Suicide is Preventable if We Work Together

I draw a lot from my 23 years of military service. During that time I have known and served with many of our nation’s finest. However, some of the strongest men and women I have ever known have fallen on hard times and contemplated or committed suicide. It can happen to anyone.

Many folks are familiar with the statistic that 22 American veterans take their own lives every day, but I wonder how many know that this crisis is much more far reaching. Montana leads the United States in suicides per capita. Suicides affect every aspect of our local communities. Children, college students, adults, tribes, veterans, nearly everyone knows someone who has taken their own life. These events rattle our collective conscience and break the hearts of those affected, yet we are still afraid to talk about it.

A 2015 study from the Montana Department of Health & Human Services (DPHHS) showed that this crisis is only getting worse. In 2013 there were 231 suicides in the state of Montana. The DPHHS report also showed that of that number, nearly 45 percent visited their primary care provider within a month of committing suicide. Every one of these deaths is preventable and leaves a wound in the hearts of families and friends left behind. We must make some changes.

We must ensure that we are giving healthcare providers across our state the tools that they need to identify and properly treat these individuals. We must have a conversation about how we talk about suicide. We must not tolerate an environment where asking for help makes you “weak.” We must properly treat diseases that lead to suicide, and we must work together to stop these needless losses of life.

You sent me to Washington to fight for Montanans and to keep our families and communities safe. Here’s how I plan to do it. I have co-sponsored bills like the Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act. This legislation would overhaul the way the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration researches and treats mental health issues. I have also supported a bipartisan bill with South Dakota’s Kristi Noem (H.R. 4277, Medicare Mental Health Access Act) that would help Medicare recipients receive the closest, most readily available care. Representative Noem and I represent highly rural states and understand the burden of one-size-fits-all policies. Both these bills ensure that folks struggling with mental health issues would receive access to quality care. I have consistently fought for increased funding for health research and development dollars and supported proposals that would increase Montanans access to quality healthcare.

Even one Montanan taking their own life is one too many. We can and must stop this, I will continue to fight for commonsense legislation and programs that will help bring Montanans out of the darkness and keep our communities whole. Ryan Zinke is the Republican congressman for Montana’s at-large congressional district.