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Last month, House Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Rep. Mike Bost, R-Ill., sent a searing letter to Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough in which he wrote that he found it “unfathomable that the veteran suicide rate, tragically, has not budged.” He accused the VA of satisfaction with the status quo, and questioned whether the “Office of Suicide Prevention leaders are capable of carrying out VA’s top clinical priority?”
The letter completely missed the mark. The VA has been actively searching for ways to combat the problem — particularly in addressing firearm suicides, which account for 73% of veteran suicide deaths. Far from displaying complacency, it has spent a decade building a productive partnership with the firearms industry, recognizing that protecting gun rights and preventing suicides are complementary — not opposing — goals. At the same time, the committee has blocked firearm suicide legislation. To achieve meaningful reductions in veteran suicides, Bost should prioritize passing these critical measures.
Research shows that reducing the availability of lethal means during personal crises often determines survival. Many suicide attempts are motivated by an individual becoming briefly overwhelmed rather than because of meticulous planning. By helping someone get through the high danger period without ready access to lethal means, their risk of dying by suicide significantly decreases not only immediately but also over the long term.
The VA has long understood this need to create time and space between a veteran and their firearm during life crises. Starting in 2013, its comprehensive firearm suicide prevention strategy includes mandatory lethal means safety training for its clinical and crisis line workforce, risk management consultation services, a guidebook for veterans discussing secure storage with buddies, distribution of free gun locks, innovation grant challenges, and much more.
All along, the department clearly recognized that it will take collaboration between firearm and veteran constituencies along with the VA to reduce suicides. Messages advising people to securely store their firearms have been found to be most effective when delivered by credible messengers through trusted channels.
That spurred the VA to forge a multipronged collaboration with the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), the firearms industry’s trade association, aimed at reducing firearm access for veterans with suicidal intent. NSSF’s own interest grew out of awareness that firearm suicides affect so many.
The VA and NSSF geared up fast. NSSF posted suicide prevention information, graphics and videos on its websites, and strongly encouraged industry members to use these resources. The organization advised those close to people in crisis to proactively have what they call “brave conversations” to voluntarily limit firearm access by storing guns outside the home or securely locking them at home. NSSF distributed materials dispelling the myth that the VA confiscates firearms, a misperception that had deterred veterans from seeking mental health care. The VA and NSSF crosslinked websites to amplify each other’s material.
The VA participates in NSSF’s annual Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade (SHOT) Show, the mega-trade event that attracts 50,000 firearm business professionals and gun enthusiasts. At SHOT, Dr. Matt Miller, executive director of VA’s Office of Suicide Prevention, gives dozens of media interviews and mans a well-trafficked suicide prevention booth.
The VA, backed by NSSF, runs public awareness campaigns through public service announcements (PSAs) and social media, using vivid phrases like “the “Space Between Thought and Trigger” and “Because No One Can Un-fire a Firearm.” Julie Golob, an NSSF Woman of the Gun Award recipient, narrated one of the PSAs. NSSF’s “Make Sure It’s Secure” communication campaign paralleled the VA’s “Keep It Secure” to appeal to gun owners. Those NSSF messages, which reached 20 million viewers last year, aim to embed in the public’s mind the notion that easy access to firearms can be lethal during dark moments.
By recognizing that gun rights and suicide prevention are not at odds, this VA-NSSF partnership has shattered prevailing misconceptions that firearm suicide measures are liberty-suppressing. Their aligned messaging proves that protecting both rights and lives isn’t just possible, it’s essential. The President’s Roadmap to Empower Veterans and End a National Tragedy of Suicide (PREVENTS) issued during President Donald Trump’s first term affirmed these dual truths, and it is past time for Congress to act accordingly.
One clear path is for Bost to take up Rep. Chris Deluzio’s (D-Pa.) “Saving Our Veterans Lives Act.” The bill, with strong backing by the American Legion, Disabled American Veterans, NSSF and lawmakers from both parties, would offer free gun lockboxes to veterans upon request. No registry is maintained of those who receive the safety devices. This bill addresses a critical gap: One-third of veterans who store their firearms loaded and unlocked report not owning a lockbox or safe and, for many, the cost is the barrier.
The committee should also advance Rep. Clay Higgins’ (R-La.) ”Armory Project Expansion Act of 2024.” This bill builds on the hugely successful New Orleans VA initiative that helps at-risk veterans store firearms outside their homes. After a 2022 Louisiana law protected Federal Firearms Licensees (FFLs) from liability when returned firearms are used in suicides, the number of participating state gun stores surged tenfold. To maximize the legislation’s impact, lawmakers should add grants to help firearm dealers enlarge storage capacity and offset costs for gun owners seeking temporary storage.
Further, Rep. Lauren Underwood’s (D-Ill.) “Lethal Means Safety Training Act” aims to expand suicide prevention training to community health care providers who work with veterans. Research demonstrates that, when clinicians discuss firearm access with patients experiencing suicidal thoughts, both attempts and deaths decrease. This finding is particularly relevant for the 1.7 million community providers who supplement VA care. Recent VA annual reports revealed that veterans receiving care from community providers have a higher rate of death by suicide compared to those treated directly by the VA. Despite this disparity, only a tiny percentage of contract providers have completed training in how to help veterans limit access to firearms during high-risk periods.
With vital congressional support, reducing access and securely storing firearms should continue to gain momentum and become integrated into the fabric of the veteran and larger gun-owning communities. This shift in norms offers hope for a future in which firearm-related suicides are substantially lessened.
— Russell B. Lemle is a senior policy analyst at the Veterans Healthcare Policy Institute. His recent publication “Bridging the Sociopolitical Divide: Transforming Efforts to Prevent Firearm Suicide” appears in the December 2024 American Psychologist.