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WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: veterans' health care

veterans' health care stories: 11 news summaries

Vets' Families Seek Pay as Caregivers

Say disability money doesn't cover needs
for injured troops

Nov 12, 08 9:39 AM CST
(Newser) - Wounded soldiers receive disability pensions based on the extent of their injuries, but for many families that money doesn't come close to covering the costs of caregiving. After Matt Keil returned home a quadriplegic, his wife, Tracy, quit her job to care for him, losing a $58,000 per-year income... More »

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health care • veterans' benefits • veterans' health care • Iraq veterans • Afghanistan veterans • traumatic brain injury • caregivers

Obama: I Must 'Earn the Trust' of US Military

Questions provisions for troops, use of civilian contractors

Jul 7, 08 3:08 PM CDT
(Newser) - Because he hasn't served in the military, Barack Obama says, “I have to earn the trust of men and women in uniform.” In a wide-ranging interview with Military Times, the presumptive Democratic nominee vowed to raise pay and improve health care for service members, promised he would not... More »

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Barack Obama • military • veterans' health care • Iraq exit strategy • trust

analysis

Democrats in House Catch
Populist Fever

Pelosi readies bills for airline passsengers, vets, among others

Jun 25, 08 6:39 PM CDT
(Newser) - Despite conventional wisdom suggesting Congress would be in a holding pattern until November, a new surge of energy behind Democratic domestic spending bills is poised to deliver populist promise this summer. An airline passenger bill of rights—an “unapologetic attempt to position lawmakers on the side of harried travelers,... More »

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Congress • veterans' health care • George W. Bush • domestic spending

Obama Wants Probe of VA Drug Tests

'Outrageous' that suicide-linked drugs were tested on vets

Jun 18, 08 12:23 PM CDT
(Newser) - Barack Obama and Republican Sen. John Cornyn are seeking a probe into reports that veterans had been recruited for tests on drugs linked to suicide, ABC News reports. An ABC News/Washington Times story noted that vets were given the anti-smoking drug Chantix in government tests, but for more than... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Barack Obama • veterans • suicide • veterans' health care • White House • John Cornyn • ABC News • Chantix • Veterans Administration

VA Doctor Discouraged Post-Traumatic Diagnoses

Email urged staffers
to save disability costs

May 16, 08 9:55 AM CDT
(Newser) - A team leader at a veterans' medical center in Texas sent staffers an email urging them to avoid diagnosing post-traumatic stress disorder, the Washington Post reports. "Given that we are having more and more compensation-seeking veterans, I'd like to suggest that you refrain from giving a diagnosis of PTSD... More »

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veterans • mental health • veterans' benefits • veterans' health care • Department of Veterans Affairs • PTSD • James B. Peake • Iraq veterans • Afghanistan veterans

 US Sent 43,000
 'Unfit' Troops to War 

Soldiers deemed medically unfit deployed anyway

May 8, 08 12:03 PM CDT
(Newser) - The US has sent more than 43,000 troops deemed medically unfit for combat to war in Iraq and Afghanistan, USA Today reports. Since 2003 soldiers deemed non-deployable by medical officers have shipped anyway, according to Pentagon documents, with unit commanders overruling doctors. “It is a consequence of... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Afghanistan • troop surge • veterans' health care • Department of Veterans Affairs

'Sorry' Gates: We Let Down Our Soldiers

He regrets poor treatment for Iraq, Afghanistan vets

May 2, 08 7:04 AM CDT
(Newser) - Defense Secretary Robert Gates admitted yesterday that the US military made mistakes in taking care of soldiers back from Afghanistan and Iraq, reports Reuters. He said he regretted that veterans had received inadequate care for physical and mental problems, particularly those suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. Gates also acknowledged that... More »

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veterans • Robert Gates • veterans' health care • US military • PTSD • Iraq veterans • Afghanistan veterans

Military Families Sue VA Over Suicides

Agency doesn't do enough for veterans' mental health, suit says

Apr 21, 08 11:45 AM CDT
(Newser) - Veterans Affairs hasn’t done enough to stem the “rising tide” of suicides and mental health problems, according to a class action lawsuit going to trial this week. Roughly 20% of deployed US troops are suffering from mental illness, a recent study shows, and an average of 18 kill... More »

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military • veterans • suicide • veterans' benefits • veterans' health care • lawsuit • Department of Veterans Affairs • PTSD

McCain Says
No More After NYT Slam

But his campaign will suffer sans soft money support, Time blogs

Nov 12, 07 6:47 PM CST
(Newser) - John McCain may be moral enough to help sink his own campaign, a Time blog muses. Today the senator asked “all of my donors and supporters to cease and desist" from spending money "that might be construed as benefiting my campaign indirectly.” Why? Because the New York ... More »

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John McCain • South Carolina • veterans' health care • campaign finance • soft money

Injured Veterans Sue US

Class action suit targets VA for 'shameful failures' in treatment

Jul 24, 07 4:53 AM CDT
(Newser) - Two veterans groups representing troops who have fought in Iraq and Afghanistan are suing the US government for "shameful failures" in medical treatment, Reuters reports. The Department of Veterans Affairs is swamped with a backlog of 600,000 health claims and is "abandoning" soldiers returning home, the class-action... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Iraq • Afghanistan • veterans • veterans' health care • lawsuit • Department of Veterans Affairs • army hospitals • US government • US Army • soldier • medical treatment • Iraq veterans • Iraq war

Head of Veterans Affairs Quits

Secretary's short tenure long on scandals and other woes

Jul 17, 07 3:47 PM CDT
(Newser) - The secretary of Veterans Affairs, the head of the second-biggest federal department, is stepping down and will be replaced by October 1, reports the Washington Post. For 2½ turbulent years, Jim Nicholson, a decorated Vietnam vet and former RNC chair, presided over a department beset by criticism and overwhelmed by... More »

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Iraq • Afghanistan • veterans • RNC • veterans' health care • US troops • Jim Nicholson • Department of Veterans Affairs • VA • Vietnam veteran • army hospitals • soldier • Walter Reed Army Medical Center • Iraq veterans • Iraq war

11 Stories


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