OPINION: Saving Alaska’s veterans from suicide through greater connection

Disconnection from others is proving fatal for veterans and service members around the country and in Alaska, with lawmakers reporting that two-thirds of vets who die by suicide have had no contact with support services.

It’s the reason why scores of veteran advocates, Medal of Honor recipients and former leaders of the Department of Veterans Affairs are calling on Congress and all Americans to take part in National Warrior Call Day on Nov. 13. The day would mark a coast-to-coast call to action. It asks that all Americans — especially active duty and retired military personnel — make a call to a warrior, with someone who has worn or is currently wearing the uniform and connect them with support, if necessary.

Time is of the essence to make these connections. In addition to post-traumatic stress, invisible wounds linked to an underlying and undiagnosed traumatic brain injury can mirror many mental-health conditions and spark isolation and suicidal ideation.

Given the continuing tragic trends both in Alaska and around the nation, National Warrior Call Day is more important than ever.

The most recent data from the Department of Veterans Affairs found that, after accounting for age differences, “the veteran suicide rate in Alaska … was significantly higher than the national general population suicide rate.” It was also “significantly higher than the national veteran suicide rate.”

As a point of comparison, the veteran suicide rate in Alaska is 47.1 deaths per 100,000 residents, while the suicide rate for the state’s general population is 34.6 deaths per 100,000. The national suicide rate for the general population is far lower at 17.3 deaths per 100,000.

In 2020, the most recent year for data, suicide was the second-leading cause of death among veterans under age 45 in that same year. In a sobering metric, more U.S. vets have died by suicide in the last 10 years than service members who died from combat in Vietnam.

What’s more, many other deaths may not be reported or classified as suicide because the evidence doesn’t support a death determination. This is a statistical “gray zone,” especially as society wrestles with alcohol and opioid addiction.

Not just veterans are suffering. The Pentagon’s latest annual report on suicide from 2020 found that for active-duty troops, the rate of suicide increased from 20.3 per 100,000 in 2015 to 28.7 per 100,000 in 2020. The Army marked a grim milestone as a Defense Suicide Prevention Office report revealed that the service suffered more suicides in 2021 than any other year since the Sept. 11 attacks.

For service members based in Alaska, suicide is an especially serious problem. Alaska’s two senators, Dan Sullivan and Lisa Murkowski, earlier this year called on Army leaders to address “the growing problem of suicide among military personnel, and particularly service members stationed in Alaska,” adding that, “twice as many soldiers in Alaska died by suicide in 2021 as compared to 2020.”

In addition to the suicide prevention work in Washington, D.C., on behalf of veterans by the Alaska congressional delegation, Alaska is one of several states taking part in the Governor’s Challenge on Suicide Prevention, a partnership with the VA to implement suicide prevention best practices for service members, veterans and their families.

But that isn’t enough to turn the tide. By enlisting every-day Alaskans to make a call to a vet or service member, National Warrior Call Day must be part of that statewide commitment. It can make a difference. It can save lives.

A former Navy SEAL, 40th U.S. Senate Sergeant at Arms and father of a Navy SEAL son who died by suicide, Frank Larkin is chief operating officer of Troops First Foundation and chairman of Warrior Call.

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