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July 30, 2010

Army Issues Report on Soldier Suicides
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A new US Army report has found that the rate of suicide by soldiers in
the Army has risen above the civilian rate for the first time since the
Vietnam War. There were a record 160 active-duty Army suicides in the
year from October 1, 2008 to September 30, 2009. The report faulted
commanders for ignoring rising mental health, drug and crime issues
among soldiers. One-third of soldiers take at least one prescription
drug, and 14 percent of soldiers are on some form of powerful
painkiller. The report did not find a link between the rise in suicides
and repeat deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. Seventy-nine percent of
the soldiers who committed suicide had had only one deployment or had
not deployed at all.