Homeless men, women, and children make up a growing population that is
vulnerable to preventable disease, progressive morbidity, and prematu
re death. Homelessness and poverty are inextricably linked, and subgro
ups of persons who live in poverty have a particularly high risk for b
ecoming homeless. Providing effective primary care for homeless person
s is a formidable task because of many internal and external barriers
to care. Targeted care strategies and new approaches to primary care a
re required to lower these barriers. Effective disease prevention in t
he homeless requires effective programs and policies to prevent homele
ssness. It is imperative that health professionals, the societies to w
hich they belong, and academic health systems reaffirm their social re
sponsibility, commit to changing public policies that perpetuate homel
essness, and assist in the development and provision of primary health
care services for persons who are homeless or on the brink of homeles
sness.