1. United States
2. Mo.
3. Letter

Veteran suicide is a national crisis. In 2023 alone, 6,398 veterans died by suicide — more than 17 per day. Three-quarters of those deaths involved a firearm. For decades, until March 2024, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) reported certain veterans with serious, diagnosed mental health conditions to the federal background check system, as required by law. The VA's process included strong due process protections and was based on clear medical evidence. In March 2024, Congress took steps to block the VA from sharing records on these veterans with the background check system except in very limited circumstances. As a result, the VA stopped reporting, making it easier than ever for at-risk veterans to access firearms — what the VA itself has called "the most lethal means of suicide." At a time when you and your colleagues should be doing everything in your power to protect veterans from the irreversible harm that can occur when someone in crisis has access to a firearm, S. 478 would do just the opposite. Vote NO on S. 478.