Merkley: Government is Failing Veterans

Over at the Huffington Post, US Senate candidate Jeff Merkley has harsh words for the Bush administration's treatment of Iraq War veterans:

Next week marks the first anniversary of the exposure of deplorable conditions for veterans at Walter Reed Medical Center. I think I can speak for all Americans when I say that we hoped this scandal would put an end to the mistreatment of our veterans by the Bush administration.

We all remember it too well: mold on the walls, leaky ceilings and veterans held in areas not fit for human habitation. It was a travesty and an insult. I hoped our federal government would turn the corner.

But last week we saw two distinct reminders that we still have a long way to go as a government, a nation and as a society when it comes to giving our veterans the dignity and respect they deserve.

First, the Bush administration began arguing in federal court that veterans have no right to mental health care.

This is absolutely outrageous. Our government made a promise to our veterans. The Bush administration, trying to weasel out of their obligations to our soldiers by inventing dubious legal arguments, is a disgrace. There appears to be no threshold of shame for this government.

Today we learned that over half of the veterans who took their own lives after returning from Iraq or Afghanistan were members of the National Guard or Reserves, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs. The National Guard enables the states to respond to crises such as wildfires, floods and disasters like Hurricane Katrina -- and the Bush administration is arguing they shouldn't have mental health care.

Merkley also discusses the problem of unemployment amongst veterans:

We also learned last week that employers are reluctant to hire returning vets for jobs:

The 2007 study by the consulting firm Abt Associates Inc. found that 18 percent of the veterans who sought jobs within one to three years of discharge were unemployed, while one out of four who did find jobs earned less than $21,840 a year. Many had taken advantage of government programs such as the GI Bill to boost job prospects, but there was little evidence that education benefits yielded higher pay or better advancement. The report blamed the poor prospects partly on inadequate job networks and lack of mentors after extended periods in war.

The report went on to urge the federal government to work with the private sector to encourage hiring and "re-branding" of vets. Last year, I worked with State Rep. Jeff Barker to pass a similar program in Oregon, giving vets priority in hiring for public service jobs. But it's clear that much more must be done.

He then outlines his priorities for veterans' affairs:

•Increase funding for mental health services to veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. An estimated one-third of those veterans suffer mental health problems.

•Implement proper screening and treatment for Traumatic Brain Injury for returning veterans. The signature injury of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is TBI. An estimated 300,000 vets may return home with some form of this injury.

•Fully fund the VA health care system. Veterans are often forced to wait months for an appointment to see a doctor. They must sometimes travel great distances for care because there are too few facilities to provide effective treatment. The disgraceful conditions reported last year at Walter Reed Medical Center are symptomatic of a system-wide problem that must be addressed immediately.

We have a commitment to the men and women who have served this country in the Armed Forces. They left our shores to fight overseas for us. The absolute least we can do is fight for them when they come home. We can and must do better.

Read the rest and comment at the Huffington Post.

Feb. 12, 2008 Posted in elsewhere.