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SEC DEF ACKNOWLEDGES MISTAKES IN TREATMENT OF
TROOPS -- Gates: "I know that the department is
not perfect and
mistakes have been, and will be made. Things
happen too slowly."
Secretary of Defense Robert Gates
For more about Secretary Gates, use the VA
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http://www.yourvabenefits.org/sessearch.php?q=robert+gates&op=and
Story here...
http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSN01445372
Story below:
-------------------------
Gates acknowledges mistakes in treatment of
troops
By David Morgan
FORT BLISS, Texas, (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates
on Thursday said the military had made mistakes in its treatment of
returning combat troops including in their physical and mental health care
and by providing some sub-standard housing.
In a visit to Fort Bliss, Texas, Gates announced a change in government
procedures to encourage troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan to seek
treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder without fear of losing their
security clearances and harming their careers.
He acknowledged not all of the more than 1.5 million military service
members who have been deployed overseas have received needed medical
treatment and accommodations.
"I know that the department is not perfect and
mistakes have been, and will be made. Things happen too slowly," Gates
said in a speech to a group of junior officers.
"I share your frustration," he added.
Gates initiated an overhaul of the military's medical system after a
scandal last year at Walter Reed hospital in Washington where soldiers
were found living in a building infested with mice, mold and cockroaches
and many soldiers were unable to get treatment because of bureaucratic red
tape.
On Thursday, Gates turned his attention to a video presentation about
housing for returning troops at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, that was
posted on the Web site YouTube.com.
The 10-minute video shows soldiers who served for 15 months in Afghanistan
living in a barracks where sewage backed up into sinks, lead-based paint
peeled from overhead pipes and broken toilet seats were repaired with
cardboard and tape.
"Soldiers should never have to live in such squalor," said Gates, who said
he had reviewed the YouTube.com posting.
"It is the duty of every commander, indeed everyone responsible for our
men and women in uniform, to ensure that our troops have decent living
conditions."
The Army has launched an investigation into the conditions at the
barracks, officials said.
To enhance care for soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress
disorder, or PTSD, Gates announced that a security clearance form used
throughout the U.S. government would be changed to free troops from an
obligation to acknowledge combat-related mental-health care.
That change follows numerous studies that found troops suffering from
post-traumatic stress after tours in Iraq and Afghanistan believed their
security clearances, critical to their jobs, would be at risk if they
sought care.
Question 21, which Gates called "infamous," asks applicants whether they
have consulted a mental health professional in the past seven years. If
the answer is "Yes," they must list details.
"It now is clear to people who answer that question that they can answer
'No' if they have sought help to deal with their combat stress in general
terms," Gates said at a press conference.
The form, known as the Questionnaire for National Security Positions, is
used throughout the U.S. government, but the change initially affects only
troops and the Pentagon's civilian workforce.
RAND Corp estimated that 300,000 troops sent to Iraq and Afghanistan
suffer from symptoms of PTSD or depression. Military studies have seen
similar results. The Army in February said 17.9 percent of troops in Iraq
and Afghanistan experienced acute stress, depression or anxiety in 2007.
(Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
-------------------------
posted by Larry
Scott
Founder and Editor
VA Watchdog dot Org
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