Overview

• Researchers reviewed VA records from 2011 to 2021 and tracked 117,619 veterans overdue for colorectal screenings and 6,517 women overdue for breast screenings over the next 24 months.
• Nearly half of the veterans in each cohort secured housing within two years of their index clinic visit.
• Veterans who gained housing were more than twice as likely to obtain colorectal and breast cancer screenings compared with those who remained homeless.
• The study’s statistical model accounted for age, clinical conditions and the VA facility where care was received.
• An accompanying editorial highlights how these findings address evidence gaps and calls for sustained investment in supportive housing and person-centered care while cautioning that proposed federal funding cuts could threaten these health gains.