By Russell Lemle, originally on Military.com In the VA’s recently released National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report, which covered 2020 to 2021, the suicide rate among women veterans jumped 24.1 percent — far greater than the 6.3 percent increase among male veterans.

On November 16th, the VA released its annual National Veteran Suicide Prevention Report, analyzing data and factors associated with US veterans who died by suicide in 2021.

By Paul Sullivan In 2011, a mother in distress phoned me about her son who had just returned from the war in Iraq.

By Russell Lemle, originally in The Washington Monthly In 2019, with the number of U.S. veterans dying by suicide surpassing 6,000 for the 11th consecutive year, Congress searched for fresh ideas to address the crisis.

For years, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has painstakingly labored to track, research and address veteran suicide. Their exceptional work was dealt an unwarranted blow a month ago with the publication of an incomplete report entitled Operation Deep Dive (OpDD). The $3.9 million study from America’s Warrior Partnership (AWP) examined death data of former service members in eight states between 2014-2018.

VHPI Senior Policy Analyst Dr. Russell Lemle organized a multi-organizational effort to provide written testimony on how to stem the veterans suicide crisis.

On February 28, the San Francisco VA Health Care System will join with the Greater San Francisco Bay Area Chapter of The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) for a one-day conference on ‘Advances in Safe Storage of Firearms and Preventive Strategies for Veterans at Risk for Suicide.’

Over the last two decades, as suicide rates in the US have climbed 33 percent, the rates for veterans who use the services of the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) has remained relatively steady.