Saving Money by Providing Free Homes for Homeless?

This past Sunday, 60 Minutes ran an interesting story about municipalities that are providing free homes to the homeless in order to save money.  

Reported by Anderson Cooper here is how the story began: 

Giving apartments to homeless people who’ve been on the streets for years before they’ve received treatment for drug or alcohol problems or mental illness may not sound like a wise idea. But that’s what’s being done in cities across America in an approach that targets those who’ve been homeless the longest and are believed to be at greatest risk of dying, especially with all of this cold weather.

They’re people who once might have been viewed as unreachable.  But cities and counties affiliated with a movement known as the 100,000 Homes Campaign have so far managed to get 80,000 of them off the streets. Local governments and non-profit groups do most of the work. The money comes mostly from existing federal programs and private donations, and there’s evidence that this approach saves taxpayers money.