Last year, veteran opinions, concerns and needs shaped Mission Roll Call’s priorities and outreach. Through polls, monthly town halls, personal comments, emails and increased engagement with the Veteran Resource Directory (VRD), veterans and their families made their priorities clear. We gathered data and insights on their concerns – like veteran suicide and healthcare – and spotlighted real veteran stories of incredible resilience in the face of hardships.

As we continue our mission into 2026, we’re carrying those insights with us. We’ll continue pushing for greater veteran visibility in policies that directly affect them and their families. We’ll take unfiltered veteran needs directly to policymakers’ and supporters’ doors.

What You Told Us in 2025
Veteran concerns and needs shaped our 2025 priorities. We addressed and gathered issues on veteran homelessness, suicide prevention, access and quality of healthcare and food and financial insecurity. These four pillars guided our work, advocacy and outreach, and this year, we’re only strengthening those efforts.

Through polling data and research, veterans highlighted several emerging trends they want to see prioritized in 2026. Here’s what MRC is tracking:

1. Access and Quality of Healthcare
Veterans have access to the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), which provides care across 1,380 facilities. However, these facilities are often out of reach. Long travel distances, difficulty navigating a complex healthcare system and – most of all – long wait times all too often remain significant roadblocks to care.

Mission Roll Call research shows that for veterans, VA wait times can be significantly longer than those in civilian healthcare – especially for specialty services. A comparison of wait times in 15 cities found that in 12 of them, veterans faced longer waits for primary care at VA facilities compared to nearby non-VA hospitals. As a result, 47% of veterans use VA care for most of their needs, but nearly one-quarter of VA-enrolled veterans rely primarily on civilian providers for easier access.

These healthcare access barriers and an overreliance on prescription medications are pushing veterans to explore a broader range of “Left of Clinical” care options, including hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT), supervised ketamine treatments, Whole Health programs, trauma-informed programs and strong peer support networks. Combined with VA health care, these approaches can promote a more comprehensive path toward healing, supporting veterans’ physical, emotional and cognitive well-being.

With VA modernization underway, there is significant potential to expand choice and better align evidence-informed treatment with veteran needs. For instance, the Veterans’ ACCESS Act is designed to reduce VA wait times and expand veterans’ healthcare options. By strengthening access to community care when VA services are not available, the act would improve veterans’ ability to receive the healthcare they’re entitled to with fewer delays and clearer pathways to care.

Veterans have already signaled that this is a positive step forward. In a nationwide Mission Roll Call survey, 67% of veterans, active duty members and family members polled reported that VA care expansion will lead to better healthcare outcomes, 55% said it would improve access to care in rural areas and nearly 80% said that receiving mental health or substance use care through the ACCESS Act would improve veterans’ access to care.

Your Voice Matters
Our monthly survey page updates the first week of every month with a new theme related to pressing veteran issues and priorities. Participating in our monthly polls ensures that your voice is heard.

2. Housing and Homelessness
Housing instability and homelessness cannot be separated from the broader financial pressures veterans are facing. Rising cost of living expenses remains one of the most consistent themes in veteran polling, with financial pressures continuing to affect veterans’ transition to civilian life, housing stability and food security. These pressures can also seep into other areas of veterans’ lives, worsening existing mental or physical health conditions.

And public sentiment echoes this urgent issue.

Many veterans reported that they or someone they knew relied on local food banks or SNAP for food assistance. Additionally, in a Mission Roll Call survey on whether enough is being done to address veteran homelessness, an alarming 91% of respondents said “No” – a concern reflected in the reality that at least 33,000 veterans across the country are currently experiencing homelessness.

In response, Mission Roll Call has made it a priority to advocate for financial and food security and push for greater awareness. Last year, we shared polling data with key Congressional offices and highlighted veteran needs through op-eds and interviews for The National Desk, The Center Square and Federal News Network.

Through that media coverage, we’ve reached millions of supporters and provided decision-makers with critical insights, like the fact that 91% of veterans are concerned about losing their food assistance benefits during a time when many are already struggling with housing and healthcare access. That data and national outreach is something MRC will continue championing in the year ahead.

In 2026, financial and food security will remain central to veteran well-being and a prime focus of MRC’s research and advocacy. MRC will continue to partner with veteran service organizations (VSOs) to improve financial support, employment opportunities, benefits navigation and housing assistance for those who served.

3. Support for service-connected injuries and conditions
Veterans living with service-connected injuries often navigate unique, complex health challenges, including Post Traumatic Stress (PTS), chronic pain, mobility limitations or other long-term illnesses. These conditions are difficult to manage, but for veterans living in rural and remote areas, disproportionate barriers to care worsen existing health challenges.

VA facilities aren’t evenly distributed across states, causing many veterans to face long travel times, limited specialty availability and fewer local resources. In Maine, for instance, there is only one VA hospital, and it can take veterans up to four hours to drive to this location. These distance barriers are inconvenient and pose additional risks for veterans managing service-connected conditions, especially those requiring ongoing treatment. Rural veterans also face broadband challenges, so even if virtual health appointments are available, internet connectivity issues can still make accessing care difficult.

One of the most significant concerns voiced by veterans about the VA is a lack of continuity of care. Across the country – but especially in rural areas – wait times are so long that, instead of meeting with the same doctor, veterans are forced to meet with multiple providers, retelling their medical history and concerns each time. For example, in Wyoming, Minnesota and Colorado, the average wait time for a specialist appointment is more than 100 days – far too long.

Long wait times and a lack of providers are especially concerning for rural veterans. Rural communities often face greater health burdens with fewer local care options. These areas also face higher rates of poverty, substance abuse and chronic illnesses, including hypertension and disabilities. Difficult-to-navigate healthcare and access barriers cause veterans to delay or forgo care altogether, putting their health and quality of life at serious risk.

Innovative approaches – including mobile care, community healthcare partnerships, expanded VRD reach and coordinated VSO networks – show great promise and will play a key role in shaping MRC’s 2026 advocacy and polling.

4. Suicide Prevention
According to the VA’s most recent National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report, an average of 17.5 veterans die by suicide every single day. Although this figure is widely accepted, Mission Roll Call’s research indicates that the real number may be even higher. For instance, America’s Warrior Partnership (AWP) suggests that as many as 24 veterans die by suicide per day, with an additional 20 dying by “self-injury mortality,” often overdoses that are the unfortunate conclusion of months or years of coping with untreated mental health and limited access to resources and support networks. This totals to a staggering 44 veterans who die by suicide per day, about 2.5 times more than the VA’s estimate.

To close these gaps, VSOs across the country are expanding their focus on prevention, peer connection and whole-person wellness. VSOs like Boulder Crest’s Posttraumatic Growth program, Avalon’s brain health initiatives, Team RWB’s wellness programs and American Warrior Partnership’s holistic models are strong examples of this shift.

Policy efforts are moving in a similar direction. The BEACON Act expands care options for the large number of veterans suffering from mild-to-moderate traumatic brain injuries and includes grants to implement programs that improve benefits assistance. Meanwhile, Voices for Non-Opioid Choices has been a leading advocate for the NOPAIN for Veterans Act, which would require the VA to provide veterans with non-opioid pain medication options, reducing reliance upon opioids and the negative effects of opioid dependence.

Expanding these alternative care options is a significant step toward reducing reliance on opioids and the risks of dependence, but also for reducing chronic pain and opioid dependency, which is closely linked to mental health challenges and increased suicide risk.

Veterans want programs that feel personal and that are grounded in real results. Mission Roll Call’s Summer 2025 Suicide Prevention Survey, shared with VA leadership and members of Congress, reinforced this. Among other things, this survey found that 96% of veterans reported low confidence in federal suicide-prevention efforts and 52% knew a veteran who died by suicide – figures that, when scaled across 18 million veterans, reveal a devastating human cost. Lasting progress depends on community-based, “Left of Clinical” approaches that build belonging, purpose, routine and timely access to care.

Mission Roll Call’s Veterans Resource Directory plays an important role in connecting veterans with these resources – a role that will only continue to grow in our year ahead.

Why These Trends Matter
Each of these trends reflects veterans’ and their families’ lived experiences. Veterans have endured mental and physical health challenges, difficulty accessing healthcare and financial insecurity. Those challenges are real. Veterans need care they can reach, programs that respond to real needs and leaders who take their voices seriously.

Mission Roll Call can’t accomplish any advocacy or legislative improvements or help improve veteran lives without our veteran community. As we continue our mission in 2026, we’ll continue to invite veterans to participate in our surveys, share their stories and engage with the veteran community to fuel meaningful change.

Veterans don’t have to go through challenges alone.
Our Veterans Resource Directory (VRD) is a free, easy-to-access tool that connects veterans to trusted organizations across the country. Find the assistance you need today.