Lifetime and 1-year prevalence of homelessness in the US population: results from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions-III.
Homelessness remains a major public health problem in the USA but there have been few recent epidemiological studies in the general population.



Using data from structured interviews with a nationally representative sample of 36 299 US adults from the 2012-13 Wave 3 of the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC-III), this study examined the lifetime and 1-year prevalence of homelessness, and its correlates.



Lifetime and 1-year prevalence of homelessness in the US population was found to be 4.2 and 1.5%, respectively. Low income, debt, borderline personality disorder (PD), past-year tobacco use disorder, any history of suicidal attempts and being a victim of crime in the past year were all independently strongly associated with past-year homelessness (all OR > 1.5). Low income, debt, history of incarceration, antisocial PD and any history of suicidal attempts were all independently strongly associated with lifetime homelessness (all OR > 1.5).



These findings provide an update to the original NESARC, suggesting a possible increase in lifetime homelessness (2.7-4.2%) in the past decade. Along with known economic and behavioral health conditions, special attention should be paid to PDs in efforts to prevent and end homelessness.
Department of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, USA.|Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) New England Mental Illness Research, Education, and Clinical Center, West Haven, CT 06516, USA.|VA National Center on Homelessness Among Veterans, West Haven, CT 06516, USA.
Jack
J
Tsai
D000328:Adult; D001883:Borderline Personality Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006703:Ill-Housed Persons / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology; D014029:Tobacco Use Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology; D014481:United States