Veteran suicide: The numbers are still high, but expanded care is helping
Veteran suicide remains a serious national problem, but recently released data show that expanded access to care is helping save lives.
Moral injury
According to the September 2026 National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report, 6,488 veterans died by suicide in 2024 — an average of 17.7 a day, down from 18.2 a day in 2023.
Still, the suicide rate remains far higher for veterans than non-veterans — roughly 57 percent higher for male veterans and nearly twice as high for female veterans.
Iraq War veteran Danny O’Neel, a speaker on suicide prevention, post-traumatic stress disorder and mental health for the Independence Fund, has explained why veteran suicide is such a persistent problem.
“War inflicts permanent psychic scars on survivors,” he wrote. “Scrubbing a friend’s flesh out of a Bradley reconnaissance vehicle, packing up the cold clothes of a new dad to ship home to his family, pulling tortured corpses out of a water treatment facility — the trauma from these experiences is deep and lasting.”
Veterans who have seen such horrors may suffer from “moral injury,” which psychiatrist Jonathan Shay explored in his 1994 book “Achilles in Vietnam.”
Rita Nakashima Brock of the Shay Moral Injury Center and Ann Kansfield, a New York City Fire Department chaplain, further explain the concept in their recent USA Today feature.
Moral injury occurs when people experience events that violate their deepest beliefs about right and wrong, leaving them with profound feelings of guilt, shame, regret or betrayal.
For veterans, it can stem from killing an enemy combatant, witnessing the deaths of innocent civilians or fellow soldiers, being unable to save a wounded comrade or participating in something they believe was morally wrong.
Even when they acted under orders or had no control over what happened, they may carry the emotional burden for years, questioning their actions, their survival and even their own sense of worth.
Expanded help is available
Without the right help for the depression and guilt that moral injury can bring, some veterans start to think suicide is their only way out.
To compound the challenge, many veterans think that seeking help is a sign of weakness — which it surely is not.
The VA is working to meet that problem head-on three ways:
First, a big push this year has been simply getting more veterans signed up for VA care. That matters because the data show that veterans who actually use VA health care services have lower suicide rates than those who stay outside the system.
Second, the VA is screening more people than ever for suicide risk through a program called RISK ID. Millions of veterans who already receive VA care are being asked the hard questions, and those who show warning signs get a full follow-up evaluation and a support plan — often within a day.
Third is expanded funding for a program aimed at veterans the VA doesn’t already see. The Staff Sergeant Parker Gordon Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program sends money directly to community groups across the country — about $112 million in the latest round.
These local organizations do the outreach, the screening, the peer support and the case management — especially for veterans who aren’t enrolled in VA care or who live far from a clinic.
Last year they reached thousands of veterans and helped many of them get connected to VA services for the first time.
What we can do
There are roughly 17 million living veterans in America. Most will never be in crisis, but too many still struggle in silence.
To help prevent veteran suicide, we can support local veterans’ organizations, volunteer our time, donate to suicide-prevention programs and help veterans we know navigate the VA health care system or community resources, such as the Staff Sergeant Parker Gordon Fox grants.
We can also learn the warning signs. The signs include withdrawing from family and friends, expressing hopelessness, increased alcohol or drug use, and reckless or self-destructive behavior. Sudden changes in mood, giving away belongings or talking about being a burden are other red flags.
Most of all, we can simply reach out and check in with the veterans in our lives. Listen without judgment.
If someone shows signs of depression and danger, the Veterans Crisis Line is the first place to go (dial 988 and press 1, text 838255 or visit VeteransCrisisLine.net).
No single program or person can end this problem, but we can pay better attention and help our veteran family members and friends gain access to the VA’s improved care.
That’s worth noting as we observe Veterans Day on Nov. 11, to honor the more than 41 million Americans who have served in the U.S. military.
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Copyright 2026 Tom Purcell, distributed exclusively by Cagle Cartoons newspaper syndicate.
See Tom Purcell’s syndicated column, humor books and funny videos featuring his dog, Thurber, at TomPurcell.com. Email him at Tom@TomPurcell.com.
Copyright 2026 Tom Purcell, All Rights Reserved. Credit: Cagle.com
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