Table 3. Characteristics of Veterans Who Did and Did Not Receive Caring Lettersa.
| Variable | Individuals, No. (%) | Absolute value of standardized difference | |
|---|---|---|---|
| No caring letters (n = 139 576) | Caring letters (n = 87 926) | ||
| Age, mean (SD), y | 53.12 (16.81) | 54.44 (17.20) | 0.077 |
| Age at separation, mean (SD)b | 25.97 (6.70) | 26.25 (6.69) | 0.041 |
| Sex | |||
| Female | 21 644 (15.51) | 13 922 (15.83) | 0.009 |
| Male | 117 932 (84.49) | 74 004 (84.17) | |
| Race | |||
| American Indian or Alaska Native | 1625 (1.16) | 977 (1.11) | 0.004 |
| Asian | 1465 (1.05) | 1026 (1.17) | |
| Black | 37 358 (26.77) | 23 356 (26.56) | |
| Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander | 1388 (0.99) | 919 (1.05) | |
| White | 85 262 (61.09) | 53 018 (60.30) | |
| More than one race | 1922 (1.38) | 1331 (1.51) | |
| Race unknown | 10 556 (7.56) | 7299 (8.30) | |
| Hispanic ethnicity | 10 745 (7.70) | 6980 (7.94) | 0.027 |
| Married | 49 804 (35.68) | 31 837 (36.21) | 0.015 |
| Branch of service | |||
| Air Force | 17 321 (12.41) | 11 285 (12.83) | 0 |
| Army | 74 551 (53.41) | 46 307 (52.67) | |
| Navy | 27 129 (19.44) | 17 290 (19.66) | |
| Marine Corps | 17 867 (12.80) | 11 338 (12.89) | |
| Other and missing | 2708 (1.94) | 1706 (1.94) | |
| Discharge type | 0.004 | ||
| Honorable | 126 070 (90.32) | 79 548 (90.47) | |
| Dishonorable | 974 (0.70) | 543 (0.62) | |
| Other | 10 115 (7.25) | 6326 (7.19) | |
| Unknown | 2417 (1.73) | 1509 (1.72) | |
| Past-year suicide attempt | 8925 (6.39) | 5805 (6.60) | 0.008 |
| Past-year inpatient mental health encounter | 12 443 (8.91) | 6489 (7.38) | 0.056 |
| Past-year outpatient mental health encounter | 90 593 (64.91) | 51 398 (58.46) | 0.133 |
a
Rates of Elixhauser comorbidities are also balanced across signatory groups. Full results are available in eTable 5 in Supplement 1.
b
Missing for 1893 individuals.