Although the following story is fictitious, it replicates the lives of thousands of U.S. veterans today. This story is about a man named Charles Green. He served in Vietnam and is now 83. While serving, Charles lost two limbs and was exposed to agent orange, a dangerous chemical used in Vietnam to kill foliage. He also suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression. He sleeps a few hours and has suicidal thoughts because of this. Due to being exposed to agent orange, Charles has numerous other medical issues which go untreated. Unfortunately, he lives on the streets of New York City and has no money. He faces an everyday battle to survive, and he has received no aid. Charles may be alive, but he isn’t living. There are veterans in the U.S. who are just…show more content… Meanwhile, their condition worsens. Who handles the well-being of U.S. veterans? The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (the VA) is responsible. However, other organizations seek to support veterans, such as homeless shelters dedicated to veterans, and veteran-oriented clubs like the American Legion. Veterans deserve the best well-being; however, many aren’t living, they are just alive. That being said, the VA needs to work harder to serve all veterans. Homelessness in veterans is a prevalent issue. According to the VA, there were less than forty thousand homeless veterans in the United States on any night in January 2016 (VHA). This information was collected from the 'Point-In-Time' count (PIT count). The PIT count also identified that on any night in January, just over thirteen thousand of the forty thousand veterans counted as 'on the street' or 'unsheltered' (VHA). Although these figures are lower than those identified in 2014, the rates of veteran homelessness is still considerable. So what are the causes of homelessness among veterans? According to Amy Bailey, Christopher Poulos, and Kylee Joosten, some reasons for veteran homelessness are
