Emergency Healthcare for Suicidal Vets is Now Available at Any VA or Non-VA Facility
February 02, 2023
As of January 17, 2023, any veteran who struggles with suicidal thoughts and actions can seek emergency services at a VA or non-VA healthcare facility. There is no cost involved. Services received can include inpatient, or crisis residential care for up to thirty days, and up to three months for outpatient care. A veteran does not need to be enrolled in the VA system to access this assistance.
This move to expand healthcare to suicidal veterans means care is now available for roughly nine million vets who are not currently enrolled in the VA. “There are a lot of vets needing help, and this could be a lifeline for them,” said Jim Fausone, a Michigan veterans’ lawyer.
The extension of these services to vets is also a part of the VA’s ten-year National Strategy for Preventing Suicide (National Strategy for Preventing Veteran Suicide). Additionally, it is also a key component of the current Administration’s efforts to reduce military and veteran suicides. (2022 National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report)
“The good news is that the VA released a report in September showing Veteran suicides decreased in 2020 – for the second year in a row. It also showed that fewer veterans died by their own hand in 2020 than in any year since 2006,” Fausone commented.
The final policy to implement this program kicked into operation on January 17, 2023, and allows the VA to:
- Assess eligibility for other VA services and benefits and refer them.
- Pay for the cost of treatment for eligible veterans. This includes transportation expenses and subsequent follow up appointments at a non-VA or VA facility.
- Reimburse the cost of treatments for eligible suicidal veterans.
- Ninety days of outpatient care and thirty days of inpatient care.
Eligibility Requirements
Eligibility requirements, no matter what a veteran’s enrollment status happens to be are:
- Past members of the armed forces, such as the reserve service members. These members would have needed to serve more than one hundred days under a combat exclusion, or by operating an unmanned aerial craft from another location, or in direct support of a contingency operation, as long as the discharge was not dishonorable.
- Past armed force members who were victims of sexual harassment.
- Past armed force members who experienced a physical sexual assault or sexual battery during their service.
- Vets released or discharged from active duty after over twenty-four months of service; as long as the provided discharge is not dishonorable.
These latest tools to assist veterans in distress are in addition to the “988 press 1” initiative, a new rule to eliminate or reduce copays for suicide risks, public education and outreach discussing firearm suicide prevention, and launching a national Veteran suicide prevention awareness campaign “Don’t Wait, Reach Out.”
If a veteran experiences difficulties seeking benefits, Legal Help For Veterans, PLLC is a nationwide VA Disability law firm assisting veterans and their family members in all federal VA benefit matters.
Legal Help for Veterans, PLLC has a national practice representing veterans from across the country. We have helped veterans collect over $10,000,000 in future and retroactive benefits.