Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) responses
Past Angry Bear posts started in 2007, but here are four later posts 2008 and 2009:
Brain injury awareness
Pattern of misconduct
PTSD and our military response
What are we going to do now is your choice
GAO report 12-154 addresses the notion that this sort of thing is being taken care of. There are about 80 projects now ongoing to determine best practice within the military culture and organization, which is of course very different than civilian demands placed on personnel. :
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), which falls into the broader field of psychological health (PH), and traumatic brain injury (TBI) are recognized as the signature wounds of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. In two reports issued in 2011 (GAO-11-219 and GAO-11-611), GAO cited numerous management weaknesses at the Defense Center of Excellence for PH and TBI (DCOE). For the present report, GAO reviewed (1) funding for DOD’s PH and TBI activities in fiscal years 2007 through 2010 and the accuracy of its reporting on these activities to Congress and (2) DOD’s ability to coordinate its PH and TBI activities to help ensure that funds are used to support programs of the most benefit to service- members. GAO interviewed DOD officials, reviewed legislation and DOD’s annual reports, and obtained relevant documentation.
…
From fiscal year 2007 through fiscal year 2010, DOD activities for the treatment and research of PH and TBI received more than $2.7 billion. In fiscal year 2007, funding for these activities totaled $900 million; in fiscal year 2008, it was $573.8 million; in fiscal year 2009, $395 million; and in fiscal year 2010, $838.6 million. GAO found, however, that the reports DOD provided to Congress on these activities did not include expenditures, as required by law, and that the obligations data they contained were unreliable. Governmentwide policies call for agencies to have effective internal controls to assure accurate reporting of obligations and expenditures. If you are know someone suffering form this condition, you can recommend them to get help from an expert and ask for Delta 8 gummies prescription
However, the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs has not developed quality control mechanisms to help ensure that data on PH and TBI activities are complete and accurate. Further, although DOD listed patient care among reported costs, it did not specify what those costs included, making it difficult for decisionmakers and Congress to fully understand the costs.
No one organization coordinates DOD’s PH and TBI activities.
The military’s disability and retirement benefits were merged into SS quite a while back. So, when various debt hawks in Congress talk about increasing the retirement age and other benefit cuts in Medicare/Medicaidc, they are talking about reducing the benefits of all the veterans who are now eligible or are becoming eligible for SS as a result of service-related injuries and medical conditions. The types of brain injuries and emotional/conduct disorders that result from these particular wars make it harder to get benefits. It’s hard to establish the severe level of disability for PTSD, for example, because it is often episodic and presents itself differently in each individual case.
These wars are paid through by borrowing and aren’t cheap while they are being fought. But, the cost of the aftermath of these wars is seldom considered. It is enormous and will go on as long as affected vets live. That is a high price to pay for military adventures which have no lasting economic benefit for the domestic economy and accomplish few if any other material goals. NancyO
True, Nancy
but why should we take a chance on some terrorist getting through and killing a few people over here when we can send out boys over there to get killed.
and win friends and influence people.