Yup, in a nutshell, that is supposed to maintain the front/rear position for that front wheel. Since it is no longer doing that, the position is now dependent on parts of the suspension that are not designed for that task. I imagine you might be getting a wicked shimmy going over things like highway bumps, clunking during braking, other symptoms. Until this is fixed, you are at minimum accelerating wear on that tire, and the other bushings on that corner of the suspension system. Depending on the condition of the other parts, you could have a catastrophic failure, which... you know, if that wheel suddenly shifts back at highway speeds, you are going to have a very bad day.
If you can carry your toolbox with one hand, you are not going to be able to fix this yourself. Fortunately, this is not an overly difficult repair for a shop. A new bracket and bushings are maybe $200, I should think a well equipped shop could do this in a few hours... you will want to replace the bushings on the good side at the same time. I wouldn't put this off. The more you drive, the worse the tire wear will be, and the risk, of course, of an accident.
