To fix homelessness, let's treat it as a health issue like they do in Denver

A novel way to help young men growing up in communities in which concentrated poverty, violence and unemployment are well-documented barriers to health and longevity: male youth of color are trained to be the emergency response team to help stabilize street victims before doctors or nurses begin procedures.

By partnering with cities across America, the 100,000 Homes campaign is going directly to the streets to end homelessness - and it’s working. With roughly 700,000 people in the United States experiencing homelessness, this organization seeks to address that using a tiered system that considers individual health needs as well.

At least 25 percent of female veterans were sexually abused in childhood, making it more difficult to reenter civilian life. Volunteers of America runs a holistic housing program for homeless veterans in the U.S.

The highest hospital costs come from preventable emergency room visits. A doctor in Camden developed a home visit program which gives better and cheaper care.

Female veterans are more likely to have a history of trauma, be unemployed, and be homeless. To address this disparity, the VA has started awarding grants to organizations that help female vets.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, drug overdoses are the leading cause of injury-related mortality. Naxolone, a drug used to revive overdose victims, is only available by prescription. However, private organizations have distributed Naxolone kits nationally, showing that the drug can save lives when it is more readily accessible.

In Nepal, a controversial drug is proving to be effective in saving mother's lives. It's the only shelf-stable, easy-to-administer solution to curbing postpartum hemorrhage. In trials, misoprostol is shown to save the lives of women who live far from medical care facilities. Since Nepal allowed use of the drug, postpartum hemorrhage has fallen from the leading cause of maternal death to number two.

New Orleans implemented an extraordinary 10-year plan that engaged unprecedented cross-sector collaboration between government, non-profit, and private entities to provide housing and housing services to the city's homeless veterans. The city's success in providing homes for every single veteran formerly on their streets motivated cities across the nation to tackle the crises using similar means, leading to a 1/3 decline veteran homelessness since 2010.

San Francisco's Care Not Cash program began in 2004 in response to the city's homelessness crisis. One facet of the program is an outreach team, whose members regularly visit homeless people on the street to connect them to resources such as housing and drug rehabilitation.

To combat rampant homelessness, cities like New York are investing in supportive housing and comprehensive, consistent services for the homeless population. Although San Francisco has smaller-scale supportive housing programs. political will and regular funding are necessary to grow those initiatives and make a large impact on homelessness in the city.