Walter Reed Exposes Weakened Top Brass

Walter Reed lacks resources to cope with growing problem

(NEWSER) - Though 20 to 40 soldiers are sent home from Iraq each month with severe mental problems, the Army's largest hospital has no post-traumatic stress disorder center, reports the Washington Post. There is also a severe shortage of doctors qualified to treat these patients. Not long ago, the head of psychiatry sent a memo pleading for more staff. More»

(NEWSER) - The mess at Walter Reed was detailed in a damning task force report in 2004, obtained by Salon, in which soldiers described their frustrations with outpatient care and bureaucratic nightmares. Not only was the report ignored, but the official who sat on it for three years is now up for a promotion to undersecretary for health at the VA. More»

Some wounded soldiers face long waits—the longest in states that sent the most troops

(NEWSER) - The V.A. is treating some disabled veterans like second-class soldiers, making them wait twice as long for benefits that are, when they finally come, less generous than others get. It all depends on where a soldier lives and how he served—active duty or National Guard. Worst: The more troops a state deploys, the more backlogged the response. More»

Current system exemplifies effective healthcare: Paul Krugman

(NEWSER) - With his proposal to give veterans vouchers for private insurance, Mitt Romney’s trying to fix something that ain’t broke. In fact, the current Veterans Health Administration is “a huge policy success story, which offers important lessons for future health reform,” writes Paul Krugman in the New York Times . It provides quality care while keeping costs down, thanks in part to the fact that it both provides and pays for care. More»

Forces were undermanned, and planning was shoddy

(NEWSER) - The US missed out on chances to stabilize Afghanistan early in the war because it devoted too few troops and too little planning to the conflict, write Army historians in an official chronicle of the conflict. "It should have become clear” in late 2003 “that the coalition presence in Afghanistan did not provide enough resources,” says the history, a copy of which was obtained by the New York Times . The newspaper points out that 800-soldier battalions were trying to maintain order in areas the size of Vermont. More»