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"Free" emergency mental health care exists for everyone actually. But you'd be surprised what it actually costs.

U.S. military veterans who find themselves in suicidal crisis will be eligible for free emergency medical care at any Department of Veterans Affairs facility or any private facility.

Unlike for most other medical benefits, veterans do not have to be enrolled in the VA system to be eligible. More than 18 million veterans in the U.S. could be eligible.

The new policy will include up to 30 days of inpatient or crisis residential care and up to 90 days of follow-on outpatient care.

What does it cost? Are you talking about therapy?

I'm talking about the things you are put through when youre honest about your suicidal ideations. Especially if you also have no money/home. Its akin to torture, and you are already suicidal. It's a higher cost then any one that involves money.

Sadly no, I wouldn't be surprised because I've a slippery sock vacation. Thankfully I had insurance but my share was still like 3k?

Why are all Vets not eligible for free care at all VA facilities all the time?

Ooof, good point. It's a stepping stone at least, I suppose. They're at least admitting that mental health issues are something that needs to be addressed

Cause we have the "support our troops" party, that cuts them off at the knees when they come home and are no longer serving

It's the VERY LEAST the government can do for Veterans. I fear reaching out to some of my air force buddies as i'm sure some of them aren't around anymore due to drugs and/or suicide

A good step but a lot of people who struggle actively avoid help. This is something we need to figure out as well.

You can thank the Reagan administration for that one. Google "Reagan VA cuts" and you will see hundreds of articles explaining how the precedent Reagan set affects the VA and its lack of accessibility today.

We have already failed if we can onky offer them free care when they are already in "suicidal crisis" to me that just sounds like fancy talk for oh no they attempted to commit suicide we better help them now.

When we should already be helping them. When soldiers healthcare is on par with the cheapest healthcare the average citizen can also obtain why did they have to fight and sacrifice so much.

I hope more soldiers and future soldiers realize this. That they arent fighting for freedom at least not right now. They are just cheap expendables for the Government playing on their patriotic spirit.

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This is long overdue and is really the bare minimum.

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Veteran here, we know. Political ideologies are different depending on which service you are in, infantry Marines seem the most right leaning and support roles in the Air Force seem the most left leaning in my personal experience. I was in the Navy and I knew a bare handful of folks in my years in the service that were joining up for patriotism, actually the majority was trying to get free college and that's one of the reasons why I don't think the U.S. Government would ever make college free anytime soon because there goes the majority of service members.

I will agree with you healthcare sucks, I'm a disabled veteran and my healthcare is bureaucratic as all get out. I've been waiting about 8 months for a therapist and 3 months for an x-ray for my back because my sciatic nerve is being pinched. I'm not even 30 yet.

Also active duty folks already know they are expendable, when I was active duty I had a "manager" that told my division that it doesn't matter how shit we are at our jobs since new replacements come every friday. Friday is the day at least one class of boot camp class graduates.

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A friend of mine killed himself. He was a vet who was prescribed an ungodly amount of painkillers and downers. They pulled his scripts because weed. He couldn't deal. This is a very good thing it seems.

Well this seems to be a good step.

If they didn't receive a dishonorable discharge, they can go. Now, the care they will get, that all depends on the quality of the VA facility. They are not all the same.

Active duty know they are expndable but its the people that are being recruited who dont realize just how expendable. Recruiters LOOOVE being in underprivilaged highschools and community college preying on lower income people that want a better life.

What better place then using the poor to fill the ranks.

I work 911 and am always saddended by all the homeless VAs that choose to be homeless because its honestly easier for them. Neglected and forgotten so many of our soldiers.

He also closed many many psychiatric facilities and just put the folks that were housed there out on the street. He made the wandering crazy homeless person the norm in many cities IMO.

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Is it free, or "free"

You don’t have to get a dishonorable discharge to be ineligible. There’s (at least) two ways you can be ineligible:

1. you received a discharge like a “general under honorable” discharge. This means you did nothing illegal, but for one reason or another you needed out before your contract was up. The military, especially the navy, drums people out of the service with these all the time, and they didn’t do anything wrong - just ended up in a situation where they were no longer able to serve in their role.

2. When you go to the VA, they have to “attach” you to a program. So, for instance, you were stationed in the Southeast Asia region between date X and date Y.” If they cannot find a “program” that you qualify for, you get no benefits.

It was 2018 and I wasn't registered in the VA healthcare system, but I was heavily suicidal. I could barely function, and I had to provide so many documents that were scattered about just to register.

This is good news.

I would prefer the euthanasia machines that Canada's introducing.

I was not aware of those stipulations. I always thought it was just, (only) dishonorable = no assistance. I appreciate the education on the topic. Thank you.

How on earth you are not an registered veteran once you leave the army?! This should be automatically.

And why our defense budget doesn’t cover veterans affair and have to be separated. We woundnt have veterans if it wasn’t for the military.

USA defense budget is $800 billion and veterans is $300 billions. Wanna reduce budget deficits then have veterans be under defense and keep the same budget . Maybe we don’t need those shiny planes and corporations sucking of that budget tit.

Oh I have more of these opinionated questions

That’s not what the people want! They want medically assisted suicide! Give the people what they eant

Right. This is an enormous issue because many who develop psych issues in the military wind up with general discharges, so the ones who have the greatest need for those services are cut off from them.

Yup. He also reinforced an enormous number of drug laws and classifications that made it almost impossible to do medical research for these patients.

If it wasn't a pharmaceutical that could be prescribed to rich white people and turn a company a profit, they didn't want to hear about it. Nixon started that, Regan accelerated it.

I kinda think they are. I was honorably discharged and don’t have any type of disability rating. All I did was show up at the enrollment office at the VA and said I wanted to apply for healthcare. They sat me down, confirmed my service record, took my picture for an ID card, and assigned me to a PCP & scheduled my first appointment and lab work. They were super friendly and helpful. I was in and out in about 20 minutes. I was surprised because I had been discharged over 10 years prior, but apparently there is no limit on when you can claim medical benefits. I had my lab work and appointment. The staff was incredibly friendly, and the first thing they did was enroll me in a VA messaging app and give me direct points of contact for everyone dealing directly with my health care. I can directly message my doctor, or anyone on his staff 24/7 and get a response typically same day. The nurse was very kind and asked me ALOT of question, many of them were mental health related. It got a little intense, but everything was very tactful and respectful. Then when I went in to see the doctor for my initial annual physical. I was in there with him for nearly an hour. He is a very kind man and wanted to know absolutely everything I was willing to tell him. Never felt rushed and he gave me his full attention the whole time.

My biggest problem is knee pain (I was a 19D SAW gunner). They ordered about a dozen X-rays and gave me 2 prescriptions for topical pain medications, some knee compression sleeves and a TENS unit and referred me to physical therapy, along with scheduling my next annual checkup and bloodwork. The whole thing took about 4 hours with labs, X-rays and all. After I do the 2 months of PT, they will send me for an MRI and refer me to an orthopedic surgeon if PT isn’t cutting it.

Everything so far has been $0. Oh and they STRONGLY encouraged me to file a disability claim. I have some major reservations about that, but they told me that filing for VA disability is not exactly how it sounds. I’m not interested in scamming the system when I have wounded friends that are dependent on that system. They told me it’s not like being a Social Security disability moocher or anything like that. They put me into contact with a veterans advocate that will basically handle the whole process for me.

I see a lot of other redditors making snide remarks about veterans care, but I’m guessing most have zero recent first-hand experience. I know from talking to the old-timers that the VA was terrible years back, but so far I’ve been really impressed and wish I had done this sooner.

Well too little too late for some. I hope people who need this can access this now. The US healthcare system, especially for vets, makes me so mad

Why shouldn’t Vets be able to go to any medical facility or doc’s office for anything at anytime? The VA is an embarrassment in quality and cost and isn’t convenient at all for our Vets.

Unfucking believable this wasn't already the case.

worst part about it is they don't even care about you in those places. you are just a liability and are treated as such

Bro get that rating. My knees hurt after just a short and easy run (2-3 miles at maybe a 9 minute pace). My stomach will randomly decide to just immediately shit out what I eat. And my shoulder hurts after just turning a screw driver a few times. I’m still young, I’m still fit, not overweight, but I still have these issues. These issues will be a factor I have to consider when I get out, go to school, and even after I get my degree and work the job I want. So you got me fucked up if you expect me to not go after the proper rating I deserve for these issues the military gave me, and you should feel the same way for yourself. I understand the reservations you’re having because you have friends who have their injuries from being deployed, but get that rating. Use that money to open a savings account for your kids or nieces or nephews. Use it to make monthly donations to charities that actually help vets. Fuck toss it to homeless that claim to be veterans. You don’t have to spend that money on yourself and you’re not taking any money from anyone else who has a VA disability rating.

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I always thought you needed at least ~25% disability to get full coverage or retired along with being honorably discharged, no one really tells you that but I believe my nurse explained it to me at the VA.

There is a few variables that can help explain that high budget.

Our military vehicles are maintenance heavy. I’d almost rather take on the extra knee and back pain by being with a light unit than deal with vehicle maintenance. From mechanic to just the regular soldier, all are on hand to fix shitty trucks.

The equipment you see being used by the military has to be made in the US. From the uniforms we wear to the ships we sail around in, and everything in between, has to be made in the US. This is going to drive the cost up, while yes the quality will be better than something made in china, it also comes at a higher cost because you have to pay those workers a higher wage.

Research and development is costly. Private gun ownership kinda takes a bit of this burden for our small arms I would argue though. Magazines are an extreme pain to perfect. Optics can have a number of issues. What materials make for the best hand guard, foregrip, stock, sling, so on and so forth, the civilian market really helps to figure this shit out. But the civilian market isn’t going to figure out the best steal to use on our tanks, stealth technology, and so much more.

The medical system and big pharma have their claws in the military health system as well. HIV medications? Still cost the military the same as it would a civilian without insurance. Thousands of dollars for just one month. Same with insulin. Same with epipens. It’s cheaper to do x-rays or MRIs, because you already have the radiologist in the army as well (ideally you would at least). They get paid the same regardless of how many x-rays they look at.

Training is expensive. Ammo is expensive. Fuel is expensive. The required maintenance you’ll need to do on those vehicles you used in training is expensive. And even still, some units will only zero and qualify their rifles once or twice a year. It now takes 75 rounds for a soldier to zero their rifle and complete a qualification range. 35 to zero, 40 to qualify. Multiple that by half a million, that’s how much it costs for the entire army to go and qualify on the M4 one time a year.

Waste, fraud, and abuse are a real thing in the military. But people do forget just how expensive so much of this shit is by itself.

This is absolutely monumental. It’s important to remove red tape for a group who are statistically prone to suffering PTSD and depression. We love to verbally praise our veterans and now it’s time to support them when they come home and reintegrate into our workd

No, not really. You may be able to get a 72 hour observation here. Then you're on your own. I'm not even sure that's available since the pandemic.

They shouldn’t have to be enrolled to get any health care. Being a veteran should be enough :(

As it should be.

I wonder if the VA is also still on their kick of reporting anyone that gets any mental health services to law enforcement to try to get them red flagged in states that have those laws?

VA is a joke

Idk why this myth is pervasive. Recruiters do not “love” low income neighborhoods and schools. The overlap of “downsides of poverty” and “things that will disqualify recruits” is almost a complete circle. Health issues exacerbated to chronic conditions because of poor health care, poor fitness and weight issues, increased rate of criminal records, lowered rate of high school graduation, scoring poorly on the entrance test, etc etc. All disqualifying.

US military recruits are underrepresented in regards to the poorest and richest percentiles, and overrepresented by the middle class.

too late for us. at one point we were told we'd have to drive 2.5 hours to another VA clinic because our local one wasn't accepting anymore new patients.

my husband died by suicide in 2015.

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Ah, good. Now any vet can go in and get bombarded with an endless stream of questions about how and why and when why haven't they fucking killed themselves yet

That's awesome. Now if we could just take one more step and have the be a country wide thing for every living and breathing human being I'd be more happy.

How are they supposed to profit off of suffering then?

I think you mean grippy sock…

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I did not state lower income neighborhoods only under privileged as it is a better blanket statement because I consider lower middle class in this as well.

The most enticing offer the military for free education is obviously a ploy to attract people from families that are not that well off ( well off as in the family is able to provide for the child through out 4 years of college without the child also needing a job to supplement).

At any private school or at least upper middle class to upper class school army officers are non existent at jobs fairs. Why is that? Obviously because the military provides no benefits to them.

Our military preys on the future generations of our society by offering them hope without showing just how transparent their support of veterans are after they been put to use. Staying in the military grants better medical benefits then after you get out because ( gotta keep their meat bags in tip top shape) why should the government care about you after you have lost your usefulness. After people have fought and lost for our country.

Not sure how this is uplifting news. Prior to this, it took 6 months to book another therapy appointment. Occasionally doctors show up late to their own appointments or cancel on the day of. I've had to tell them I will kill myself in the VA parking lot just to get them to refer me to a therapist in the local community instead of waiting twice a year to speak with someone.

How about the people suffering from PTSD in Iraq and Afghanistan?

Maybe one day they will actually make these benefits available to all veterans and not just people with 24+ months in active duty.

I'm sorry the what?

Please define veteran. I have two honorable discharges, but never saw combat. I am fine, just curious, thank-you.

I went to a middle class highschool and didn't hey approached once. went to a community College in a lower tax bracket area due to the drive bieng easy and suddenly I've batted off the same recruiter 4 fucking times. I am mentally ill, and physically unfit. I couldn't join if I wanted to. one of my friends with what is clearly undiagnosed depression and bieng about 10 lbs underweight was recruited for the marines.

I can respect some officers and all the enlisted. but the generals and the recruiters are all scumbags directly perpetuating our broken system.

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I have been waiting for something like that ever I read about the Sarco capsule

I'm reading a /s vibe from your comment, but a non-zero percentage of us would sincerely appreciate this option.

All they had to do is risk their lives.

Everyone should have access to free emergency health care.

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long overdue

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So.. how do providers get reimbursed?

If you don't lose your legs in wartime, you'll lose them when you get home.

Hooah, brother.

Where I'm at you also have to have a disability rating, be poor enough to be eligible for food stamps, an actual combat vet, or a retiree.

I slip in under that first one.

At mine, it's 10%. The only source for that is that I'm 10% disabled and get care though, so maybe I'm just really lucky?

Oh yes, my bad. I'm crazy so who knows what I'll say next.

It really, really depends on location. I've been working with a family member for years with his VA and it's a shit show. He needs a social worker right now and I was calling to get access for him. It took me between five and ten phone calls over the span of a week to finally get transferred to the right department only to be told the waiting list is massive.

The worst part was the first phone call. He acted really friendly, but proceeded to lecture me on how the VA never denies any veteran. It took me 20 minutes to get the guy to answer one fucking question because he wanted to get whatever his speech was all the way out. After I finally got the appointment scheduled at the end of the week, it turned out every single thing that first person told me was completely incorrect and was the reason it took as long as it did to get information.

I had quite a few colleagues working mental health at the VA in the early '00s. By 2008 all of them had their jobs removed by the VA they were working at because of budget cuts. It was so sad knowing thousands of vets lost mental health care.

I hope the new policies continue to grow and help, but it's really heartbreaking seeing so many people suffer.

It's like a suicide booth that uses nitrous oxide aka laughing gas to kill you peacefully

Now do it for all healthcare, and all people.

Reagan put the system out of it's misery, the deinstitutionalization movement is what killed it and that began decades before.

When you give schizophrenics the 'right' to decide to AMA themselves, big surprise: it turns out a lot of them eventually have an episode and do exactly that.

As soon as the legal criteria for an indefinite involuntary hold was changed from being unable to make decisions for yourself to an immediate physical risk to themselves or others the state hospital system was dead as enough Chlorpromazine will eliminate that risk in nearly anyone and as it wears off they have plenty of time to AMA before they recover enough to pose a risk.

Funding for programs like the state hospital system is always proportional to the demand and after the activists won the right for the mentally ill to make bad decisions the demand dried right up to the point that it was difficult for the few patients in some facilities cognizant enough to realize they really needed to stay because the facilities lost all of their economies of scale.

Deinstitutionalization as a concept only works is you assume the mentally ill will never make a decision during a crisis and will put the community's well being above their own. Those are very big asks in any population let alone the mentally ill.

Legally where we are since right before Reagan took office is at best catch and release. You can get a 72hr hold, but it is almost impossible to get longer or release conditional on continuing medication until they have committed a serious crime.

Since 80-90% are just going to AMA anyway it is extremely difficult to justify more than 10% of the spend we had on the 1970s which was already a severe reduction from what we had been investing a few decades before.

If it hadn't been Reagan it would have happened itself after a longer period of substandard care as the funding ran out on its own.

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Why are all Vets not eligible for free care at all VA facilities all the time?

My dad is going through the VA mental healthcare system. This is the way he explains it to me, "if I had no healthcare at all, it would only be slightly worse than this. And sometimes having no healthcare would actually be better." The US doesn't give a fuck about out veterans despite being the home of the free because of the brave.

Does anyone know of veterans can get free therapy

My friend isn’t suicidal but I think some therapy would help him feel more motivated to get out more.

However, active servicemen still risk losing their job if they admit 16 hour days, institutional abuse, rampant workplace sexual violence, and extreme isolation is mentally challenging.

best of luck on the business.

“Oh yeah your wait time is only going to be 7 months before we can get you into the psych ward. Just hold on til then 👍”

I worked with a VA outpatient clinic at a previous job. This sounds exactly right to me. They actually receive funding based off number of vets, not amount of care, so they’ll do whatever they can to help you sign up. They’re usually a small doctors office and maybe some therapist offices, but at least that gets you in the door in your area.

But bigger stuff that you need to get into the main hospital, I believe that’s where there is still a major backlog of patients. Covid didn’t help I know that.

It is worth noting that the COMPACT Bill that pushed this through specifies that vets must use a "private residential facility other than a hospital" for suicide crisis care. So showing up to the ER will NOT be covered. Just FYI.

This is big news, however I think I'll continue to steer clear of my local VA. Last year I contacted the crisis hotline and was referred to my local VA. The VA called me and left a voicemail that was barely coherent. Upon calling back, the lady who answered was more interested in letting me know that the name I could barely make out was incorrect and no one worked there by that name. Finally got transferred to someone in mental health only for them to tell me I'm not in their system and I'd have to apply through a packet they'd mail me. I'm still here but I wonder how many aren't because of the VA.

They bill the VA directly. There is a new billing system for it.

On the surface this sounds very good, but well.

Sad that it took so long for this. This should have always been a thing since it's inception.

For this reason is why I think the military in the Morden day is over paid bs for potentially life trauma

By far, the most dangerous thing about weed is the US federal government's obsession with it.

You know if you cut the defense budget, the first thing they would cut is the pay for members.

Are your long wait times through the VA?

It's still a choice for them though. No one is forcing them to get on the bus, hell I wish I joined right out of high school instead of waiting to do my 4.

Yeah it's not that the dems to such a great job either. But Republicans in particular have this reputation because they always go on and on about vets and the military. Then when it comes time to actually do something about it, the party as a whole seems to (usually) drag their feet.

More money for the military industrial complex? No worries. Better care for vets? Well hold on now, we have other priorities first.

It's pretty clear that it's more of a talking point that it is a real issue for many Republican politicians. But yeah it's not all on one party for sure

Thank you Biden and the Dems - this is important.

https://www.va.gov/opa/pressrel/pressrelease.cfm?id=5852

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/11/02/fact-sheet-new-strategy-outlines-five-priorities-for-reducing-military-and-veteran-suicide/

Let me guess, these “therapy offices” don’t exist

Maybe one day we will care about the people of this country.

I agree it is 100% their choice. But it's not a great choice for many. People are stuck between a rock and a hard place in order to get the benefits of higher education and if they get through those 4 years and are left with mental scars the government barley provides anything for them.

That is my biggest gripe with it. If Vets were provided with the ample amount of benefits that they deserve after being mentally or physically crippled then joining the military makes a lot of sense. Obviously vets that came back without long lasting effects are doing just fine. Whether that's because they never saw active service or they are able to manage the stress thrown at them then the benefits make sense.

God yeah they are. Have you seen any military arms documentaries? Every year the military is looking for new things to replace their old stuff and spend millions. Not to mention that with any multibillion dollar industry there is gonna be some pocketing of money. Ex military officials will go into the R&D sometimes in order to do a type of money laundering but that's not unique to the military.

I’m in the VA system and my experience with their mental health care was awesome compared to what my experience when I was on private insurance.

I called for a mental health appt and they got me in to see an in person provider within a week. They called me every day until my appointment to make sure I was ok. Because my closest VA center was over an hour away, I was then set up care in the community but also a weekly phone in appt with a counselor until I was able to see a local provider in person. They also got me an updated list of people who were taking new patients.

My private experience was go online and find a provider via the insurance website which never had accurate and up to date information. Call around to see if the information was correct and they were still taking my insurance and they were still accepting new patients. Wait a month until they could get me in. Pay a bunch of money.

The VA is no joke, turned my once homeless dad's life around. It was incredible everything they did for him.

That's BS! 30 days??? It takes snot-nosed civilians who were spanked by their dads years of therapy to get over that, do we really expect a suicidal veteran who survived the horrors of war to need LESS therapy than someone abused by their dad???

It's free care for up to 4 months.

30 days inpatient, Plus 90 days outpatient follow up care.

This is per occurrence, not once in a lifetime.

Buyer beware...

I signed up at the main hospital in Temple, TX if that helps

I’m 0% and they took and are treating me for $0

Exactly. I'd call this moderately uplifting news, one day when people don't have to go into debt to get emergency (or any) healthcare will be actually uplifting

I was told all you have to do is claim your tinnitus and you will be given an auto 10%. And trust me… ALL us vets have it. Apparently many people have had success with this.

Dang that’s wild, I actually remembered my buddy saying he didn’t have VA care because he had 0% even with honorable. They should probably put that info out there better haha

I began my process about 2 months ago. Stuff might have changed. If nothing else, tell him just go to the VA website and “start a claim” and put tinnitus. I promise you he has it. We all got it. It’s an automatic 10%

The VA is why a lot of veterans kill themselves.

It’s probably free but you probably only get care to get you down off the immediate emergency. Once you have calmed down it’s back to paying for care and waiting 3 months for an appointment where they ignore you and do nothing.

Yeah this was a couple years ago, bless up I appreciate you!

same with my step cousin in 2014. he was only 24. it breaks my heart to think about. I’m so sorry for your loss, I can’t imagine

You mean this wasn’t already in place? It’s kind of World War One and two overdue no? They better start hiring EMDR therapists right and left. That means having free education like Finland. Churn out the much needed shrinks and doctor lipshitz

Not cool man to insult Vets. Suicide of Veterans and Veteran PTSD is a real national crisis and tragedy. Vets deserve medical care after all they sacrificed to keep people like you and I free.

I’m not insulting I’m in agreement. I literally said it’s so long overdue that veterans should have been given free care since war world one and two