Steve Cohen was making billions as a hedge fund manager when his son Robert decided to enlist in the Marine Corps. Although there was no draft or financial need for him to join, he felt called to serve his country in times of war. Several people reported struggling with mental health adjustments after returning home.
Elder Cohen got involved. First, he co-chaired his $13 million fundraising for the Robin Hood Foundation for Veterans of New York City. He then pledged his $7 million to underwrite his clinic, a free mental health clinic in the city for vets and their families, and separately funded his $17 million for PTSD research ( See his entry nearby 2013). He hoped to find an existing non-profit organization that could provide funding to provide mental health care across the country, but none fit the bill. So he launched himself.
In 2016, Cohen pledged $325 million to help veterans, members of the National Guard and Reserves, and their families address their mental health needs. This was the largest commitment of charitable assistance to Americans in military service. Lion’s share went to founding the Cohen Veterans Network. This is a collection of about 20 mental health his clinics across the country with specialized staff and resources to treat 25,000 patients a year. At least $30 million will go to Cohen Veterans Bioscience, a research organization that accelerates the development of diagnostics and treatments for traumatic stress and brain injury.
Within a year, Cohen’s network opened its first four locations. The clinic will offer same-day registration and her first appointment within a week. This is a significantly faster service than what VA offers. It also provides services such as transportation and child care to minimize the barriers patients face to treatment. And unlike the VA, the Cohen Clinic provides care to families and all veterans regardless of discharge status.
The clinic quickly learned that most of the mental health issues that current and former military personnel seek help with are not combat-related, but rather are related to depression, guilt, family strife, anxiety, and others in our country. In addition to providing patients with evidence-based, high-quality care, the Cohen Clinic is training new practitioners and improving practices at all sites. Collect data that can be used to And all of this is provided free of charge to veterans.
