War is Hell

Last year, some 67,000 soldiers returned from combat in Iraq and Afghanistan were treated for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Eighty-nine of them committed suicide. Perhaps even more than physical injuries, mental trauma incurred by servicemen tends to have an insidious ripple effect on the affected families and communities. Numerous studies suggest that domestic violence, child abuse, drug and alcohol abuse and other destructive behavior is a regular byproduct of untreated PTSD.

Making matters worse, as Joshua Kors reported in an award-winning Nation expose published in March of 2007, there have been numerous cases in which soldiers wounded in Iraq were suspiciously diagnosed by the military as having a personality disorder, then prevented from collecting benefits which made it virtually impossible for them to treat their PTSD. (As Kors noted, the conditions of their discharge have infuriated many in the military community, including the injured soldiers and their families, veterans' rights groups, even military officials required to process these dismissals.)

The Veterans' Mental Health Outreach and Access Act of 2007, S. 38, headed soon to the Senate floor for a vote, would seek to address the metastasizing problems of returning vet's PTSD.

The bipartisan bill, introduced by Senator Peter Domenici and co-sponsored by twelve other Senators, including Barack Obama (nor neither McCain, nor Clinton) calls for the nationwide training of peer counselors to assist returning vets with mental health issues and expands the range of mental health options available to veterans and extends the period of time during which veterans are entitled to receive free mental health counseling to five years. It also imposes guidelines for the adequate training of mental health counselors dealing specifically with veterans' issues and expands access to qualified local facilities for veterans who live in rural areas that don't have health centers affiliated with the Department of Veterans' Affairs.

Click here to implore your Senators to vote yes on S. 38.

Comments (22)

1. wait, is mccain against the bill? it appears unclear ("nor neither.....")

   Posted by darladoon at 03/31/2008 @ 11:08pm

2. if mccain is against the bill, my only response is: WTF?!

   Posted by darladoon at 03/31/2008 @ 11:09pm

3. Local veteran hater/Bush booster CPT will of course have an explanation for how "some general" is at fault and the Administration faultless.

   BTW, PETER, off-topic, but you often grace us with a response....why is "J Street" called a "blog", when your colleagues Mr. Hayes and Ms. Chen brook no comments from us lumpenproletariat?

   Posted by Mask at 03/31/2008 @ 11:20pm

4. Peter, please understand that it takes a long time to train healthcare professionals with specialies in mental health. The average time to train a clinical mental health professional is the same as a physician. Now, unless this Congress has a comprehensive plan in place, putting "counselors" in the place of trained psychiatrists or psychologist is like putting a bucket under Niagra Falls hoping to catch all of the water.

   One more note, most clinicains don't start making the big bucks until they've earned their Phds and have been published.

   Posted by ACook at 03/31/2008 @ 11:33pm

5. acook, i don't feel you've adequately addressed the larger, more prescient issue here: namely, why doesn't this bill have the support of st. mccain? because he makes your argument? i doubt it.

   Posted by darladoon at 03/31/2008 @ 11:36pm

6. ACOOK, while I agree with your assessment, at least it's better than ignoring the problem. I think extending the entitlement to five years is a start but in truth, many problems don't present themselves until much later. I feel our veterans returning from war shouldn't have a time limit on when they can seek counseling. Ten years, twenty years, fifty years...doesn't matter. It's the least we can do. This Act is a start but still falls short of what we should do.

   DARLA, I was confused about the sponsorship line myself. Does this mean that Obama was a co-sponsor but Hillary and McCain weren't? Nevermind. I just went to the bill and that's exactly what it means. Here are the sponsors:

   Sen. Pete Domenici [R, NM] and 12 Co-Sponsors Sen. Max Baucus [D, MT] Sen. Barbara Boxer [D, CA] Sen. Samuel Brownback [R, KS] Sen. Thad Cochran [R, MS] Sen. John Cornyn [R, TX] Sen. Charles Grassley [R, IA] Sen. Kay Hutchison [R, TX] Sen. Blanche Lincoln [D, AR] Sen. Lisa Murkowski [R, AK] Sen. Barack Obama [D, IL] Sen. Ken Salazar [D, CO] Sen. Jon Tester [D, MT]

   Posted by FritztheCat at 04/01/2008 @ 08:09am

7. Now that I've read the bill, this is pretty darn good. Not only does the bill propose to extend the term of coverage from two years to five years (still not enough but better), it also provides for counseling assistance for immediate family members for three years.

   Here's an interesting tidbit for Obama supporters from the bill:

   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

   Mr. DOMENICI (for himself and Mr. OBAMA) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

   Posted by FritztheCat at 04/01/2008 @ 08:15am

8. Posted by FRITZTHECAT 04/01/2008 @ 08:15am

   Perhaps Hillary didn't sign onto the bill because it failed to provide mental health services for those who had come under "sniper fire" in Bosnia?

   heheh

   Posted by Mask at 04/01/2008 @ 09:40am

9. MASK, that's possible! Pity as she certainly could use some form of counseling.

   Posted by FritztheCat at 04/01/2008 @ 10:10am

10. i wonder what frankgritties has to say about ms. clinton's lack of support.

    sorry to get personal frank, but i'm sure you can see the relevance.

    Posted by frosty zoom at 04/01/2008 @ 11:35am

11. i wonder what frankgritties has to say about ms. clinton's lack of support.----Posted by FROSTY ZOOM 04/01/2008 @ 11:35am

    Oh, I'm sure it'll be something along the lines of...

    "BLASPHEMERS! You dare question the wisdom of the Dark Goddess! And further your blasphemy by praising the Usurper! She shall strike thee down. Turn from your sinful ways...bow to her...she shall be merciful and grant thee boons, if you repent and swear eternal fealty. The Dark Goddess cannot be stopped....She speaks All Truth (even when she "exaggerates a bit")!!!...She is All-Powerful!!!...None dare oppose her and live!"

    Or...uh...words to that effect.

    heheh

    Posted by Mask at 04/01/2008 @ 12:16pm

12. Posted by MASK 04/01/2008 @ 12:16pm

    no, seriously.

    he has stated that his son who has recently returned from iraq is suffering the consequences of ptsd.

    Posted by frosty zoom at 04/01/2008 @ 1:07pm

13. Posted by FROSTY ZOOM 04/01/2008 @ 1:07pm

    FROSTY, seriously, I think FG is SO deep into his devotion of Hillary....that he will excuse her absence as a co-sponsor of this bill....AND denegrate Obama somehow for supporting it...

    even if it could be useful to his son.

    And I'm not exaggerating. I think at this point FG is literally so emotionally invested in Hillary and her campaign...that he'd rather Obama not get credit for something like this, than have it pass and help vets like his son.

    I think he's slipped that far over the edge.

    Posted by Mask at 04/01/2008 @ 1:57pm

14. Posted by FRITZTHECAT 04/01/2008 @ 08:09am

    Thanks FRITZ, but I feel those individuals listed on the bill are totally clueless. If I'm understanding the bill's wording correctly, then the premise is geared towards "counseling" and not clinical therapy. One is more expensive than the other and does not require a Master's or PhD. That's a huge difference.

    IMO, the word "counselor" and "therapist" should never be used interchangably. Should this bill pass, the troops are gonna get screwed.

    Posted by ACook at 04/01/2008 @ 5:12pm

15. "acook, i don't feel you've adequately addressed the larger, more prescient issue here: namely, why doesn't this bill have the support of st. mccain? because he makes your argument? i doubt it."

    Posted by DARLADOON 03/31/2008 @ 11:36pm

    DD, what concerns me the most is how this bill is worded. You cannot treat PTSD with general counseling.

    Posted by ACook at 04/01/2008 @ 5:15pm

16. ACOOK, it is rather ambiguous. It says "clinicians." That can mean a variety of things. I don't think it should be voted down because of that though (not saying you think it should).

    Posted by FritztheCat at 04/01/2008 @ 7:34pm

17. Posted by HAPPY2 04/01/2008 @ 4:27pm

    What the hell COULD you say? Defend the Admin and look stupid? Attack Obama for the bill and look petty?

    Posted by Mask at 04/01/2008 @ 8:16pm

18. MASK wrote:

    Perhaps Hillary didn't sign onto the bill because it failed to provide mental health services for those who had come under "sniper fire" in Bosnia?

    Score!

    heheh

    Posted by Kevin Collins at 04/01/2008 @ 9:55pm

19. I think he's slipped that far over the edge.

    Posted by MASK 04/01/2008 @ 1:57pm

    Actually all I've noticed from Mr Frankgrits lately is posting the same op-ed ad infinitum (and annoying the bejeesus out of me) and making a small snide comment. Apparently he seems incapable of defending Her Highness any more.

    My personal opinion? ANY help these guys get is better than leaving then twisting in the wind. But how many actual therapists specialize in PTSD? It isn't the sort of thing you can learn to treat just from a weekend seminar.

    Posted by yutsano at 04/01/2008 @ 11:25pm

20. Just read the bill. I am mildly suspicious that the peer counselor piece can be exploited to under-treat & save $.

    Posted by winyahn at 04/02/2008 @ 12:04am

21. As a side note, I noticed a bill to increase the benefits of the G.I. Bill has been introduced by Webb. McCain hasn't signed on to it. He states it's because he hasn't read it. Fair enough.

    Obama and Clinton have both signed on as well as about 45 or so other senators. Interesting.

    Posted by FritztheCat at 04/03/2008 @ 09:26am

22. Interesting read...Including the comments....

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/04/01/letter-from-a-soldier-an_n_9449 3.html

    Posted by djmarch at 04/03/2008 @ 12:21pm