WASHINGTON, United States (US): Three-quarters of homeless people in the US are addicted to drugs, while even more suffer from mental illness, said Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Scott Turner, on Tuesday (Aug. 18), reported Sputnik/RIA Novosti.
“75 per cent of our homeless Americans are addicted to drugs. 78 per cent suffer from mental illness,” Turner wrote on the social media platform X.
He added that simply providing shelter does not address the underlying causes of homelessness.
“We must put treatment first,” Turner said.
On August 12, Turner, together with White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) Director, Sara Carter, and Health and Human Services Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr, announced the Best Practices Toolkit: Addressing Homelessness and Addiction Through Treatment First.
This first-of-its kind resource provides communities with practical and proven strategies to help Americans transition from homelessness and addiction to recovery and self-sufficiency.
In May, the US Department of Housing and Urban Development said that approximately 750,000 people in the US were homeless. – BERNAMA-SPUTNIK/RIA NOVOSTI
