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Bill advances in US Senate to boost Veterans Affairs suicide prevention efforts

The bill would create a grant program to conduct additional outreach through veteran-serving non-profits in addition to state and local organizations.

WASHINGTON — A bipartisan bill to help address the alarming rate of veteran suicide is one step closer to becoming law. It was introduced by U.S. Sens. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) and John Boozman (R-AR).

On Wednesday, the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee included language from the Senators’ IMPROVE Well-Being for Veterans Act as a provision in a comprehensive bill that expands veterans’ access to mental health services. 

The VA estimates that around 20 veterans die by suicide each day.

The legislation unanimously passed the committee and now awaits consideration by the full Senate.

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“Our nation’s veterans have faithfully served our country, and they deserve to know that, as they face the invisible wounds of war, we will do everything we can to make sure they receive the help they need. Currently, we are facing an alarming rate of suicide deaths among our veteran population and we’ve got to make tackling this issue a priority. With today’s markup of our bill, we are one step closer to making sure veterans get the services and resources they need,” said Sen. Warner.

View the full legislation below:

Senator Warner said the legislation would create a new grant program to enable the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to conduct additional outreach through veteran-serving non-profits in addition to state and local organizations. Additionally, the bipartisan bill enhances the coordination and planning of veteran mental health and suicide prevention services and would better measure the effectiveness of these programs to reduce the alarming number of veteran suicides. 

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