A Political Debate On Stress Disorder
The chickens are coming home to roost for the Bush Administration as it begins to see the indirect costs of fighting “quick” conflicts overseas — conflicts that linger on and on and on. Guess what they found? The more soldiers you send to combat, the more they end up with trauma-related mental disorders, such as PTSD. And lo and behold, PTSD is expensive to treat.
So, normally when faced with a problem where a lot of people are seeking help for a disorder they have because of the conflict you sent them to, the VA and the government treats the veteran. But now, because of the spiraling costs of PTSD treatment, they are having arguments about what is and isn’t PTSD! Basically politicians and penny-pinching administrators are playing doctor to try and save on their budget, while stiffing the solider patient. Nice.
The spiraling cost of post-traumatic stress disorder among war veterans has triggered a politically charged debate and ignited fears that the government is trying to limit expensive benefits for emotionally scarred troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
In the past five years, the number of veterans receiving compensation for the disorder commonly called PTSD has grown nearly seven times as fast as the number receiving benefits for disabilities in general, according to a report this year by the inspector general of the Department of Veterans Affairs. A total of 215,871 veterans received PTSD benefit payments last year at a cost of $4.3 billion, up from $1.7 billion in 1999 — a jump of more than 150 percent.
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2 Comments to
“A Political Debate On Stress Disorder (PTSD)”
As a Vietnam Veteran who has been fighting for years to Service Connected for PTSD I know what you mean.
I have ADHD which has some similar symptoms but not near as many as I do for
PTSD. My D.r said I had PTSD, but they sent me to a VA Psychologist who said
my problems were related to my ADHD. This has ceased to be a Joke. I am writing
to my congressman. I hope he’ll help.
while my experiences are no doubt different than those of many others, ie. someone who was traumatized and actually DID regain safety, it is because i have learned that so many people outside of (declared) combat vets are affected, but do not `enjoy’ even the (imho) usually inadequate services available for our vets.
having worked with targets and survivors of gender based violence, and once slipping below a certain level of economic security, become a frequent target myself, i actually think we NEED a debate on what is or is not ptsd.
i know many people for whom the trauma is not post, but ongoing, often for years and for whom i suspect labeling `normal’ biochemical reactions to, as my last md put it `living in terror’ as a disorder is a big excuse for those who are `supposed’ to help failing to consider immediate, clear safety and survival issues.
offer no help, even mocking a persons safety, and drugging them will not help a person who is, in fact, at risk from an immediate and named cause.
this should NOT however, slow down or impede in other ways the care given to vets and i believe we all are going to be called upon to help them and their families get the services we surely owe these people.
i wanna yak more about this, but will post a thread in the forums, vs. monopolize here.
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Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 30 Dec 2005
