The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s 2024 Annual Homelessness Assessment Report to Congress shared a point-in-time estimate that 771,470 people experienced homelessness on a single night in 2024, the highest number ever recorded. According to the report, nearly all populations reached record levels in 2024, including a 33 percent increase in children who experienced homelessness compared to 2023. Homelessness in the United States presents an urgent public health issue that affects cities, suburbs, and rural areas. Health care specialists must play a vital role, extending beyond the clinic, to solve this humanitarian crisis.

Sunday’s Fran Comi Keynote Lecture, “Providing Health Care for Unhoused Individuals,” from 8 to 8:45 a.m. PT, Sunday, May 18, in the Moscone Center, Esplanade Ballroom (South Building, Upper Mezzanine), features experts who will guide ATS 2025 International Conference attendees through effective practices for providing health care for unhoused individuals and how the medical field can publicly advocate for this vulnerable patient population.

“We’re aiming to give people a framework for what’s going on, why so many people are unhoused, and instill the sense of possibility that we can get ourselves out of this crisis,” explained Margot Kushel, MD, director of the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative (BHHI), UCSF Action Research Center for Health Equity, and Keynote Series speaker. “We’re often meeting unhoused patients at the worst time in their lives, but that isn’t their entire trajectory.”

The BHHI’s multidisciplinary team works with community partners to answer questions and develop practical solutions to prevent and end homelessness. The organization produces and disseminates research on the drivers and consequences of homelessness, which is shared with policymakers and community organizations.

Robynne Rose-Haymer and Corrin Buchanan will join Dr. Kushel for Sunday’s presentation. Ms. Rose-Haymer is a vice president at Capital Impact in Sacramento, focusing on economic justice, diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging to support organizations with their policies, strategy, and professional development goals. She also serves as a representative on the California Statewide Study of People Experiencing Homelessness (CASPEH) Lived Expertise Advisory Board.

“I have personal experience of homelessness, which largely brought me into the work because of the support and services that I received during that time,” Ms. Rose-Haymer said. “I’ve always had a deep belief that to whom much is given, much is expected, and I’ve always wanted to emulate and model that to the highest degree, whether in my work or personal life.”

Ms. Buchanan is the undersecretary at the California Health & Human Services Agency (CalHHS). In her role, she leads all policy development and implementation while managing the agency’s day-to-day operations. She previously served as deputy secretary for Policy and Strategic Planning at CalHHS. Before joining CalHHS, she was the assistant director of housing and homelessness for the California Department of Social Services.

In June 2023, the BHHI and CASPEH released the largest representative study of homelessness in the United States since the mid-1990s. This included 3,200 administered questionnaires and 365 in-depth interviews with adults experiencing homelessness across eight regions of California, representing urban, rural, and suburban areas. Using insights curated from this expansive data, the study identified several policy recommendations, including (but not limited to) recommendations for health care systems to help unhoused patients, such as increased street medicine outreach or access to mental health and substance use treatments. The study received extensive news coverage in numerous prominent national outlets and was shared with high-ranking government officials to help guide policy decisions.

“Health care workers have an enormous say in policy, and I always hope that we will use our voice to make health care better, but also use our voice for issues adjacent to health care,” Dr. Kushel said. “If we can’t solve people’s housing problems, a lot of our work goes to waste. There’s almost nothing more discouraging than giving someone high-quality care in the ICU and then having them readmitted three days later because of circumstances that could have been prevented.”

In addition to providing care and advocacy, providers must address any personal biases and potentially work to enhance their emotional intelligence to treat unhoused patients effectively. Ms. Rose-Haymer emphasized that building a mutual bond with unhoused individuals through positive and supportive care interactions is critical for effective treatment.

“If I’m a person who’s experiencing homelessness, and I’ve had to put aside everything to come to this appointment, and then I get treated poorly, the likelihood that I’m ever going to return or do any kind of follow-up treatment is very low,” she explained. “Even things like taking the time to answer seemingly basic or simplistic questions can go a long way towards building trust.”

While the housing crisis can’t be solved by health care workers alone, it’s clear that they are needed to help identify and enact practical solutions that address the root issues causing and exacerbating homelessness.

“I would love to have the ATS community be part of that group who are willing to stand up and say, ‘Housing is health care.’ That would be incredibly impactful,” Dr. Kushel said.