When it comes to mental health and veterans, rural soldiers are less likely to receive help than their urban counterparts, reports The Rural Blog.
According to a new study from the federal Center for Behavioral Health Statistics, 24 percent of all veterans live in rural areas. And these veterans are 36 percent less likely than urban veterans to receive any mental health treatment. They were also found to be significantly less likely to receive outpatient treatment and far less likely to be prescribed medications.
Less than one in three rural respondents said they had received any mental health treatment in the past 12 months. That’s compared with almost half of urban respondents. Likewise, only one in four rural vets has been prescribed medication in the last year. Again, for urban veterans, that number was almost half.
