US senators ask DoD to look at rising suicide rates among National Guard members

A group of U.S. Senators recently urged the Department of Defense (DoD) to address the increasing suicide rate among members of the National Guard.

Recent reports show that the suicide mortality rate for the National Guard has been consistently higher than the rate among active duty and reserve members.

“We cannot continue to treat the National Guard as just another branch of the Active Army and Air Force while not paying special attention to their unique needs. We must ensure the National Guard has care and community that is comparable to the Active components,” the Senators wrote in a letter to James Stewart, the DoD’s Office of Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness. “The National Guard maintains comparable operational tempos but lacks the support of a community that fully empathizes with their unique and sometimes isolating experience of being both soldier and civilian.”

The letter was signed by Sens. Jon Tester (D-MT), Michael Bennet (D-CO), and Jerry Moran (R-KS).

Tester, ranking member on Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, introduced a bill earlier this year to address the issue. The bill – the Care and Readiness Enhancement (CARE) for Reservists Act – would authorize the DoD to improve Guardsmen and Reservists’ access to consistent mental health, regardless of their deployment status.

The increase in National Guard suicide rates may be due to several factors the Senators said, including finding full-time employment, a lack of access to quality mental health care, and isolation from the broader military community.

They asked for the DoD to provide an analysis of the gaps in existing suicide prevention programs and a report on the factors contributing to the discrepancy in National Guard suicide rates.

“We, therefore, ask that your office prepare a brief no later than December 2019 on the gaps, if any, that remain across Department of Defense, branch-level, or interagency suicide prevention programs for the National Guard. We also ask that you provide an analysis of any explanatory factors contributing to differences in suicide rates between the Active and Reserve Component and the National Guard,” they wrote.