Life expectancy of homeless people half of the rest of B.C.’s population

A new report released by Megaphone Magazine says the life expectancy of a homeless person is about half that of the average British Columbian as reported in The Vancouver Sun. The causes of death also vary widely: accidental deaths accounted for 47 per cent of homeless deaths in the province over eight years, compared with just over 18 per cent for the general population. Megaphone Magazine’s survey used data from B.C. Coroners Service.The magazine supports homeless people in Vancouver and Victoria. Sean Condon, the author of the report and the executive director of Megaphone, says the number of deaths in the homeless population is deeply disturbing, in part because they’re preventable. Condon says that homelessness is a life-threatening health hazard. Among the recommendations to help solve the problem are that the B.C. government implement a poverty-reduction strategy and that the federal government implement a national housing plan.