[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 165 (Thursday, September 23, 2021)]
[House]
[Page H5107]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       PREVENTING VETERAN SUICIDE

  (Mr. GARBARINO asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. GARBARINO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today, during Suicide Prevention 
Month, in honor of the American heroes who have lost their battles with 
PTSD, depression, and other mental illness.
  While suicide affects Americans from all walks of life, veterans 
commit suicide at a rate that is 1.5 times higher than those who have 
not served in the military. According to the VA, nearly 18 veterans 
take their own life each day, and at least 60,000 veterans died by 
suicide between 2008 and 2017.
  This is unimaginable. After surviving the horrors of war, veterans 
deserve our unwavering commitment to safeguarding their physical and 
mental health.
  That is why I introduced H.R. 1123, the Veteran Suicide Prevention 
Act, which directs the VA to complete a review of suicides by veterans 
in the last 5 years and provide recommendations to improve the well-
being of veterans.
  Issues of mental illness can be nuanced and complex, but we owe it to 
our veterans to put every resource behind understanding what factors 
lead to veteran suicide so that we can put a stop to it and save 
veteran lives.

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