Utah to get $800k in grants for veteran suicide prevention – KSL News

Utah to get $800k in grants for veteran suicide prevention  KSL News

SALT LAKE CITY — More than $800,000 was awarded to two community organizations that provide suicide prevention services for veterans in Utah.The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs awarded Utah organizations $804,740 in grants, as part of $112 million being distributed to 191 suicide prevention organizations nationwide.Utah State University will receive $747,048 to serve Duchesne, Salt Lake, Tooele and Uintah Counties. A $750,000 grant to Blue Star Families Inc. will cover counties across 13 states, and a portion will go to Salt Lake County, according to the Veterans Affairs list of grant recipients.The funds come from the Staff Sergeant Parker Gordon Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program and will be available for fiscal year 2027.

The grants go to nonprofits, state and local governments, federally recognized tribes, and other community-based organizations that serve veterans."Suicide prevention is VA's top clinical priority, and all VA healthcare facilities provide veterans same-day emergency mental health care access if they need it," said a statement from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.Reaching veterans in need of help, however, can be a challenge. Approximately 61% of veterans who died by suicide in 2023 were not receiving any Veterans Affairs healthcare in the last year of life, the department said. The Fox grants program helps bridge the gap by directing funding to community-based organizations.In 2025, approximately 17,000 veterans, service