We received this today from SEN Hoeven’s office.

We in the community have battled over the use of the word “cure” and it is the collective opinion that cure, as defined in the Dictionary of Medicine, is the appropriate word to describe HBOT in the treatment of suicidal ideation.

cure

 (kyo?or)

n.

1. Restorationof health; recovery from disease.
2. A methodor course of treatment used to restore health.
3. An agent,such as a drug, that restores health; a remedy.

v.

1. To restorea person to health.
2. To effecta recovery from a disease or disorder.

To the best of our knowledge, no one who has ever successfully completed a course of treatment with HBOT has committed suicide [NOTE: there may be one failure in a drug overdose, but the data about the cause of death in that case is inconclusive about intent]. Thus, we have “cured” hundreds of brain-wounded veterans of at least that symptom. And there are at least several studies which show HBOT reduces or eliminates “suicide ideation”  (See Med Gas Research 2019; 9(1): 1-12 and 2020; 10(1) 8-20.)

Thus, it is safe to say that all clinics could respond to the Request for Information with appeals to start paying for the use of HBOT-for-TBI under both this  “suicide prevention” program, and as part of the  Congressional intent imbedded in S.785/Sec 702, the Commander John Scott Hannon Veterans Mental Health Care Improvement Act of 2019. [see attached]

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE       

April 1, 2021

VA seeks feedback to guide new suicide prevention grant program

 WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) published a notice in the Federal Register April 1, to solicit public feedback to guide implementation of the new VA Staff Sergeant Parker Gordon Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program (SSG Fox SPGP).

SSG Fox SPGP will be a $174 million, three-year grant program to provide resources to community organizations that serve Veterans at risk of suicide and support to their families across the U.S. 

Those resources are outlined in the grant program Congress established under the authority of the Commander John Scott Hannon Veterans Mental Health Care Improvement Act of 2019.

“Suicide prevention is a top priority for VA and this grant program is part of our comprehensive public health approach to reach all Veterans through the use of results-oriented initiatives aimed at reducing suicide,” said VA Secretary Denis McDonough. “This congressionally-enacted grant program will allow us to work with local providers to offer Veterans the support they deserve. The information gathered from this initiative will allow us to better invest and share resources with community organizations to collaboratively reduce Veteran suicide.”

The public notice requests feedback on distribution and selection of grants, development of measures and metrics for administering the grant program, training, and technical assistance to grant recipients and non-traditional and innovative approaches and treatment practices for suicide prevention services. It also seeks public comment on how grant recipients should determine suicide risk and refer Veterans at risk of suicide or other mental or behavioral health conditions to VA for care.

In addition to soliciting public comments, VA will be hosting two virtual listening sessions in the coming months. A second Federal Register Notice with registration information and further details will be forthcoming in the coming weeks. The feedback from both notices will be used to provide recommendations for the SSG Fox SPGP.

View the notice and submit comments at the Federal Register. The public comment period ends April 22, 2021.