From Governing:
We're entering the second year of the coronavirus pandemic, and we've yet to fully reckon with the impact of COVID-19 on mental health. Research is still emerging about the devastating surge in mental illness for both the young and the old. It's undeniable we're facing a full-blown mental health crisis.
But nowhere is this crisis more acute than in the homeless population. The homeless suffer from mental illness at a rate far higher than that of the general population. And to make matters worse, the homeless regularly lack access to care providers and facilities; instead, they too often wind up locked away in jail cells. Lifetime arrest rates for the homeless number between 62.9 percent and 90 percent.
The homeless need our help. While it will take time to change the way America handles mental illness, the best place we can start is with reform of the criminal justice system that disproportionately criminalizes and incarcerates the homeless. Continue reading >>>
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