{"id":63656,"date":"2020-05-12T02:40:05","date_gmt":"2020-05-12T02:40:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2020\/05\/12\/va-veterans-groups-brace-for-surge-in-mental-health-needs\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T11:50:18","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T11:50:18","slug":"va-veterans-groups-brace-for-surge-in-mental-health-needs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/coronavirus\/2020\/05\/12\/va-veterans-groups-brace-for-surge-in-mental-health-needs\/","title":{"rendered":"VA, veterans groups brace for surge in mental health needs"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. \u2014 When Kristofer Goldsmith was discharged from the Army in 2007 he was in crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He had been trained as a forward observer \u2014 the person who spots a target and gives coordinates to artillery \u2014 but when he got to Iraq, the then 19-year-old instead found himself photographing dead bodies for intelligence gathering. A suicide attempt before his second deployment triggered a less than honorable discharge and a long fight to gain honorable status after being diagnosed with PTSD.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Goldsmith credits the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs medical staff with saving his life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The VA and its partner mental health providers have kept thousands of veterans in treatment during the coronavirus pandemic through telehealth appointments. But as job losses and increased social isolation take an extended toll, some veterans\u2019 advocates worry the already understaffed VA medical facilities can\u2019t keep up and that telehealth isn\u2019t enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cAfter years of self-imposed isolation &#8230; I was really in need of person-to-person contact,\u201d said Goldsmith, now the assistant director of policy at Vietnam Veterans of America. \u201cFlash forward almost 13 years now since I got out, and telehealth is right for me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The VA on Friday kicked off a \u201cNow is the Time\u201d campaign aimed at alerting veterans and their families to the mental health resources that are available to them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But veterans advocates still are waiting for a report by a White House task force established by President Donald Trump last year that was charged with developing a national roadmap to boost mental health care and stem <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/your-military\/2020\/04\/28\/soldiers-and-marines-die-by-suicide-50-percent-more-often-than-sailors-and-airmen-report-finds\/\" target=_blank>persistently high suicide numbers<\/a> among veterans, who have been hard hit in the pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2020\/03\/04\/suicide-remains-growing-challenge-for-younger-veterans-survey-shows\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"187\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/IAVAsuicide.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Suicide remains growing challenge for younger veterans, survey shows<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">The survey of IAVA members saw increases in the number of individuals who have thought about harming themselves or lost a friend to suicide.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Release of the task force report had been scheduled in March but was abruptly shelved due to the outbreak.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe are not happy about this decision because we understand that there are partnerships and financial resources tied to this plan that we\u2019d like to see implemented immediately,\u201d said Chanin Nuntavong, executive director of The American Legion\u2019s Washington office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">VA Secretary Robert Wilkie told veterans groups in a call last week that the draft report was being finalized but declined to give a release date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">An administration official, who requested anonymity to reveal internal deliberations, told The Associated Press that officials planned to unveil the plan around Memorial Day. Karen Pence, wife of the vice president, will help launch the effort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">VA officials said <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/news\/2020\/04\/13\/veterans-remote-mental-health-appointments-skyrocket-amid-coronavirus-outbreak\/\" target=_blank>telehealth medical appointments jumped <\/a>from 20,000 in February to nearly 154,000 in April. Many of the department\u2019s partners have moved most or all of their mental health appointments to telehealth, including the Cohen Veterans Network which transitioned 98% of patients at its 15 clinics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The VA has provided some veterans with tablets, phones and affordable data rates through several private partnerships. Dr. Matt Miller, acting director of the VA\u2019s suicide prevention program, said veterans aren\u2019t waiting long for telehealth sessions, but only wait times for in-person appointments are tracked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/opinion\/commentary\/2019\/08\/08\/cracking-the-code-the-new-frontier-in-confronting-veteran-suicide\/\" target=\"_blank\">Sherman Gillums Jr.,<\/a> the chief advocacy officer for AMVETS, said telemedicine is likely saving lives, but it is also likely missing some older or less tech savvy veterans. He wants the VA to move veterans with canceled appointments to the front of the line when things reopen and make more inpatient beds immediately available.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">&#8220;I just don&#8217;t want them to oversell telemedicine. We had it before when veteran suicide became an issue, and it wasn&#8217;t a fix,&#8221; Gillums said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Gillums said a suicide prevention tool created by AMVETS to train family members to spot signs of suicidal thoughts before a veteran gets to a crisis could help families during stay-at-home orders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For years, the government reported that 20 veterans die by suicide each day, about 1.5 times higher than non-veterans. Last fall, the VA adjusted the methodology to remove from the count some active-duty service members and former members of the National Guard and Reserve, updating the veteran suicide rate to 17 a day based on 2017 data, the most recent available. There were 6,139 suicide deaths in 2017, which is up 129 from the previous year, even as the total veteran population declined.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/news\/pentagon-congress\/2019\/10\/09\/new-veteran-suicide-numbers-raise-concerns-among-experts-hoping-for-positive-news\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/4018590.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">New veteran suicide numbers raise concerns among experts hoping for positive news<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">About 17 veterans a day die by suicide, a number that has stayed steady over a decade.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The government says about two-thirds of those were not under VA care, pointing to a need for improved outreach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe have been very busy during the COVID crisis \u2014 with our efforts focused on getting in front of the mental health crisis that we know is coming,\u201d Barbara Van Dahlen, executive director of the task force, told the AP. The group has boosted social media efforts during the pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20132713901311.jpg.jpg\" alt=\"Lead Clinician Matt Turner speaks to potential clients about the mental health services offered at Cohen Veteran\u2019s Network\u2019s Fayetteville clinic via video conference on Wednesday, April 22, 2020 in Fayetteville, N.C.\" class=\"wp-image-99802\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20132713901311.jpg.jpg 2000w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20132713901311.jpg.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20132713901311.jpg.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20132713901311.jpg.jpg?resize=1024,682 1024w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20132713901311.jpg.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lead Clinician Matt Turner speaks to potential clients about the mental health services offered at Cohen Veteran\u2019s Network\u2019s Fayetteville clinic via video conference on Wednesday, April 22, 2020 in Fayetteville, N.C. The organization, which partners with the U.S. Department of Veteran\u2019s Affairs, is hiring more therapists to deal with a surge of struggling veterans once the pandemic ends. (Sarah Blake Morgan\/AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At Cohen Veterans Network, website traffic has increased, including a spike between midnight and 4 a.m. Saturdays when people are alone or experiencing insomnia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Anthony Hassan, the president and chief executive officer of Cohen, said he doesn\u2019t believe the country\u2019s mental health system is prepared for the surge likely to happen from the pandemic. Cohen is opening 10 new centers by the end of next year and hiring more staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe one thing I don\u2019t want to be is too late&#8230; We need to be talking now about how we can make sure we are ahead of this,\u201d Hassan said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Staff have set up online groups\u2014 yoga classes, mindfulness training, sessions about unemployment \u2014 to help veterans and families cope.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/education-transition\/2020\/05\/08\/veteran-unemployment-up-to-nearly-12-percent-amid-coronavirus-crisis\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20128747638099.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Veteran unemployment up to nearly 12 percent amid coronavirus crisis<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">More than 1 million veterans reported being jobless in April as the national unemployment rate 14.7 percent.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Chad Sneary was only a few hours into his shift at a Mooresville, North Carolina, manufacturing plant when he was laid off in early April. The 43-year-old, who served six years in the Marine Corps and two in the Ohio National Guard, insisted on working his full shift.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sneary and his family are surviving on pantry items and hoping he is approved for unemployment soon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cFinancial skills is not something the military ever taught you. Most of us live paycheck to paycheck,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20132713948996.jpg.jpg\" alt=\"Marine Corps veteran Chad Sneary, 43, shows a photo of his 19-year-old self in uniform on Thursday, April 30, 2020, in Mooresville, N.C.\" class=\"wp-image-99806\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20132713948996.jpg.jpg 2000w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20132713948996.jpg.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20132713948996.jpg.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20132713948996.jpg.jpg?resize=1024,682 1024w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP20132713948996.jpg.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Marine Corps veteran Chad Sneary, 43, shows a photo of his 19-year-old self in uniform on Thursday, April 30, 2020, in Mooresville, N.C. Sneary spent eight years serving in the U.S. Marine Corps and Ohio National Guard. (Sarah Blake Morgan\/AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">New government statistics released Friday show the unemployment rate among veterans in April was 11.7%, up from 2.3% a year earlier. The overall unemployment last month was 14.7%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Independence Fund, a nonprofit that helps critically wounded service members, has received hundreds of financial requests and is struggling to meet a nearly 600% increase in need.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/commentary\/2020\/04\/22\/one-air-force-spouses-take-on-suicide-depression-and-mental-health-concerns-in-the-military\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"202\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/4239365.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">One Air Force spouse\u2019s take on suicide, depression and mental health concerns in the military<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">An Air Force wife says she thinks spouses a key in the fight against the suicide epidemic affecting members of the military.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Meanwhile, the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America has seen an almost 25% increase in the hundreds of calls to its rapid response hotline for veterans in crisis. Jeremy Butler, the group\u2019s chief executive officer, said the largest increases are requests for financial, housing or mental health referrals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Goldsmith, who has spent years advocating for other veterans, worries about the trauma that national guard members, first responders and others are experiencing and whether they will get care.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThere is going to be a lot of survivors\u2019 guilt,\u201d he said. \u201cPeople don\u2019t die from PTSD in the midst of war. When they sit with these new fresh raw memories, that\u2019s when PTSD takes lives.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><i>Lauer reported from Philadelphia, and Yen reported from Washington. AP Economics Writer Christopher Rugaber contributed to this report.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The VA kicked off a \u201cNow is the Time\u201d campaign aimed at alerting veterans and their families to the mental health resources that are available to 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By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>VA, veterans groups brace for surge in mental health needs - Navy Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The VA kicked off a \u201cNow is the Time\u201d campaign aimed at alerting veterans and their families to the mental health resources that are available to them.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"VA, veterans groups brace for surge in mental health needs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The VA kicked off a \u201cNow is the Time\u201d campaign aimed at alerting veterans and their families to the mental health resources that are available to them.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/coronavirus\/2020\/05\/12\/va-veterans-groups-brace-for-surge-in-mental-health-needs\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Navy Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-05-12T02:40:05+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-08T11:50:18+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Sarah Blake Morgan, The Associated Press, Claudia Lauer, The Associated Press, Hope Yen, The Associated Press\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Sarah Blake Morgan, The Associated Press, Claudia Lauer, The Associated Press, Hope Yen, The Associated Press\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script 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