Military suicides increased in 2023, continuing the gradual increase in suicides among active-duty military personnel despite prevention efforts.
The Defense Department’s annual report on suicides in the military published Thursday said the number of suicides among active-duty service members increased from 331 in 2022 to 363 in 2023.
“Granted, yes, that long-term trend is gradually increasing,” Dr. Timothy Hoyt, deputy director of the Office of Force Resiliency at the Department of Defense, told reporters during a phone call.
The suicide rate has risen from 17 per 100,000 active duty members in 2011 to 26 in 2023, according to data published in the 2023 annual report. the rate fell for a year from 2020-2021.
Active duty service members who died by suicide in 2023 were largely male under the age of 30, accounting for 61% of suicides. The most common method of suicide was firearms, at 65%, followed by hanging or suffocation, at 28%.
Defense officials said the suicide rates were comparable to rates in the U.S. population between 2011 and 2022.
“We are not immune to the factors driving suicide in the U.S., and our service members also face some unique military challenges,” Hoyt said.
He added that recommendations from the Suicide Prevention Response and Independent Review Committee have provided a “mechanism for us to address as many of these potential risks as possible and invest in those spaces.”
The Pentagon has set up an assessment committee for this purpose make recommendations to reduce the number of suicide deaths in the army. Last year, the committee made a series of recommendations, including broadly improving mental health care, addressing stigma and other barriers to care and overhauling suicide prevention training.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who established the congressionally mandated review committee in 2022, said in a statement that the annual report’s findings “urgently demonstrate the need for the Department to redouble its work in the complex areas of suicide prevention and postvention.” Austin said the Defense Department has completed 20 of the committee’s 83 recommendations.
The Pentagon expects to spend about $250 million on suicide prevention in fiscal year 2025, the largest amount the Defense Department has ever invested, Hoyt told reporters.
“Many times over the last 20 years we’ve taken initiatives, but there hasn’t been enough investment to ensure that those have staying power, that we have long-term implementation of those programs,” Hoyt said.
The total number of suicides within the force, both active duty and reserve, was 523 in 2023, up from 493 in 2022.
Suicide is one of the leading causes of death for veterans also. According to the most recent report from the Department of Veterans Affairs, the suicide rate for 2021 was 33.9 per 100,000, compared to 32.6 per 100,000 in 2020.
If you or someone you know is in emotional distress or a suicidal crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
For more information about mental health resources and support, reach the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) HelpLine Monday through Friday from 10 AM to 6 PM ET at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264) or email info@nami.org.
