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TAKING CARE OF THE VETS
by David E. Meadows , 2005

ARTICLE ORIGINALLY APPEARED AT MILITARY.COM, March 27, 2006

As of March 2006, we have over 17,000 wounded military members who earned purple hearts in Operation Iraqi Freedom. When you add the number of wounded from Afghanistan the number grows by 685. U.S. military dead in Iraq is 2,304. For Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan the dead number 282. We are approaching 3,000 war dead by the end of the year and over 21,000 combat wounded.

More American military members are surviving combat. For every American death in Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom, nearly 7 survive with combat wounds. And, nearly every one of those wounded will require access to medical care: many for the remainder of their lives.

In World War II we had slightly over 292,000 combat deaths with nearly 671,000 wounded - a ratio of approximately 2.3 wounded for every combat death. Vietnam saw American combat deaths at slightly over 47,000 with 353,000 combat wounded. That is a ratio of about 3.2 wounded to every combat death.

Today military members have increased chances for survival in combat. For the ground forces, this can be directly linked to body armor. These Kevlar vests are stopping shrapnel and bullets as they protect the torso. These vests are responsible for more wounded returning home from combat injuries in the history of U.S. wars.

These survivors return to a hero’s welcome by a grateful public. Many of them return with missing limbs, damaged bodies, and associated mental challenges. We veterans salute these brave men and women who have answered the call of the nation in this Global War on Terrorism. Unfortunately, we also know the real challenge facing the vast majority of the wounded will be medical.

The U.S. Army Walter Reed Hospital and the National Naval Medical Center at Bethesda are the last stop for many of them. These two facilities are the top ones in our nation for treating the vast majority of combat wounds.

With the increased number of wounded returning from the battlefields abroad it means an increase in cost of medical care for our nation. This medical care is the promise we Americans make our military members who go into harms way and who make the military a career.

So, what is our administration doing to ensure this medical care?

First, they’re closing Walter Reed. Walter Reed is on the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) list. It will close with some facility and medical personnel transferring to Bethesda. Bethesda will become the lone military hospital in the capitol region. If you’re a retiree or combat wounded veteran, you know access to medical care at Bethesda will drop once this happens.

The Department of Defense is urging TRICARE deductibles be raised for its 3-million plus retirees because the cost to provide lifetime medical care is too costly. It takes away from the budget money that could be used for sending military members into harms way so they can survive to come back to paying for their own medical care. The DoD fiscal year 2007 budget calls for TRICARE Standard to start paying a fee for enrollment. DoD wants increased charges for TRICARE for Life (They really need to change the name if this is approved). There is talk of reducing medical care for retirees who are under the age of 65. (Wow! Then Medicaid can take over.)

Back in 2003, the Veterans Administration estimated that over 23,000 veterans of Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom would need their services. In summer of 2005, this estimate was revised to over 100,000 - a projection the administration had been aware of since 2003.

The Veterans Administration fiscal year 2007 budget is also out. It asks Congress to approve a budget of nearly $81-billion for veterans benefits and services; $38.5 billion in discretionary funding and $42.1 billion for entitlements. This is an increase of 9.8% from the 2006 budget.

The budget submission also details charging veterans in Priority 7 and 8 classes $240 a year and increasing pharmacy co-payment from $7 to $15 per prescription for all veterans. The $240 a year charge is not a deductible but a yearly fee that every Priority 7 and 8 veteran would pay. The cost for prescription medicine would more than double. The cost of balancing veteran medical care is being put on the backs of veterans. For the most part, on backs of veterans who can barely afford the cost of transportation to the nearest VA facility. It will also impact those veterans of the future who will need medical care for the remainder of their lives returning home today from the battlefield.

So far Congress has given the DoD initiative a big thumbs down, but that's no guarantee they'll continue to do so.

There are over 25-million veterans living today. Vietnam veterans make up the largest share of that number. You only have to look at the challenges of the Vietnam veterans to see what awaits our sons and daughters of the battlefield in the coming battle for veteran medical care.

David E. Meadows / SixthFleet.Com David E. Meadows Washington D.C. E-Mail readermail@SixthFleet.Com