About
Our Mission
Help 22's Veterans' Right to Treat is a national coalition committed to ensuring veterans can access the full spectrum of effective mental health treatments—including integrative, alternative, and emerging therapies. We advocate for medical freedom, personalized care, and systemic reform to honor the dignity and sacrifice of those who served.What is Medical Freedom?
Medical freedom is the right of veterans and their healthcare providers to access and choose from the full range of safe, effective mental health treatments—beyond limitations imposed by government agencies, insurers, or institutional protocols. It affirms the value of the personal, trust-based relationship between provider and patient, supporting integrative, alternative, and emerging therapies like neurofeedback, EMDR, ketamine and hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) while honoring clinical judgment, individual needs, and veteran autonomy.Our Story
Veterans' Right to Treat emerges from Help 22, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded with the mission: "Restoring the Value of Life Among Our Veterans and Military Service Members."Help 22 was born from a simple but profound belief: those who join the military are mission-driven people. We seek to galvanize their will to survive the battles they face with depression, despair, or severe disruptions in their lives with a direct challenge: "Live To Fight One More Day, Every Day" and "NEVER SURRENDER."
Veterans' Right to Treat represents the next evolution of our commitment—moving beyond immediate crisis intervention to systemic change. We believe that those who served our nation deserve access to every tool that might save their lives and restore their wellbeing.
Why This Matters - The Crisis We Face
More than 17 veterans die by suicide every day. An estimated 95,460+ veteran suicides have occurred since 2005, with post-9/11 veteran suicides (30,177+) exceeding combat deaths (7,057) by 4:1. Veterans aged 18-34 have suicide rates 2.5x higher than the general population. Despite nearly 2 million veterans being prescribed antidepressants, suicide rates remain stubbornly high.Veterans are dying while effective treatments sit locked behind bureaucratic barriers. The current system forces veterans to navigate a maze of requirements, often requiring them to "fail" multiple treatments before accessing alternatives that could have helped from the start.
Our Core Values
- Mission-Driven Service: We believe veterans are inherently mission-driven people who deserve mission-focused healthcare solutions.
- Evidence-Based Innovation: We advocate for treatments backed by science, including FDA-approved alternatives that remain inaccessible to many veterans.
- Patient-Provider Partnership: We champion the sacred relationship between healthcare providers and patients, free from bureaucratic interference.
- Healthcare Justice: Veterans earned comprehensive healthcare choices through their service—we fight to ensure they receive them
- Individual Dignity: Every veteran deserves personalized care that honors their unique journey and individual needs.
- Systemic Reform: We work to transform healthcare systems, not just treat symptoms—creating lasting change for future generations.
What We're Fighting For
Currently, many effective treatments remain out of reach for veterans due to bureaucratic barriers, insurance limitations, and institutional resistance to change.We're advocating for access to proven treatments including:
- TMS/dTMS: Magnetic brain stimulation therapy with extensive scientific backing
- Ketamine/Esketamine: Proven rapid-acting treatments for suicidal ideation
- EMDR: Evidence-based trauma therapy
- Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy: Promising treatment for treatment-resistant PTSD
Our Goals
Veterans' Right to Treat is committed to ensuring veterans are aware of and can more easily access the full spectrum of effective mental health treatments. We work to educate veterans and their families about available alternative therapies while advocating for systemic changes that expand treatment access.Our legislative intent includes working toward requirements for the Department of Veterans Affairs and TRICARE to include and reimburse evidence-based alternative and emerging therapies, while supporting the establishment of pilot programs that demonstrate the effectiveness of integrative mental health approaches.
Our Coalition Structure
Help 22's VRT serves as an organizational backbone providing an umbrella structure for a broader coalition of veteran groups and mental health service providers. We maintain a distributed leadership model where regional partners retain operational autonomy while contributing to the broader mission through collaboration and shared purpose.We challenge the "one-size-fits-all" model of care—advocating for personalized, patient-doctor approaches over centralized, bureaucratic systems.
Join the Fight for Healthcare Freedom
Every veteran deserves access to the full spectrum of life-saving treatments. Together, we can transform a system that serves bureaucracy into one that serves heroes.Because those who served our nation deserve every chance at healing and hope.
Contact Information: HELP22.ORG | INFO@HELP22.ORG
Our Rally Cry: "Live To Fight One More Day, Every Day" | "NEVER SURRENDER"