i would also like pam hyde to pam, and the samhsa team.is a real partnership and has been for well over three years. national survey on drug use and health provides the important markers but we need to measure ourselves and our work by. it tells us what is working. but it also reminds us of what we have got to do an order to keep our nation healthy. before i discuss the data being released today, i wanted to provide a bit of a perspective of this administration's approach to drug policy. and since my conformation and 2009, we have repeatedly affirmed that we are not waging a war on drugs. as a bumper sticker is totally inappropriate and it does not anywhere near reflected the approach we are using towards this. approach is grounded in the firm understanding that addiction is a disease. not a moral failing. it can be treated. and as we well know, recovery is possible. we have emphasized drug prevention programs to help stop substance abuse before it begins. and we have invested in partnerships and programs but the drug free communities and

two great health leaders and our department, pam hyde and b jonathan blum have contributed so much to this important work. we are here today because we all have a role to play in preventing our friends, family members, colleagues, and neighbors from reaching the point where they think there is no hope and they take their own lives. that work has never been more critical than it is today. in the 1990's, we sell a slow but steady decline and the number of americans lost to suicide. since then, suicide rates have begun to rise again. today, suicide is the third leading cause of death for young people ages 15-24. we have seen especially alarming trends in our armed forces. just this july, the army lost 38 soldiers to suicide, an all-time one-month high. these are heartbreaking because they are preventable. that is why two years ago today, defense secretary robert gates and i launched the national action alliance for suicide prevention. under the leadership of senator smith and secretary mchuggh, the lines brought together advocates from private and philanthropic sectors, health care provi