VA annual report shows veteran suicides decreased in 2024

WASHINGTON — Veteran suicides dipped slightly in 2024 over the previous year, and patient records showed that recently documented mental health conditions and substance use disorders were common in the majority of cases.

The Department of Veterans Affairs released its annual suicide report showing 6,488 veteran suicides in 2024, a slight decrease from 6,662 in 2023. The report is the largest national analysis of veteran suicide rates each year.

The report shows that there was an average of 17.7 veteran suicides per day, compared with 18.2 deaths per day in 2023.

Sixty-two percent of veterans who died by suicide did not receive VA care the year they died or for the year prior to that.

The 2026 National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report, posted Wednesday afternoon on the VA website, provides data on suicide counts and rates but also gives details and analysis on demographic trends based on age, gender and other factors.

“It’s now been 25 years since VA has been reporting these statistics, and each and every year since 2001 more than 6,000 veterans have taken their own lives. Despite tremendous efforts and significant resources expended, the progress has been frustratingly slow,” Dr. David Shulkin, a former VA secretary and undersecretary, posted on social media.

In 2024, 62.2% of veterans enrolled in VA health care who died by suicide had a documented mental health or addiction diagnosis within the previous year, up from 60.8% in 2023 and 56% in 2001.

The 2026 suicide report is based on 2024 numbers for veteran suicides, the most recent data available, according to the VA. The report analyzes suicide data from 2001 to 2024.

For veterans who separated from active military service in 2023, suicide rates over the following 12 months were higher among those with suicidal thoughts, addictions and mental health diagnoses, the report said.

Esteban Blis, who was medically retired from the Army in 2011, said he is not surprised that the number of veteran suicides is largely unchanged from 2023.

Blis said he has lost former battle buddies to suicide and experienced severe depression himself after leaving the military.

“Veterans may not show it, but they often continue to experience trauma from their combat experiences long after they return home,” said Blis, who runs the You Served, We Care Foundation, a veteran advocacy organization in Panama.

For veterans who separated from the military in 2022-23, suicide rates over the following 12 months were highest among those who left the Marine Corps, followed by the Army, Navy and Air Force.

Suicide in 2024 was the eleventh-leading cause of death among veterans.

The suicide rate was highest among veterans 18 to 34 years old.

Firearms were most often used, accounting for 75% of suicides among male veterans and more than 50% among female veterans.

Firearm use in veteran suicides overall has risen significantly over the past two decades. In 2001, firearms were used in roughly two-thirds, or 66%, of veteran suicides, the report said.

The vast majority of veteran suicides overall occurred among men, who made up more than 95% of the total. Women veterans accounted for the remaining 4.4%. The average age was 59 years old.

But VA data shows that the suicide rate among women veterans was significantly higher than that of civilian women, after adjusting for age differences.

The suicide rate for women veterans in 2024 was 99.9% higher than for women with no military service.

The rate for male veterans was 56.5% higher than for their civilian counterparts.

More than 60% of veterans who died by suicide in 2024 had not received VA health care in the past two years, the agency said.

“VA health care saves lives, so we’re making every effort to get more veterans into the system to get the care and benefits they’ve earned,” VA Secretary Doug Collins said when the report was released.

Suicide rates for veterans enrolled in VA health care fell by 4.8% from 2023 to 2024, and rates for unenrolled veterans rose by 3.7%.

VA health care is the official system that signs up eligible veterans for comprehensive medical benefits that are low-cost or free. Health services cover checkups, mental health counseling and specialty care for service-connected injuries and illnesses.

The VA also runs a veteran crisis line. More than 1.3 million calls, chats and texts to the crisis line — at 988 + 1 — were answered in fiscal 2026.

“VA programs can help mitigate suicide risks, and the department is determined to reduce the number of veteran deaths by suicide using prevention strategies that are based on the best evidence available,” the report said.

All VA health care facilities provide same-day emergency treatment for veterans in crisis. VA benefits also enable veterans at risk of suicide to receive emergency care at any non-VA facility.

In addition, the VA administers the Staff Sergeant Parker Gordon Fox Suicide Prevention Grants Program, which supports community-based suicide prevention and reaches veterans not connected to VA care, the report said.