Mental health disorders are on the rise in the military, now accounting for more hospitalizations than any other ailment, according to a new Defense Department health report.
Diagnoses of mental health disorders are up 40% over the past five years, from 2019 to 2023, according to a Defense Health Agency report. It found that anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) doubled over the five-year period.
In 2023, active-duty service members experiencing a mental health disorder made up 54.8% of hospital bed stays, more than every other affliction combined.
From 2019 through 2023, 541,672 active-duty service members across all branches were diagnosed with at least one mental health disorder, according to the report. About 47% of those were diagnosed with more than one mental health disorder. In 2023, there were 1.3 million U.S. active duty troops.
The sobering report follows the New Year’s Day vehicle attack in New Orleans that killed 14 people, revealing that the suspect, Shamsud-Din Jabbar, was an Army veteran with multiple deployments.
That same day in Las Vegas, Col. Matthew Livelsberger, an active member of the Army Green Berets, shot himself in the head in a Cybertruck full of explosives.
PRESIDENT BIDEN AWARDS MEDAL OF HONOR TO SEVEN ARMY VETERANS
Mental health disorders are on the rise within the military, now accounting for more hospitalizations than any other ailment, according to a new Pentagon health report. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
“As service members continue to experience increased rates of mental health disorders after the COVID-19 pandemic, help-seeking behaviors to address psychological as well as emotional well-being should be prioritized to maintain force readiness,” the report read.
The Pentagon could not immediately be reached for comment on what’s behind the uptick in diagnoses and whether U.S. forces are mentally prepared to go into combat if needed.
Female service members, those who are younger and those in the Army, were most likely to be diagnosed.
The Navy led all other branches in depressive disorders, bipolar disorders and personality disorders.
Active duty female service members were diagnosed with PTSD twice as often as their male counterparts.
The medical data came from records accessed via the Defense Medical Surveillance System and Theater Medical Data Store. It analyzed ambulance encounters, hospitalization or outpatient visits to a psychiatric facility, and other factors to define a mental…
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