Biden Gives Vets ‘Acute Suicidal Crisis’ Mental Care for Free

Over a year after losing America’s 20-year-long war on terror, the Veteran Affairs Department announced US military veterans will receive free mental health care in cases of an “acute suicidal crisis.”

Free Mental Health Care One Year After Losing Afghanistan War

The VA announcement about free mental care to vets comes about almost 1.5 years after in August 2021, Kabul Joe single-handedly lost the war on terror in Afghanistan with an abrupt pullout. This allowed the Taliban Islamist terrorists to reconquer the country immediately.

The Taliban then moved right away to welcome back al-Qaeda, the perpetrator of the 9/11 slaughter in New York City and Washington, DC.

As per the new Veterans Affairs Department’s policy, as of Tuesday, US military vets can get “no cost, world-class” mental health care, which is supposed to “prevent veteran suicide” in “times of crisis.”

The department said, as cited by CNN, that veterans who would like to take advantage of the free service can visit any healthcare facility, regardless of whether it is affiliated with the VA or whether they are enrolled in the VA system.

Denis McDonough, the VA Secretary for Veterans’ affairs, said the new policy would ‘save veterans’ lives,” which was the most “important” thing about it.

Those eligible to benefit from the VA’s free mental health care program are veterans with at least two years of service who were not discharged “dishonorably.” The VA said it would either pay for the mental health services directly or reimburse the veterans who use them.

Veterans, including those from the Reserves, who served over 100 days in a “combat exclusion” or supporting a “contingency operation” are also eligible for the new plan.

Over 6,000 Veteran Suicides Annually in Recent Years

The new VA policy will cover treatment, emergency suicide care, and follow-up care, as well as veterans’ transportation costs. It will be good for 30 days of inpatient care, plus 90 days of outpatient care.

After the initial emergency suicide care, the VA will use the program to establish whether veterans are eligible for its other services and benefits.

According to the 2022 VA report, 6,146 US military veterans committed suicide in 2020. That was 343 fewer, compared with the 6,489 vets who died by suicide in 2019.

In 2020, suicide ranked 13th among the leading causes of veterans’ deaths – but it was only the second leading death cause for vets under 45 years of age.

In October 2022, the Pentagon released a report showing 519 US service personnel among active duty, National Guard, and Reserve troops killed themselves in 2021.

The CNN report points out that boosting mental health care for veterans was the second highest priority in a prevention strategy on military and veteran suicide announced by the White House in 2021.

The strategy called for “equitable access” to quality crisis care for those at high risk of suicide. In the 2021 report, Biden argued the US wasn’t doing enough to care for veterans and their families after they returned home.

This article appeared in The State Today and has been published here with permission.

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