§9A-5-1. Legislative finding and purpose.

(a) The Legislature hereby finds that there exists a health care crisis among our state’s veterans and their families, with veterans in this state dying by suicide at a rate of nearly 60 percent higher than nonveterans.

(b) The Legislature finds there are significant resources available to help combat this crisis, but that these resources are not well-known or easily available to veterans and their families.

(c) The Legislature hereby specifically authorizes and directs the Department of Veterans’ Assistance to develop and implement programs to assist at-risk veterans, including establishing partnerships with veteran service organizations, government agencies, military organizations, private entities, and mental health providers engaged with their local veteran communities to connect veterans and their families with existing resources to combat suicide, and its contributing factors, among the veteran population in this state.