Lawsuit blames VA for plight of homeless veterans

The Veterans Administration’s failure to provide stable housing to veterans suffering from severe cases of posttraumatic stress disorder or other mental disorders leaves many of them facing a life of homelessness, according to a class action lawsuit filed yesterday in US District Court in California.

The lawsuit requests a federal judge to order the VA to use empty buildings on its sprawling West Los Angeles Medical Center campus to provide permanent supportive housing for a class of veterans who suffer from conditions that the plaintiffs argue require a stable home environment for successful treatment.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs, including several Los Angeles-area homeless veterans and the group Vietnam Veterans of America, said the case, if successful, could have broad implications for veterans care nationwide.

“This case could be brought anywhere in the country there’s a homeless vet,’’ said Mark Rosenbaum, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union Foundation of Southern California. “There should be no such thing as a homeless veteran in America.’’

Between 44,000 and 66,000 veterans are believed to be chronically homeless, according to VA statistics, meaning they have been without shelter for more than a year or on multiple occasions in recent years. Veterans are about 50 percent more likely to become homeless compared with all Americans, according to a 2009 report on homelessness by the VA and the US Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Citing research in the field, the suit argues that the only way veterans suffering from severe cases of posttraumatic stress disorder or PTSD, brain trauma, and other disorders can be effectively treated is when they live in stable and permanent housing that allows access to appropriate services and support.
“Homelessness itself exposes veterans to further trauma that itself can both cause and aggravate PTSD and other disorders,’’ the complaint states.

In a 2009 report to Congress, the VA acknowledged that “for the large percentage of veterans with disabilities, permanent supportive housing would be effective in helping them achieve long-term stability.’’

About 8 percent of the nation’s homeless veterans live in Greater Los Angeles, according to the suit. The 387-acre campus, located 5 miles from the Pacific Ocean, includes many buildings that are vacant, closed, or underused.

The land was given to the federal government in 1888 for the purpose of establishing and permanently maintaining a soldiers’ home for disabled war veterans. But after the Vietnam War, long-term housing facilities on the campus were closed and nearly a third of the campus has been leased to private companies, according to the suit.

“If this campus can house rent-a-cars, it can house homeless vets,’’ Rosenbaum said.

By Steve Vogel, Washington Post