It’s not like government and nonprofits are ignoring the other problems. There’s a lot of work being done there, too. But the evidence is pretty overwhelmingly that absent permanent housing, there’s very little chance of getting people the help they need for the underlying problems.
I’m also not convinced Elon really wants to do anything to help the underlying problems. I suspect his goal is just to crack down on visible homelessness, not to help those who would be displaced find the help they need. Because doing that will require an ENORMOUS public investment, which doesn’t seem to be in DOGE’s sight line.