If you love a veteran, this will tick you off

UPDATE
Several times you'll hear "Wounded Warriors" but they are not talking about the "Project" but the "Program" run by the DOD. Huge difference.

How do I enroll in the wounded warrior program?
Enrollment in the program varies by branch of service.

Army. Soldiers and veterans who meet the eligibility requirements and are not currently enrolled in the program should contact the Army Wounded Warrior Call Center for assistance.
Nationwide (toll-free): 877-393-9058
Overseas DSN: 312-221-9113
Email: AW2@conus.army.mil

Marine Corps. Requests for assignment to a Wounded Warrior Regiment element can be initiated by the parent command, medical officer, medical case manager, WWR Detachment Officer-in-Charge, or the WWR Operations section. For more information on the referral process, you can contact the WWR Call Center.
Nationwide (toll-free): 877-487-6299
Navy. Enrollment in Navy Safe Harbor is voluntary. Sailors and Coast Guardsmen may self-refer to the program or be referred by a family member, their command leadership, or their medical team. For questions on enrollment eligibility, contact Navy Safe Harbor.
Nationwide (toll-free): 877-746-8563
Email: safeharbor@navy.mil

Air Force. Eligible airmen should contact the Air Force Wounded Warrior Program Office. The Air Force has no minimum disability rating requirement for the AFW2 program, as long as the injury/illness is combat/hostile related requiring long-term care that will require an MEB/PEB to determine fitness for duty.
Nationwide (toll-free): 800-581-9437
Email: afwounded.warrior@randolph.af.mil

Couple of reminders folks. The first one is that PTSD isn't new. Research on "shell shock" goes back to WWI and as for PTSD, research was cooking right along in the 70's leading up to this.

In 1980, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) added PTSD to the third edition of its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-III) nosologic classification scheme (2). Although controversial when first introduced, the PTSD diagnosis has filled an important gap in psychiatric theory and practice. From an historical perspective, the significant change ushered in by the PTSD concept was the stipulation that the etiological agent was outside the individual (i.e., a traumatic event) rather than an inherent individual weakness (i.e., a traumatic neurosis). The key to understanding the scientific basis and clinical expression of PTSD is the concept of "trauma."

That was just in case you were led to believe that PTSD was new. They ran out of excuses decades ago. How did they get away with leaving veterans suffer all this time? Here is a great indication of it. This CSPAN video is of our members of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee and the Armed Services Committee going over all the troubles back in 2007. Clue here is, they've been repeating the same old tired speeches claiming to be upset, but the end result has been, well, BOHICA.

APRIL 12, 2007
Veterans' Disability Ratings The Senate Armed Services and Veterans' Affairs Committees held a joint hearing on the Defense and Veterans Affairs Departments' disability rating systems and the transition of service members from the Defense Department to the Veterans Affairs Department. Among the issues they addressed were levels of disability assigned to departing service members, medical costs of long term care, the quality of medical services, and conditions at medical treatment facilities.

If you are a veteran, this is how it all happened. If you are a family member, this is why your family has been trapped in an endless cycle of tribulations. We've all been there. My husband's claim took 6 years and it was filed in the early 90's.

We know how bad it has been but the public thinks it is all new. Short attention span or too many reality TV shows, the truth is the press won't remind them of what we live with all the time.

One more thing to notice is all the Senators talking and still talking. Here are links to some of the things these people were talking about.
Walter Reed
Washington Post article by Dana Priest and Anne Hull
Soldiers Face Neglect, Frustration At Army's Top Medical Facility

U.S. PRESIDENT’S COMMISSION ON VETERANS’ PENSIONS

(Bradley Commission): Records, 1954-58

Yes, you read the date right.

We keep waiting to hear the problems have been fixed after members of Congress hold hearing after hearing, then we wonder if they ever heard enough to say "enough is enough" and fix it for real.

I know the speeches are hard to get through but unless you've tracked all these reports then you have no way of knowing exactly what they were fixing and when they knew they had to do it. The last question is, "Why didn't they fix all of this back then?" then maybe we can get to why we lost so many to suicide afterwards.