OPINION:
I knew war could leave scars. What I didn’t fully understand until I came home was how many veterans continue fighting long after the uniform comes off.
And yellow ribbons can soon turn into red tape.
For many military vets, the hardest battles begin after deployment, with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), treatment-resistant depression and deep invisible wounds. Too often, those seeking help find themselves trapped in a system that relies on outdated treatments that do not work for everyone, leaving too many without meaningful relief.
Seeking care is hard enough. Stigma, long wait times, provider shortages and logistical barriers already discourage many veterans from getting help. For those in rural areas, accessing treatment can mean hours of travel. Others struggle to navigate the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) system or face delays that disrupt care and have devastating consequences.
The consequences are devastating.
The VA estimates that roughly 15% of post-9/11 veterans experience PTSD in a given year and that nearly 30% will experience it at some point in their lives. Veterans also die by suicide at roughly twice the rate of non-veteran adults. In 2022 alone, more than 6,400 veterans took their own lives — nearly 18 every day.
To be clear, the VA has made meaningful progress in expanding access to care. It has hired thousands of additional mental health providers, expanded telehealth services and opened new clinics to reach more veterans where they live.
As veterans know, however, access is not enough. The deeper problem is that existing treatments often fall short. Too many veterans are familiar with this cycle: trying one medication after another, waiting weeks for results that may never come, adjusting dosages, switching providers and still finding little relief.
For those with complex or treatment-resistant conditions, this trial-and-error process can stretch on for years.
Simply improving access to existing tools will not solve the problem if those tools do not work for everyone. We must also give veterans access to better treatment options. There hasn’t been a new Food and Drug Administration-approved treatment for PTSD in decades.
Fortunately, recent federal action offers hope.
In April, the Trump administration announced new steps to expand research into breakthrough treatments (including psychedelic medicines) for serious mental health conditions and speed the scientific review process for promising new medicines.
Early research suggests these treatments may offer faster and longer-lasting relief than many existing options. A randomized clinical trial published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that psilocybin — a psychedelic compound found in certain mushrooms — significantly reduced depressive symptoms when combined with guided therapy, even among patients who had not responded to other treatments.
In February, the maker of a synthetic psilocybin treatment announced that the drug had showed strong results in Phase 3 trials for treatment-resistant depression. Across two late-stage studies, patients experienced significant reductions in symptom severity. For some, one or two doses produced relief lasting nearly six months.
Clinical trials of MDMA treatment for PTSD have shown promising outcomes too, with 67% of participants no longer meeting the diagnostic criteria for PTSD after treatment. Psilocybin treatment has also reduced PTSD symptoms in clinical trials. SSRIs/SNRIs help only 50% to 60% of PTSD patients meaningfully, with longer results.
None of these treatments should move forward without rigorous scientific review. But if ongoing research continues to produce strong results, veterans should not be left waiting years for access to potentially life-changing care.
Veterans have never asked for special treatment. But they do deserve a mental health system that keeps pace with the challenges they face post-war. That means reducing barriers to care, shortening wait times, strengthening the mental health workforce and making it easier to navigate the system.
It also means remaining open to new treatment approaches when existing ones fail.
Congress and the VA should fast-track expanded access programs for promising therapies under strict medical supervision, fund head-to-head comparative trials with veterans and integrate them into the standard of care once approved.
We can do this while maintaining rigorous safety standards. Our veterans deserve a real chance to heal and thrive once again.
• Samuel Pascal Redfern is founder of the Montana Conservative Liberty Alliance, CEO of the Montana Veterans Association and an Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom combat veteran.
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