Dr. Thomas Insel, the top psychiatric researcher at the National Institute for Mental Health, recently reported that more Iraq and Afghanistan veterans may die from suicide than from combat in the wars. Although mental health challenges among veterans have been well documented, Dr. Insel pointed out that these problems may be especially acute among Iraq and Afghanistan veterans due to extended deployments and decreased leave time. These additional pressures are taking a powerful toll.

As New Hampshire veterans, we are gravely concerned by the looming crisis of suicide among Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. We are further disturbed by the fact that our two U.S. senators, John Sununu and Judd Gregg, have refused to support increased mental health care for veterans. For example, they both voted against a 2005 measure to provide $500 million per year specifically for veterans' mental health care. Now that the troubling rate of mental illness among Iraq and Afghanistan veterans is known, we urge our senators to change course and stand up for our veterans.

The alarming report about suicide among Iraq and Afghanistan vets matched the results of a Rand Corporation study issued one month ago that showed that more than 26 percent of veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars may have mental health conditions, and about 20 percent suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder.

Mental health challenges for veterans are nothing new. In fact, more Vietnam-era veterans eventually committed suicide than the more than 58,000 soldiers lost in combat.

The Rand study illustrated that a lack of resources at the community level would cripple our efforts to adequately meet the needs of returning soldiers and prevent this looming tragedy. In addition to the stigma of seeking mental health care, access to quality care is an enormous problem. Of those Iraq and Afghanistan veterans who were diagnosed with a mental disorder and sought treatment, over half received care classified as "minimally adequate." And that does not begin to address the numbers of veterans who are misdiagnosed, never seek treatment due to social stigma, or who never receive treatment due to backlogs at the VA.

Post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental illnesses can have a devastating cost to family members and loved ones. These illnesses often coincide with homelessness and substance abuse, both of which in turn increase the risk of suicide. But there are also financial costs to the community and the nation.

The Rand study estimated that projected cases of PTSD and other mental illnesses for the 1.6 million soldiers returning from war could cost between $4 billion and $6.2 billion over two years. Thus, supporting our veterans with increased mental health care services is not only a moral and patriotic duty, it is also a wise investment.

Recently, we gathered with concerned citizens in Victory Park in Manchester to discuss these issues and urge action. We stood in front of the World War I memorial, a symbol of our nation's commitment to supporting our brave veterans as they return from serving and protecting our country. Mental illness and suicide among veterans is a looming crisis, but it's not too late to prevent this tragedy. We owe a great debt to our brave soldiers, and we urge our senators to stand up for them.

(Stephen Shurtleff of Penacook and Wayne Alterisio of Manchester are Vietnam veterans. Ryan Gray is an Iraq war veteran.)