There are nearly 200,000 women military veterans living in California, about 10 percent of the state’s veteran population. And now the state is stepping up efforts to help them.
While a lot of veterans must deal with challenges, Lindsey Sin said women face different circumstances from men after they've left the military. Sin is CalVet’s Deputy Secretary of Women Veterans Affairs. Her department has released a “tool kit” with resources for female vets. The tool kit is intended to be used by veterans advocates, such as organizations and government agencies that assist veterans.
Sin said women are less likely to be identified as veterans and might not be connected to services as men would. She said homelessness is a growing problem.
"Part of that could be that, since our numbers are increasing in the military and veterans populations that our numbers would also increase in the homeless population," she said. "But some of it is that women have higher rates of unemployment and higher rates of being uninsured. And that’s all kind of leading to housing instability."
Sin said there are also fewer housing resources for women vets and their children.
