VVA Calls on Trump to Save PTSD Veterans with Bad Paper

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VVA Calls on Trump to Save PTSD Veterans with Bad Paper

VIETNAM VETERANS OF AMERICA
PRESS RELEASE
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 16, 2017

No. 17-18
Mokie Porter
301-996-0901

"Vietnam Veterans of America is the nation's only congressionally chartered veterans' service organization dedicated to the needs of Vietnam-era veterans and their families. VVA's founding principle is "Never again will one generation of veterans abandon another."

VVA Calls on Trump to Save PTSD Veterans with Bad Paper

(Washington, D.C.)--"The report issued today by the Government Accountability Office is immensely disturbing," said John Rowan, National President of Vietnam Veterans of America. That's why we are, once again, calling on President Trump to exercise his constitutional authority and to act now to save these veterans with bad paper."

Earlier today, the Government Accountability Office released a report indicating that 62 percent of veterans who have been issued "bad-paper" discharges were suffering from Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), traumatic brain injury (TBI), or certain other conditions that could be associated with misconduct.

Many veterans from the Post-9/11 generation with PTSD and other service-related illnesses or injuries end up ineligible for transition benefits, such as the GI Bill, due to unfair administrative discharges. As many as 10 percent of recently discharged Marines have been excluded from these benefits and services, which compounds the already significant barriers faced during transition, especially for those with PTSD.

Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin recently announced plans for the VA to provide emergency access to mental healthcare for some veterans with other-than-honorable discharges. Advocates have been calling for the expansion of resources to the VA to ensure comprehensive healthcare for these veterans, rather than care restricted to those on the verge of suicide.

"It's horrific to think of these young men and women as statistics, but that's what they're becoming. These are veterans who volunteered to serve in a time of war, yet they've been failed by previous administrations," continued Rowan. "They didn't hesitate to run into battle. Our current Commander-in-Chief can't hesitate now. President Trump has always supported our veterans, and we are confident that he will listen to our plea on behalf of these veterans."

Mokie Pratt Porter
Director of Communications
Vietnam Veterans of America
8719 Colesville Road, Suite 100
Silver Spring, Maryland 20912
301-585-4000 x146