Laura Curran, Steve Bellone highlight veterans' struggles with mental illness

Long Island's county executives on Tuesday highlighted the struggle of military veterans with mental health problems and called for more federal funding after a recent report showed veteran suicides increased over the last year.

"These statistics are alarming, but I don't think to any of us standing here they are completely surprising," said Nassau County Executive Laura Curran. "We are living in a time of uncertainty and great changes. People are concerned about their health, concerned about their finances."

Veteran suicides have increased by as much as 20% this year compared with the same period in 2019, and some incidents of violent behavior have spiked as service members struggle with COVID-19, war-zone deployments, national disasters and civil unrest, The Associated Press reported Monday.

U.S. Army leaders report suicides among active duty personnel are up as much as 30%, the AP report said.

Thomas Ronayne, director of the Suffolk County Veterans Service Agency, said the suicide rate for veterans is double that of the general population. The situation constituted a "crisis," Ronayne said.

"It has been a very, very difficult year," Curran said. " ... We need to make sure our veterans and our active duty National Guard are aware that help is available."

There are more than 45,500 U.S. military veterans in Nassau County and more than 63,703 in Suffolk, according to the U.S. Census.

Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone said even with increased need, veterans services could face cuts without more federal aid for state and local governments.

Officials in Suffolk County said the need for services has increased significantly during the coronavirus pandemic as many deal with grief, unemployment, isolation, domestic violence and housing and food needs.

"Our message to Washington is very clear: don’t turn your backs on our veterans here," Bellone said in a live-streamed news conference Tuesday in which he appealed for more federal disaster relief to help state and local governments deal with the coronavirus pandemic.

Bellone, who recently has warned of possible cuts to other Suffolk County services, including police, if more federal pandemic aid isn't forthcoming, expressed concern the state budget could suffer "massive cuts across the board."

That could reduce funding for initiatives such as the Joseph P. Dwyer Program, which provides peer support and other resources for veterans struggling with post-traumatic stress and other issues, Bellone said.

The program is funded by state aid, grants and donations. Dwyer, an Iraq war veteran from Mount Sinai, struggled with PTSD and died in 2008 of a drug overdose.

Denise Buggs-Williams, of East Patchogue, who served as an Army sergeant in Operation Desert Storm, called the program a "blessing."

"I don’t understand why anybody would take that away from me," Buggs-Williams said at Bellone's news conference.

By Candice Ferrette

candice.ferrette@newsday.com,rachelle.blidner@newsday.comcandiceferrette,

Candice Ferrette covers Nassau County government and politics on Long Island. She has been a reporter at Newsday since 2011.