Give them an apartment first, ask questions later.

Utah has reduced its rate of chronic homelessness by 78 percent over the past eight years, moving 2000 people off the street and putting the state on track to eradicate homelessness altogether by 2015. How’d they do it? The state is giving away apartments, no strings attached. In 2005, Utah calculated the annual cost of E.R. visits and jail stays for an average homeless person was $16,670, while the cost of providing an apartment and social worker would be $11,000. Each participant works with a caseworker to become self-sufficient, but if they fail, they still get to keep their apartment.

Simple economics provides an elegant solution.

Still, this might not work in places with more expensive housing like California and New York.

The cost of E.R. visits and jail stays are higher in California and New York than Utah too, so maybe it will work there and elsewhere.

I like this solution from many perspectives.  There are plenty of other cynical and sickening social practices for the homeless already on the books, all blithely passing the buck...

Google "homeless one way bus tickets" and see what you get.

I get sad, that's what I get.

E.R. visits and jail stays are the next step.

This is a great idea :)

It is. Here's more about it:

http://pandawhale.com/post/34545/utah-on-track-to-end-homelessness-by-2015

This came up here:

http://pandawhale.com/post/70943/opinion-homeless-services-dont-end-homelessness