The Hospitalist – Jan 5, 2018

Despite programs to end homelessness, it remains a substantial and growing problem in many cities in the United States. In 2016, there were an estimated 10,550 homeless people living in my home state of Colorado, a 6% increase from the prior year. A recent point-estimate study found that there were more than 5,000 homeless individuals in the Denver metropolitan area on a single night in January 2017. Because of the relative scarcity of housing, a growing number of cities like Denver now utilize a practice known as vulnerability indexing to prioritize homeless persons at high risk of mortality from medical conditions for placement in permanent supportive housing.