Brandon Act

The Brandon Act protects the health and well-being of our Military Forces through early identification and intervention of problems they may face on a daily basis.

This bill will allow service members to seek mental health treatment and require a

mental health evaluation as soon as a service member self-reports. It will also allow Americans serving in uniform to seek help confidentially and, if necessary, outside

of the chain of command. The measure also mandates that the Department of Defense

provide annual training on how to recognize when members may need a mental health

evaluation. You can also attend other courses like Mental Health First Aid to better

understand our military members' needs.

The Mission of The Brandon Act is to save the lives of our Military Service

Members, Military Families, and children.

Active-Duty Suicide Rate Hit Record High in 2020

The suicide rate for active-duty troops rose to 28.7 per 100,000 last year, up from 26.3 the previous year, according to the latest edition of an annual Defense Department report. This is the highest rate since the Pentagon began keeping detailed records in 2008.

The year-over-year change to the suicide count is not “a huge increase” but the increase in the rate over time is “cause for concern and there needs to be

renewed focus to specific suicide-prevention initiatives,” said Julie Cerel,

who leads the Suicide Prevention and Exposure Lab at the University of Kentucky.

“What they have been doing hasn’t been working and they need to do something

different and more sustained.”

Counting deaths by suicide is not an exact science, and official tallies can change as new information emerges. In statistical terms, the figure given as each year’s rate represents the midpoint of the 95%-confidence range. That’s why Karin Orvis, who leads DoD’s Defense Suicide Prevention Office, said the rates in 2019 and 2020 are “statistically comparable.”