updated: January 30, 2008
Summary
More than 1.5 million troops have served in Iraq and Afghanistan.1 30,000
troops are counted among those wounded in action.2 But hundreds of
thousands of others have suffered injuries not recorded in the official
tally, including the many veterans with serious mental health problems.
These veterans are overwhelming the military and veterans’ health care
and disability systems.
As a result, hundreds of thousands of wounded troops and veterans are
being forced to wait months and even years for medical appointments and
disability compensation. Some veterans with serious mental health problems
have committed suicide while waiting for counseling, and others have
fallen into debt awaiting compensation from the military or Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA).
A major cause of the delays is the maze of paperwork that troops and veterans
must navigate to get care or benefits. The military and the VA have
separate health care systems and separate disability benefits systems, each
with an exceptionally complicated and confusing bureaucracy.
The medical care offered through the Department of Defense (DOD) is some
of the most advanced in the world. But some wounded troops are suffering
delays in treatment because the military does not use a consistent digital
medical records system. Moreover, troops too wounded to continue their service
must chaperone complicated paperwork through an arduous and confusing
process of medical evaluation. Some veterans’ advocates believe the
Army is taking advantage of troops’ confusion to lower disability ratings and
save money. According to the Dole-Shalala Commission tasked with addressing
the problems faced by troops at Walter Reed, less than 40% of wounded
troops say they are satisfied with the disability evaluation system.
For those who have left military service, the Veterans Affairs system can provide
health care and benefits. Unfortunately, the transition from the DOD
to the VA is far from seamless. Crucial DOD paperwork, including medical
records and military service records, regularly gets lost in the shuffle from
DOD to VA. Moreover, the transition from top-echelon military hospitals to
a local VA facility can mean a reduced standard of care.
Changes to VA eligibility rules have restricted access to
VA health care and contributed to the 1.8 million veterans
who lack health insurance. But even for those veterans
with access to the VA system, delays and bureaucratic hurdles
are commonplace. High demand has created a huge
backlog for mental health treatment, making care “virtually
inaccessible” at some clinics, according to at least one
high-ranking VA official.
The VA disability benefits system is also massively backlogged.
There are about 400,000 pending disability claims,
including 83,000 that have been waiting six months or
more. The average wait-time for a disability claim is 183
days, or about six months. For claims that are appealed,
the wait-time skyrockets to 657 days, or almost two years.
Despite the backlog, the VA’s claims processing staff has
not substantially increased. In the meantime, veterans too
wounded to work are often unable to support themselves
or their families.
The public outrage over bureaucratic neglect and shoddy
conditions at Walter Reed Army Medical Center shined a
light on the many problems facing wounded troops and
veterans. A wide array of recommendations has been made,
but whether these solutions will be effectively implemented
remains to be seen.
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