Blumenthal Backs Legislation Aimed At Reducing Veteran Suicide

HARTFORD, CT – United States Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-CT, ranking member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, has joined Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., and Joni Ernst, R-IA, in introducing bipartisan legislation to better support the mental health needs of veterans and servicemembers as they return home. 

“Veterans who have sacrificed so much deserve the highest quality care our country has to offer,” Blumenthal said in a statement. “Unfortunately, the rate of veterans suicide is both shocking and shameful. I’m proud to support this bipartisan effort, and I’ll continue to fight to reduce this grim number by bolstering the resources veterans desperately need and pushing back on the reckless firings of indispensable VA staff.”

The Daniel J. Harvey Jr. and Adam Lambert Improving Servicemember Transition to Reduce Veteran Suicide Act would improve the Department of Defense’s Transition Assistance Program (TAP) and the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) Solid Start program by providing increased mental health support for transitioning servicemembers and veterans. The bill was named in memory of two Marines who lost their lives to suicide: Lance Cpl. Daniel J. Harvey, Jr., and Cpl. Adam Lambert.

This bill would seek to reduce veteran suicide by requiring TAP to provide information to separating servicemembers about the mental health challenges they might face while transitioning to civilian life. It would also require VA’s Solid Start program to inform veterans about VA benefits and mental health services available to them at their local VA medical facility. 

Joy Craig, associate director of VFW National Legislative Services, said the legislation was a solemn reminder of what was at stake for returning veterans.

“Transitioning from military to civilian life can be one of the most vulnerable times in a veteran’s life,” she said. “This bill gives servicemembers the mental health tools they need, early, clearly, and compassionately, to navigate that difficult transition and resolve service-related challenges before they become crises.”

She called for quick passage of the bill.

“Veterans face a 35% higher rate of suicide in their first 12 months following separation from the Armed Forces, and this transition period provides a critical opportunity to expand access to mental health supports,” said Laurel Stine,executive vice president and chief policy and advocacy officer at the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. 

In Connecticut, 34 veterans lost their lives to suicide in 2021, according to the VA.