a adults face while navigating homelessness.
Read: journals.plos.org/plosone/article
New @nlihc.org GAP report shows CA has just 25 affordable & available homes per 100 extremely low-income renters (~1M short). ‼️ 79% pay more than half their income on rent.
‼️ Need $49.61/hr or 3 FT min wage jobs for avg 2BR.
Homelessness is the crisis we see—this shortage drives it. nlihc.org/gap
ICYMI: We recently released a new evaluation of California’s Home Safe program—a statewide program based in counties’ Adult Protective Services that aims to prevent and end homelessness among older and dependent adults.
See what we learned: https://homelessness.ucsf.edu/HomeSafeEval
For many people, a job loss can lead to housing loss.
With low wages and high rents, one or two missed paychecks can turn into back rent, an eviction, a short stretch of doubling up—and then homelessness.
Solutions exist: https://ow.ly/8xiL50YnhPO
#Unemployment
Photo: Sam Comen
Compared with veterans who remained homeless, those who gained housing were: 2.3x as likely to undergo colorectal cancer screeening and 2.4x as likely to undergo breast cancer screening.
Colorectal Cancer Screening saves lives—and stable housing can make preventive care easier to reach.
A recent study shows homeless #veterans who gained housing were more likely to complete overdue colorectal cancer screening than those who remained unhoused.
https://ow.ly/39hI50YmCCK
People Experiencing Homelessness cannot access the healthcare they need.
This Heart Health Month, we’re highlighting the challenges of staying well when routine care is hard to access.
~1 in 4 people experiencing homelessness had an unmet healthcare need in the past 6 months, and ~1 in 4 couldn’t get needed medications.
Learn more: https://ow.ly/Qyra50Yj8Rw