10/30/2026
There is still room for improvement …
The rate of su***de among military veterans has remained consistent in recent years, despite efforts to drive it down.
Nearly 18 veterans died by su***de every day in 2024, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs’ annual report on the topic. The report found that 6,488 veterans killed themselves in 2024, slightly fewer than a revised number the VA now says died in 2023.
The report, released last week, looked at trends in veteran su***de from 2001-2024, the most recent year for which the VA has data. Notably, the report added close to 300 su***de deaths to its previously released 2023 estimate for veteran su***des. In February, the department’s 2023 report said 6,398 veterans took their own lives that year, but the new 2024 report revises that 2023 figure up to 6,662.
A note in the new report said the revised numbers reflected new information about deaths in 2023 that the VA collected after the 2023 report was published.
The VA also found that the average number of su***des per day declined to 17.7 per day, down from 18.2 su***des per day in 2023.
The report noted that fi****ms were overwhelmingly the method used most often by male and female veterans, accounting for 74.3% of deaths in 2024, followed by suffocation. According to the VA, all su***des were the 11th-leading cause of death among veterans that year.
