More than 2,200 homeless people died in Los Angeles in 2024, marking the first time in a decade that the homeless death rate decreased in the country’s most populous county, public health officials announced Tuesday.
The signs of progress come as the county has also reported declines in the overall homeless population in a region that has long struggled with a severe shortage of affordable housing and one of the worst street homelessness crises in the United States.
However, the annual death report also indicates a major ongoing humanitarian disaster, with an average of more than six homeless people dying each day across Los Angeles County.
The numbers released by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health cover the deaths of all homeless residents, including those living on the streets and people in shelters.
The total of 2,208 deaths tallied in 2024, the most recent year of data analyzed by the county, marked 300 fewer deaths than in 2023, and the death rate decreased 10%, according to the report. The county had experienced a devastating increase in homeless deaths during the start of the pandemic, followed by a two-year plateau in the death rate from 2021 to 2023. The 2024 data marks the first reduction in deaths since the county began tracking homeless mortality in 2014.
Drug overdoses remained the leading cause of death among homeless people, with 884 deaths, representing 40% of 2024 deaths. However, this marked a 21% decrease in drug overdose mortality from 2023, which was the main driver of the overall reduction in homeless deaths.
County officials attributed the decline in overdoses to prevention efforts, harm reduction and mental health and substance use treatment services, although the county as a whole also saw a sharp decline in overdoses from 2023 to 2024. People experiencing homelessness were 46 times more likely to die from overdoses than the general population, the report noted.
The other leading causes of death among homeless people were coronary heart disease (314 people, representing 14% of deaths), traffic deaths (232 people, 11%), homicides (105 people, 5%) and suicides (80 people, 4%).
While death rates from heart disease and homicide decreased in 2024, traffic deaths and suicides increased.
The vast majority of traffic deaths occurred among pedestrians and cyclists, with the rate increasing by 25%, a major cause for concern.
The suicide rate also increased by 21% in 2024, according to the report. The 80 deaths marked the highest number of suicide deaths in the past decade, county data shows, a troubling increase that comes even as the overall number of homeless people is declining.
A public health spokesperson said the county did not have definitive data on how many deaths occurred on the streets versus people in shelters.
Only 25% of the 2024 deaths involved people who were in the county’s case management system, suggesting the remaining deaths were more likely to be unsheltered people since they have not interacted with the county’s homeless services in the past two years, the spokesperson said. And of the 25% of deaths the county had records of, most occurred without shelter.
The report also noted declines in mortality among homeless whites and blacks, but stable mortality rates among Latinos. Data suggests Latinos are more likely to have no contact with county homeless services, and the report raised concerns that federal immigration law enforcement could push this population further underground and exacerbate the crisis.
The report draws on medical examiner reports and state death records and estimates death rates based on the annual homeless count at a given point in time, which is a snapshot and estimate of the total homeless population.
The county recommended expanding harm reduction and addiction medication services; increase primary and preventive care services for people experiencing homelessness; conduct a more detailed analysis of traffic deaths; expand violence prevention initiatives; and provide disclosure and risk assessments related to suicide.
Officials are also sounding the alarm about major looming budget challenges. For fiscal year 2026-27, the Los Angeles County Homeless Services Authority projects a gap of approximately $323 million in homeless funding, according to the report.
Barbara Ferrer, director of the Los Angeles County public health department, praised the progress seen in 2024, but said in a statement: “We still see too many people dying on our streets. At a time of significant reductions in federal and state funding for homeless services and supports, we risk losing precious ground and seeing an increase in the number of vulnerable people losing their lives.”
