Older Homeless Adults: Can We Do More?

The average age of individuals in the US experiencing homelessness is rising. Between the early 1990s and 2003, the proportion of homeless adults aged 50 and older increased from 11% to nearly one-third. This trend continues. Homelessness is associated with poor access to health care and high rates of Emergency Department visits and inpatient hospitalizations, and high rates of early mortality. The aging of the homeless population raises important clinical questions about health priorities among this population. In this article, some of the clinical implications of this demographic shift are examined.