Sen. Murray wants other states to also track veterans' suicides

What has been reported on this blog is the fact that if they are not in the DOD system or the VA system, no one is tracking them. When we read numbers like 18 a day commit suicide, there are many, many more no one is tracking. It will be a lot higher once every state is actually tracking all of them.

Sen. Murray wants other states to also track veterans' suicides
Washington Sen. Patty Murray on Wednesday encouraged state governments to start tallying veteran suicides, as her state already does.

ADAM ASHTON; STAFF WRITER
Published: 08/04/11

Washington Sen. Patty Murray on Wednesday encouraged state governments to start tallying veteran suicides, as her state already does.

Her goal is to quantify an under-reported number that could help health agencies improve their outreach to service members who have fought in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Department of Veterans Affairs has an incomplete picture of suicide among former service members because it doesn’t count the deaths of veterans not enrolled in VA care.

“One of the most significant obstacles to understanding veteran suicide is the lack of information available regarding these individuals,” Murray wrote with two of her Democratic colleagues in a letter to the National Governors Association.

“In many cases the Department of Veterans Affairs does not even know that a veteran has died if that individual was not enrolled in VA health care,” wrote Murray.

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Sen. Murray wants other states to also track veterans suicides