New research shows that the rate of suicide among veterans may be far worse than previously thought.
The project, dubbed Operation Deep Dive, found at least 44 veterans end their lives every day in the U.S. – 2.4 times higher than the Department of Veterans Affairs’ rate of 17 deaths per day.
The study, conducted by America’s Warrior Partnership with Duke University and the University of Alabama, analyzed data across five years in eight states, including Massachusetts.
“What we found was the medical examiners and coroners classify an overdose as an accident 80% of the time, as an undetermined 90% of the time, when in actuality, it’s a suicide,” Jim Lorraine, president and CEO of America’s Warrior Partnership, told WFXT-TV. “It’s huge. It is the biggest, without a doubt, the biggest killer of veterans for premature death is overdose. Not firearms, it’s overdose.”
The research goal was to create a complete picture of the suicide crisis among veterans to address it better and prevent further deaths.
“It’s about building a relationship with them before the crisis occurs,” Lorraine said. “If you can improve the quality of life for veterans, their suicide rate will go down.”
He said that helping veterans access meaningful employment, housing, physical health and mental well-being will help to lower suicide rates.
Operation Deep Dive analysis discovered those that who served in the military for less than three years were at the greatest risk for suicide. Receiving a demotion during military service increased the risk of dying by suicide by 56%.
Veterans who served in the Coast Guard were most likely to die from suicide, followed by the Marine Corps, the Army, the Navy and the Air Force.
Lorraine believes the findings from Operation Deep Dive will show people that there isn’t a one-size-fits-all method when supporting our veterans and their mental health.
“We’ve been doing the same thing for all of these years and nothing has changed. We have to do something different. We have to look at it differently,” Lorraine told WFXT.
©2022 Cox Media Group
