Veterans are committing suicide due to the V.A.'s failure to provide prompt, adequate, and timely medical care

The recent and disturbing reports that veterans' are committing suicide at the rate of 120 per week should concern every American. Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is said to be the most prevalent mental disorder arising from those returning from combat, but one which the VA (Veterans Administration) refuses to step up and address quickly.

The VA is failing in their responsibility to ensure these veterans' receive proper medical care in a timely fashion.   The VA's system of handling disability claims and appeals is so dysfunctional that it violates veterans' constitutional and statutory  rights.  A veteran has to wait 163 days for a claim to be decided because there still is a backlog of 600,000 applications for claims, despite years of government pledges to provide care and benefits.  This Department of Defense healthcare system is severely broken and must remain under the spotlight until it is fixed.  Veterans receive no respect for their sacrifices in this system focused more on saving money than on the heroes they are chartered to serve.

The Rand Corporation released a study that said about 300,000 U.S. troops sent to combat in Iraq and Afghanistan are suffering from major depression or PTSD.  Some veterans' claim the VA has turned them away when they sought help for this condition while psychological wards and treatment centers have been closed.

Veterans advocacy groups have approached Veteran Affairs Secretary, James Peake,  alleging that a systematic breakdown at the VA has led to an epidemic of suicides among war veterans. The Congress mandated through the "Dignity for Wounded Warriors Act," that veterans are entitled to five-years of free healthcare upon their return from combat.  The VA argues that medical treatment for any given war veteran is discretionary based on the level of funding available in the VA budget. 

A recent CBS interview on the subject alleged there was a cover-up attempt of this problem by some of the VA's top officials.  A disclosed email of 2/13/2008 clearly shows attempts to hide this from the American people.  The Subject: " Not for CBS Interview Request," is from Ev Chasen, VA Chief Communication Director.  He  asks, "Is the sheer number of suicides bad news...."   This email was addressed to Ira Katz, VA Mental Health Director.  His response acknowledged  1,000 suicide attempts per month among veterans in VA facilities.  Then asked, "Shh!   Is this something we should (carefully) address ourselves in some sort of release before someone stumbles on it?"  Later,  Katz denied a "cover-up" and said he did not disclose the true figures of attempted suicides because he was unsure if it was accurate.

Paul Sullivan, Executive Director of Veterans for Common Sense has urged Congress to enact legislation to immediately overhaul the VA.  Yet despite Sullivan's dire predictions and calls for legislative action the issue has not been given priority treatment by lawmakers. 

While President Bush is seeking a budget of $93.7 billion in 2008 for the VA, Congress continued to fund the war in Iraq to the tune of about $200 billion and will likely pour another $108 billion into Iraq.  Meanwhile, a backlog of veterans' benefits claims for mental and physical injuries sustained in the war continues to pile up at the VA, due to inadequate resources.

Despite reports of some activity for veterans at the VA and in Congress, a Class-Action lawsuit, resignation requests, and recent publicity, the issue still has not been given the priority treatment it deserves.  Americans need to take a stand and hold their representatives responsible for this travesty and demand it be fixed.

For further information, see: http://veterans.house.gov/hearings/hearing.aspx?newsid=237 and http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=8945