Ever found yourself wondering how many of America’s 20 million military veterans commit suicide each day in America?
The frightening answer from the latest research compiled by the U.S. Government is 22, on average.
A heartbreaking number?
You bet it is.
“What we’re seeing now is an extraordinary tragedy which speaks to the horror of war and the need for us to do a much better job of assisting our soldiers,” says Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, the chair of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee.
Adds Representative Jeff Miller of Florida, the chair of the House VA Committee: “We will be holding a hearing in February to determine if the VA’s system of mental health and suicide prevention services is improving the health and wellness of our heroes in need.”
According to VA researchers, the average age of a veteran who commits suicide is 60, and the usual method is a drug overdose or self-inflicted poisoning. Those two events now account for about half of the deaths each year.
In a so-far-unsuccessful effort to stem the tide of veteran suicides, VA recently created a task force that is now looking for innovative solutions to this frightening epidemic. VA has also recently launched a “crisis hotline” in which trained experts use their special skills to help suicidal vets get the the psychological assistance they so desperately need. The VA is also expanding its mental health staff by more than 1,500 clinicians.
So far, however, the number of veteran suicides keeps rising slowly each year . . . and according to the experts, the reasons behind the alarming trend aren’t clear.
But one thing does seem certain: the nation needs to pay much more attention to this growing — and tragic — trend among millions of American heroes who served their country well and deserve our help — ASAP.
Douglas Volk
