GRUNT STYLE FOUNDATION DEMANDS INVESTIGATION INTO DEPARTMENT OF VETERAN AFFAIRS' SUICIDE PREVENTION EFFECTIVENESS

Nonprofit calls on VA Secretary Doug Collins to launch an immediate investigation on budget allocation

SAN ANTONIO, Feb. 7, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- This fiscal year, the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs has requested a total of $369.3 billion in discretionary funding that will be allocated towards resources such as health care and benefits. As a Marine Corps Veteran and President of the Grunt Style Foundation, Tim Jensen is publicly calling for an immediate investigation into the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' suicide prevention spending and effectiveness.

"The numbers don't lie, and neither will I - we're losing the battle while drowning in bureaucracy," said Tim Jensen, President of The Grunt Style Foundation. "Every day, we lose 17 of our brothers and sisters to suicide. That's not just a statistic; those are our friends, our battle buddies, our family members. The VA's current budget allocates approximately $570 million specifically for suicide prevention initiatives, yet the crisis continues to worsen," Jensen further states. "This is part of a larger $13 billion mental health budget that isn't delivering the results our veterans desperately need!"

The Grunt Style Foundation works directly with veterans in crisis through various programs and has witnessed firsthand the disconnect between Washington's spending and ground-level reality. The Foundation, along with the National Veterans of Foreign Wars Organization, are witnessing veterans who need immediate help, getting lost in a maze of paperwork and prescriptions, instead of receiving actual care.

"Are we adding more tools to the tool belt or are we just throwing more money at things that don't work?" remarks Dan West, National Adjutant General of Veterans of Foreign Wars(VFW)

As a result, The Grunt Style Foundation is on the new VA Secretary Doug Collins to launch a full investigation into the following:

• How the $570 million in suicide prevention funds are being utilized
• Understand why traditional approaches aren't working
• Who's being held accountable for these failures
• What alternative solutions are currently being ignored

"This isn't about politics. This isn't about pointing fingers. This is about saving lives - the lives of men and women who wrote a blank check to this country up to and including their life. We owe them more than just throwing money at the problem," said Jensen. "As someone who's worn the uniform and now leads an organization dedicated to veteran support, I refuse to stand silently while we lose this battle. We need answers, and we need them now. The time for change isn't coming - it's here. And we demand action!"

In 2024, The Grunt Style Foundation launched a groundbreaking initiative, A War Cry for Change: The Revolution to Reclaim Veteran Mental Health, which addresses the crisis of overprescribing psychiatric drugs to military veterans and service members, the role of this crisis has on the veteran suicide epidemic, and a new path forward to support their mental health needs.

To learn more about The Grunt Style Foundation, please visit www.gruntstylefoundation.org 

ABOUT THE GRUNT STYLE FOUNDATION
Established in 2021, the Grunt Style Foundation is a 501(c)3 national nonprofit organization committed to providing life-changing resources and experiences in which Veterans, Service Members and their families thrive. The Grunt Style Foundation is the nonprofit arm of Grunt Style, a patriotic and veteran-operated apparel brand, to further Grunt Style's commitment to recognize and celebrate those who bravely served our country. The Grunt Style Foundation focuses on mental health and wellness, military transition, and sustainment, while alleviating food insecurities, and ending homelessness for military and veteran communities. To learn more about the Grunt Style Foundation, please visit www.gruntstylefoundation.org 

SOURCE Grunt Style