VA aims to get better data on vet suicide rates

This is one of the facts I keep pointing out when we talk about suicide numbers

VA knows when a veteran in its care commits suicide, but only 6 million of the nation’s 22 million veterans are enrolled in VA health services.

VA aims to get better data on vet suicide rates
By Patricia Kime - Staff writer
Posted : Tuesday Feb 28, 2012 17:56:51 EST
Better data on suicide rates among veterans could be available by summer under an agreement forged between Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki and 49 states.

The figure often noted in press reports and analyses — an average of 18 veteran suicides each day — is derived from information available from the Centers for Disease Control’s National Violent Death Reporting System, which receives input from 18 states, and other sources.

VA now has a commitment from 49 state governments to furnish statistics on veterans’ deaths in their states to the department, said Jan Kemp, VA’s National Mental Health Program Director for Suicide Prevention.
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