Why It Matters

Active-duty service member suicide rates have gradually increased since 2011, according to Department of Defense data. A recent Government Accountability Office report found that a total of 471 service members died by suicide in 2024, including both active-duty and non active-duty members.

GAO found that the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps headquarters suicide prevention offices do not regularly track completion of required annual suicide prevention training. The military services also have not fully assessed whether their suicide prevention training is achieving its intended outcomes.

The Big Picture

The Pentagon requires the military services to provide suicide prevention training to service members. However, the Defense Suicide Prevention Office does not receive training completion data from the military services, leaving the office without the information needed to monitor completion across the department.

The Army, Navy, and Marine Corps headquarters suicide prevention offices do not regularly track required annual training completion. GAO found that only the National Guard Bureau takes action to help ensure service members complete the training.

The Army, Marine Corps, and Air Force use surveys for some annual suicide prevention training, but GAO found that the military services have not fully assessed training effectiveness, including the extent to which the training achieves expected outcomes.

What They're Saying

GAO issued 17 recommendations addressing monitoring, assessment, and implementation of suicide prevention training. DOD agreed with nine recommendations, partially agreed with six, and disagreed with two. GAO clarified the two recommendations DOD disagreed with and maintains that all 17 recommendations remain valid.

What's Next

DOD has begun addressing recommendations from the Suicide Prevention and Response Independent Review Committee, including 18 related to nonclinical training. However, GAO found that DOD's ability to continue those efforts is uncertain because of recent staffing changes and pending decisions about combining suicide prevention training with other training.

GAO recommended that DOD regularly update its project plans to account for those uncertainties and better assess risks and manage resources.

The Bottom Line

GAO's recommendations call for DOD to require the military services to report suicide prevention training completion data, improve monitoring of required training, develop plans to evaluate training effectiveness, and update plans for implementing recommendations from the independent review committee.

---

Spot something wrong? Report an issue with this article