Friday Fact: Veterans addicted to marijuana have been dying by suicide

Data from the 2024 National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report outlines another sad chapter in the story of marijuana and its terrible effects on mental health. Among all veterans who died by suicide in 2022, almost 9% were diagnosed with cannabis use disorder. Of veterans who died by suicide and had a diagnosed substance use disorder, 35% had CUD—and that figure has increased by close to 20% since 2001. These statistics aren’t just numbers. They are lives lost, the lives of people who put their country before themselves. Despite this, the marijuana industry is brazenly promoting its products as effective treatments for veterans’ pain. No: Things will only get worse if we continue to ignore the siren these data are sounding. Our veterans deserve better.