Mental health issues have gotten much media attention in the last few years and efforts are increasingly being made to address them locally and nationally. On Wednesday this issue became evident again when the Pentagon released figures that showed that suicides were outpacing traffic, heart disease, cancer, homicide and all other forms of death in the military other than combat. A staggering one in four non-combat deaths last year were service-members killing themselves.
Furthermore, according to USA TODAY, suicides among troops occur on average once a day. And data, first reported by the Associated Press, indicates that after the end of the Iraq War, suicides may become more common than combat deaths. There were 154 confirmed or suspected suicides this year through June 3, while 127 troops died in the Afghanistan War, Pentagon data show.
In response Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta revealed Wednesday that he will have all service branches follow the Army’s lead in reviewing mental health cases dating back to 2001. The goal is to see whether any current or former service-member was denied appropriate medical retirement benefits.
To further address the situation among non-active duty personnel, the Veteran’s Administration has already launched efforts to hire more mental health professionals for centers like it’s Debakey Hospital in Houston, which alone will hire 40 new staff. And more attention may be coming from private sources too, as the New York Times reports that the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund has raised $25-million for centers in Washington state and North Carolina (KRIV 26 News video below)