Obama Administration to Cover PTSD for ALL Veterans

[ProSense]

Obama Administration to Cover PTSD for ALL Veterans

by dansac

An important subject that should not go overlooked today:

The government is preparing to issue new rules that will make it substantially easier for veterans who have been found to have post-traumatic stress disorder to receive disability benefits, a change that could affect hundreds of thousands of veterans from the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Vietnam.

This as a major, ground-shifting change in the way our nation treats returning veterans - many of whom clearly suffer from PSTD, but have not been able to provide the documentation necessary to "prove" it and thereby receive treatment from the VA. Now, under the new rules issued by the Veterans Administration Dept (led by Obama appointee Eric Shinseki), literally hundreds of thousands of soldiers from all our past wars will now be able to access much-needed treatment.

The regulations from the Department of Veterans Affairs, which will take effect as early as Monday and cost as much as $5 billion over several years according to Congressional analysts, will essentially eliminate a requirement that veterans document specific events like bomb blasts, firefights or mortar attacks that might have caused P.T.S.D., an illness characterized by emotional numbness, irritability and flashbacks.

This requirement has forced suffering veterans countless and fruitless hours searching for any sort of evidence, paperwork that's not easy to come by. Now?

Under the new rule, which applies to veterans of all wars, the department will grant compensation to those with P.T.S.D. if they can simply show that they served in a war zone and in a job consistent with the events that they say caused their conditions. They would not have to prove, for instance, that they came under fire, served in a front-line unit or saw a friend killed.

Not surprisingly, some in conservative quarters are crying that this will open the floodgates for abuse and create a system of dependent veterans who don't want to work:

more

[Deep13]

1. Why do Democrats hate our troops?

:sarcasm:

[Name removed]

10. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[sabrina 1]

43. Please post a link to anyone on DU who has ever

said that a U.S. soldier deserves to suffer for serving in a war.

That is an outrageous charge and you need to prove it or apologize for the attack on your fellow DUers. I have never seen such a statement, but if one exists, I'd like to see it.

Thank you in advance.

[Botany]

2. Obama does the right thing time after time

[impik]

14. What a magnificent image. Brought tears to my eyes. Thank you.

[sarge43]

17. I love the look the woman on his right is giving him.

"Well, heeellllo there. Sir."

[alsame]

3. Good. nt

[NJmaverick]

4. This is a very important issue that really should get more media coverage

[Botany]

7. just like the plans to reduce over 1/2 of the world's plutonium

just like the plans to get rid of 1/2 of the world's nuclear warheads

or


Passing the "largest" economic stimulus bill in American history.
Ordering the closing of Guantanamo Bay military detention facility and abolishing "enhanced interrogation techniques."
Setting a fixed timetable for withdrawing U.S. combat forces from Iraq.
Ordering 21,000 additional troops to Afghanistan and enlisting, with modest new assistance, European allies in a new multi-layered strategy there and in Pakistan, and setting a timetable for a drawdown of our troops.
"Returning science to its rightful place" by lifting the Bush restrictions on federally funded embryonic stem cell research.
Signing laws to expand children's health insurance (financed by a 61-cent per pack increase in the federal cigarette tax the adviser did not tout).
Signing a law meant to improve the ability of women who allege pay discrimination to sue their employer.
Lifting travel and remittance restrictions for Cuban Americans who seek to travel more frequently to the island and send more US currency to their immediate family.
Appointed the first Latina to the US Supreme Court
signed a law supporting increased financial aid to severely injured war veterans, and their caretakers.
Banned offshore drilling until parameters for deep well safety procedures are clarified.
Put a hold on Artic oil exploratory digging until environmental impacts are clear.
Passed health care reform.
signed a hate crime bill .

the press will be right on this ..... is this needed? :sarcasm:

[NJmaverick]

11. Well I guess when the Republicans own most of the media

it's not likely to happen.

[Deep13]

12. He's working to realize Reagan's dream of a world free from nuclear weapons.

My canned response to critics who raise the baseless assertion that POTUS is somehow weak on defense.

[MadMaddie]

33. The MSM won't report anything positive he does.

[ck4829]

5. The people who say that this can be abused are, quite simply, morons

Even a student of psychology would most likely be able to tell which veterans will need assistance and which ones are faking.

K&R.

[firedupdem]

6. K&R!

Excellent News.

[Clio the Leo]

8. kick nt

[sarge43]

9. About frackin' time.

Some in conservative quarters can do something rude and physically impossible to themselves.

[vaberella]

13. Thanks Mr. President, this is desperately needed. n/t

[Radical Activist]

15. Is there any question about which party really supports the troops?

[JoeyT]

27. There never really was.

Conservatives support the troops by sending them off to get killed, maimed, and PTSDed. Oh, and with magnets on bumpers.
Liberals support them by demanding they be taken care of them when they come back.

Can't wait to see how Republicans try to spin this away or counter it with "But treatment for PTSD will make veterans lazy!".

[jonnyblitz]

29. oh please, it's the least this admin can do since it's escalating

the war that gives the troops the PTSD to begin with. neither party really supports the troops if they both insist on sending them to die needlessly for political reasons.

[Radical Activist]

37. This is extremely important to many people.

Yeah, it is the least they can do and now the government is finally doing it. Can you stop bashing Obama long enough to recognize the value in this? Jesusfuckingchrist that was one fucked up comment.

[Name removed]

16. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[vaberella]

19. Wow...just wow. n/t

[NoSheep]

20. Good grief.

[Beacool]

18. Great News!!!

There are so many veterans that can use the help.

Well done!!!

:applause:

[SunsetDreams]

21. K&R thank you Mr. President!

[Ross K]

22. K&R!

Long overdue!

[cliffordu]

23. K&R.

[politicasista]

24. Kick!

:kick: :patriot:

[mopinko]

25. this will really go a long way toward the goal of ending

homelessness of veterans, one of shinseki/obama's goals. i am sure that was the point of this change.

yeah, there's some hopey changey stuff for ya.

[SunsetDreams]

47. exactly,

I sure hope we can finally one day end homelessness for our veterans.

[Dystopian]

26. KandR

Finally. I went to the VA hospital with my husband and his mother in 1972. PTSD and heroin addiction. They told him that he could not enter the rehab program unless he cut his hair. He refused. They showed him the door. Twenty years later DOA by the needle.
Our vets need all the help they can get. One case of PTSD can tear a family apart forever.

peace~

[Shireling]

28. I'm so glad to hear this.

I get so frustrated with things, and then I hear something like this. It gives me hope.

:kick:

[treestar]

30. Good. Naturally, conservatives are more concerned with potential fraud than with

soldiers who have PTSD.

[sarge43]

31. They go with what they know. n/t

[jenmito]

32. Where are all the Obama=Bush posters? n/t

[dave29]

34. they have decided this is a good time to debate that terrible health care bill. Again.

Ironically.

[jenmito]

36. Of course.

That sounds like the natural thing to do.

[impik]

49. And making sure they'll keep spreading the good new lies of how Obama going to cut social security

Pathetic.

[jenmito]

50. Well, let's keep this thread kicked...

since it's TRUE and it speaks of how much better Obama is than Bush, Reagan, Nixon, etc.

[scheming daemons]

39. They're always absent in these kinds of threads.... because they have an agenda

...an agenda to discredit the President as much as they possibly can.

Some are being paid to do so.

Others are simply delusional.

[jenmito]

51. Well, there ARE some comments which have been deleted...

so a few DID come here to try to bring that agenda on THIS thread.

[Starbucks Anarchist]

44. They're busy saying Nixon > Obama.

Which is a great example of what huffing paint fumes will do.

[CTLawGuy]

35. but

OBAMA IS MORE CONSERVATIVE THAN RAYGUN!!!!!1!11!1!!111!!!

[Scurrilous]

38. K & R

:thumbsup:

[TwilightGardener]

40. Glad to hear this.

[saltpoint]

41. A sound idea, long overdue, and much welcomed.

Vets were tossed off the train under Bush.

Here they get the respect they have earned.

Recommended.

[autorank]

42. k*r Great news

This makes sense and it's the right and decent thing to do. Three cheers!

[Starbucks Anarchist]

45. Excellent!

:thumbsup:

[spoony]

46. Great. Now let's stop making new cases. nt

[lillypaddle]

48. Seems that many good things

are happening behind the scenes. This is wonderful news.