What Shinseki Faces at Veterans' Affairs

One of the many problems that incoming VA Secretary Shinseki is being tasked with:

Traumatic brain injuries, one of the signature injuries of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, can be linked to such long-term problems as seizures, aggression and dementia reminiscent of Alzheimer's disease, according to an Institute of Medicine report released Thursday.

Even mild brain injuries, the report found, appear associated with some long-term problems....

A recent Rand Corp. report ... estimated that 300,000 troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan -- 19% -- had suffered traumatic brain injuries. Such injuries have cost the nation $554 million in treatment and lost productivity, that report estimated.

In a separate report in April, Rand estimated (pdf) that about 300,000 returning Iraq and Afghanistan vets were psychological casualties. From that report:

We estimate that PTSD-related and major depression–related costs could range from $4.0 to $6.2 billion over two years (in 2007 dollars). Applying the costs per case for TBI to the total number of diagnosed TBI cases identified as of June 2007 (2,726), we estimate that total costs incurred within the first year after diagnosis could range from $591 million to $910 million (in 2007 dollars).

As a progressive, it is completely unacceptable to me if once again we ignore veterans' health issues and let these people end up killing themselves, drinking or drugging, or homeless.

And do I even need to say it? The injuries these servicemembers will have to live with for the rest of their lives is one of the many excellent reasons not to get into a war you don't have to fight.

This part from the newspaper article is concerning:

VA officials, who said they would carefully review the report's recommendations, have 60 days to decide whether the long-term problems should be treated as related to brain-injured veterans' military service.

Bureaucrats and bean-counters are the source of the resistance to treating injured vets. They stood in the door over Gulf War Syndrome for 17 years, denying it every step of the way.  Shinseki will have cut through the roadblocks. It's clear that Obama has his back:

"For many of today's troops and their families, the war doesn't end when they come home," Obama said at a press conference in Chicago [announcing his pick of Shinseki].

But "far too few" are receiving the treatment they need to cope with post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury, he said.

Obama pledged to cut red tape, eliminate budget shortfalls and help ease the transition back to civilian life for troops returning to a troubled economy.

"No one will ever doubt that this former army chief of staff has the courage to stand up for our troops and our veterans," Obama said of Shinseki.

"He has always stood on principal because he has always stood with our troops, and he will bring that same sense of duty and commitment to insuring that we treat our veterans with the care and dignity that they deserve."

It's nice to hear responsible talk after 8 years of uber-hawks shortchanging the people they sent off to fight. I look forward to the follow-through.