Mental Health

Organizations that will be able to qualify include incorporated private institutions or foundations; a corporation wholly owned or controlled by an incorporated private institution or foundation; Indian tribes; community-based organizations that can effectively network with local civic organizations, regional health systems, and other settings where eligible individuals and their families are likely to have contact, and state or local governments.

Grants will be awarded to organizations that provide or coordinate suicide prevention services for individuals and their families that are eligible, including:

• Baseline mental health screening for risk
• Education on suicide risk and prevention to families and communities
• Provision of clinical services for emergency treatment
• Case management services
• Peer support services
• VA benefits assistance for eligible individuals and their families
• Assistance with obtaining and coordinating other benefits provided by the federal government, a state or local government, or an eligible entity
• Assistance with emergent needs relating to health care services, daily living services, personal financial planning and counseling, transportation services, temporary income support services, fiduciary and representative payee services, legal services to assist the eligible individual with issues that may contribute to the risk of suicide, and child care
• Nontraditional and innovative approaches and treatment practices, as determined appropriate by VA
• Other services necessary for improving the mental health status and well-being and reducing the suicide risk of eligible individuals and their families as VA determines appropriate

The term “eligible individuals” includes a person at risk of suicide who, in general, served in the active military, naval, or air service and was discharged therefrom under conditions other than dishonorable as described in 38 U.S.C. 101(2), former Service members with other than honorable discharge status described in 38 U.S.C. 1720I(b), and those who served on active duty in a theater of combat operations under 38 U.S.C. 1712A(a)(1)(C)(i)-(iv).

Congress has authorized $174 million to be appropriated to carry out the SSG Fox SPGP. Organizations can apply for grants worth up to $750,000 and may apply to renew awards from year to year throughout the length of the program.

Congress has authorized $174 million to be appropriated to carry out the program for fiscal years 2021–2025. Certain regulatory, financial, and administrative tasks must be completed before grants are awarded.

VA may prioritize grant awards to organizations that focus on areas with limited access to medical services, in rural communities, on tribal lands, in U.S. territories, in areas with a high number or percentage of minority Veterans or women Veterans, or in areas with a high number or percentage of calls to the Veterans Crisis Line.

SSG Fox SPGP honors Veteran Parker Gordon Fox, who joined the Army in 2014 and was a sniper instructor at the U.S. Army Infantry School at Fort Benning, Georgia. Known for a life of generosity and kindness to others in need, Fox died by suicide on July 21, 2020, at the age of 25.

Once the Final Rule for the SSG Fox SPGP is complete, VA will publish a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) with instructions on how to apply. Applications will be available on the SSG Fox SPGP website.

No. SSG Fox SPGP is different from the PREVENTS National Grant Program, and SSG Fox SPGP is not tied to nor led by PREVENTS. SSG Fox SPGP is a standalone VA grant program specifically created pursuant to Section 201 of the Commander John Scott Hannon Veterans Mental Health Care Improvement Act of 2019, and in collaboration with the PREVENTS Office as part of the work group to develop the regulations. The proposed PREVENTS National Grant Program is a separate initiative being developed by the PREVENTS Office to develop a coordinated, interagency, federal mechanism to support, provide resources for, and facilitate the implementation of successful evidence-informed mental health and suicide prevention programs focused on not just Veterans but all Americans at the state and local levels, as outlined in more detail in the PREVENTS Roadmap and its Supplemental Materials released in June 2020. Persons seeking additional information about the proposed PREVENTS National Grant Program should contact the PREVENTS Office directly at WeArePREVENTS@va.gov.

For more information, contact us at VASSGFoxGrants@va.gov.