The Veterans Administration (VA) March 2026 report documented a 26% surge in reported Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) cases between 2021 and 2025, at the same time Congressional funding for TBI research has plummeted. One could call this a conundrum. Others would place the blame where it belongs – a US administration that continues to turn its back on our veterans, which, in this case, represents 556,502 veterans diagnosed with TBI.
“The new statistics come in the wake of Congress appropriating 77 percent less for Defense Department medical research into TBI and psychological health between fiscal 2024 and fiscal 2026,” according to Surge in veterans’ brain injuries shown in VA records – Roll Call.
That is the reason that two national veterans’ advocacy organizations, the nonprofit Disabled American Veterans (DAV) and military health research group Invisible Wounds Foundation, in a joint statement, called on Congress to “act now” to fund “research to prevent, diagnose and treat TBI,” as reported in the Joint statement on VA’s release of new traumatic brain injury numbers – DAV.
What is Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)? The CDC describes it as “a disruption in the normal function of the brain that can be caused by a bump, blow, or jolt to the head, or penetrating head injury.” Individuals can experience a TBI through everyday activities like playing contact sports, being involved in a car accident, or falling and striking their head. Symptoms can include irritability, insomnia, anxiety, depression and substance misuse, all of which, when left untreated, can worsen over time. The main types of TBI include penetrating vs. non-penetrating injuries, and severity levels of mild, moderate, and severe TBI, along with specific patterns that are seen in neurological testing.
TBI in Military Personnel and Veterans: Military service members and veterans are also at risk of brain injury from explosions experienced during combat or training exercises Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). “Traumatic brain injuries are one of the most prominent wounds suffered in modern warfare, and the number of veterans reflected in the VA data underscores the scale of this issue” as reported in Traumatic Brain Injuries Spike 26% as Veterans Push More Research, Funding. The RAND TBI report concluded that “special operations forces (SOF) are at particularly high risk because of frequent blast exposures and repetitive neurological stresses” A Review of U.S. Military Traumatic Brain Injury Studies: Trends, Gaps, and Opportunities | RAND .
The 26% surge in the VA report represents more than 28,000 cases a year. It also found that from 2001 to 2025, roughly 556,502 veterans screened positive for TBI or a TBI-related diagnosis in VA medical records, or filed claims for VA disability compensation PublishableAnnualVATBIRegistryReport-FY2025w.pdf.
Why Is the Number of VA TBI Cases Rising? Probable reasons for the increase in the number of TBI cases in VA records include: increased awareness among service members, veterans, and clinicians, leading to higher rates of screening, reporting, and diagnosis; an improved understanding of how brain injuries occur; reduced stigma attached to self-reporting; and expanded TBI screening by the VA.
But do these numbers reflect all the TBI cases? Experts fear they do not. “It’s important to note that the VA data only represents veterans who’ve engaged with VA healthcare or benefits systems. It doesn’t account for unreported cases of TBI—believed by many researchers to be significant—or veterans who may have been misdiagnosed with mental health conditions, as TBI symptoms often overlap with those of posttraumatic stress disorder and related diagnoses,” according to the Joint statement on VA’s release of new traumatic brain injury numbers – DAV.
TBI Funding History: “Spending on this initiative has dropped from $175 million in fiscal 2024 to $40.5 million in fiscal 2026, and the House’s Defense spending bill for fiscal 2027 would not increase the funding. The House Appropriations Committee approved that bill on June 24 of this year,” according to Surge in veterans’ brain injuries shown in VA records – Roll Call. To learn more about TBI history, the abstract of Military Traumatic Brain Injury: The History, Impact, and Future – Megan A. Lindberg, Elisabeth M. Moy Martin, Donald W. Marion, 2022 provides a synopsis. The previously mentioned RAND report provides a more detailed analysis.
Call to Action: The DAV and the Invisible Wounds Foundation are asking us to contact our Congressional delegations to reinstate adequate TBI funding (the fact that the House is on summer recess is irrelevant. Only formal actions taken in their hallowed halls are affected by the recess. Their staffs are still working and constituent messages get through.) Tell them to “act now to drive research to prevent, diagnose and treat TBI in the military and veteran communities.” US Senators & Representatives for NM – contact information provides their contact information.
