PBS Special on "Personality Disorder" Discharges

June 12, VCS Suggests Watching PBS Special About Military's Misuse of Personality Disorder Discharges for Wounded Iraq War Veterans
Veterans for Common Sense encourages you to watch a PBS News special on Friday, June 13. The show, "Now," is a collaboration between PBS reporter Maria Hinojosa and Nation magazine reporter Joshua Kors. They tell the story of Army Sergeant Chuck Luther, who was struck by mortar fire in Iraq, then jailed until he agreed to sign papers saying his wounds were pre-existing. Luther is an eloquent speaker with a powerful story. VCS hopes you'll tune in - and share this message with friends and family so they can see what's happening to so many of our soldiers.

Media used wrong headline on Rolling Thunder visit

Muller on Saturday said he planned to tell Bush that many veterans have been wrongly classified as having a personality disorder, when they should be getting higher compensation for post-traumatic stress disorder.

“We feel that this is just saving the government some money because there are over 28,000 troops that they’re not paying disability benefits for,” he said.

Rolling Thunder asks Bush to become a member

By Christine Simmons - The Associated Press
Posted : Tuesday May 27, 2008 6:51:19 EDT

WASHINGTON — Members of the Rolling Thunder motorcycling group roared into town for a White House visit Sunday, where they presented President Bush with his own cowhide vest jacket and pushed for increased veterans benefits.

“Mr. President, we’d like to make you an honorary member of Rolling Thunder,” said Artie Muller, the group’s executive director, to a delighted Bush, who shed his suit jacket to don the vest and pose for pictures.

“You’ve done a lot for the country, and the troops appreciate you, and the veterans appreciate you, and your president appreciates you,” Bush told the group.
go here for more
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/05/ap_rollingthunder_052508/

While the president of Rolling Thunder did ask Bust to become a member, this is not the headline that should have been used. It should have been the message Muller gave to address the discharges of the men and women who served this nation under personality disorder instead of PTSD. This was the most important aspect of what was said.

Has the media even bothered to ask about what happens to the troops who were misdiagnosed? Do they even care? Have they asked a single politician what the plans are for any of them? For the homes they lost, the rents they couldn't pay, the families that fell apart or the lives lost over any of this?

Military CO and PD

CO
Conscientious Objector
From Germany

Hidden Wars: US Troops in Germany
"The point now is how do we work together to achieve important goals. And one such goal is a democracy in Germany." George W. Bush, May 2006

There's an unexpected front in the Bush administration's "war on terror" - Germany. And the roughly 68,000 US troops stationed across the country often find themselves in the center of controversy over US foreign policy.Take Agustín Aguayo, a Mexican-American conscientious objector (CO) formerly based in Bavaria. Aguayo unsuccessfully applied for CO status before deploying in 2004, and citing non-violence, even refused to carry a loaded weapon during his year as a combat medic in Iraq.In late 2005, Aguayo appealed to a US Federal court on grounds that his CO status had been wrongfully denied, and after his bid was rejected, fled Germany rather than redeploy to Iraq in September 2006. Before surrendering to military authorities in California less than a month later, Aguayo held a press conference stating, "I have come to believe that it is wrong to destroy life, that it is wrong to use war, that it is immoral, and I can no longer go down that path."Aguayo was promptly sent back to Germany and thrown in the brig. His case became something of a national cause célèbre, with prominent German newspapers reporting his eventual court martial and conviction for desertion.

Other US troops in Germany seeking early discharge have been luckier, and many can thank the Bammental-based Military Counseling Network (MCN). In fact, all seven of the conscientious objector applicants the MCN supported through the application process in 2006 ended up receiving Honorable discharges.One was former US Army Specialist Kyle D. Huwer, who served for one and a half years before, as he puts it, "I finally came to my senses and realized that what I was doing was wrong."Another was former US Army Private Clifton F. Hicks, who served from the summer of 2003 to late 2005. Hicks says, "I joined to defend the people of the United States, and when I found our Army was not doing that, and that I was in fact being used to further the goals of evil men, I began to question my involvement in such an organization."For some troops in Germany, going AWOL (absent without leave) seems the only option, such as "John," who took a stateside leave earlier this year and never returned.Even John's family does not know where he is now, and it could be for the best. His parents are avid Bush-supporters; his uncle works for a weapons manufacturer and his stepfather, for an oil company.

The only person John has fleeting contact with is his girlfriend, "Sarah," doing her best to cope with his absence. Sarah had lived in Germany with John and is frustrated with life back in the US: "Watching the news here really makes me angry, people are so detached from reality. They increase the troop deployments from 12 to 15 months, and no one besides the military families recognizes it. They are sending back national guard people for multiple deployments, no one recognizes it. You hardly hear anything about what that puts on the families, emotionally and financially. I'm deeply mad and sad about that at the same time."Initially gung-ho about enlisting, John said second thoughts arose when he was repairing a phone hookup in Baghdad and spotted "Abu Ghraib" on a faulty fiberoptic cable. He felt part of something wrong: "I didn't directly have blood on my hands, but I was part of it."John granted an exclusive interview for this article, and spoke about becoming disenchanted with the military. Of his year in Baghdad: "It was not what I was expecting at all.

There are people in Iraq making HUGE sums of money profiting over poorly supervised and ill-run government contracts. When you hear about the cost of the war in Iraq, it's this kind of thing that's doing it, not the body armor, having to pay the soldiers a couple of meager extra bucks, or armoring the humvees. It's paying KBR $90 for every time I turn in my laundry while paying poor Pakistani and Filipino workers who work long hours with no days off for years at a time (and handling thousands of bags of laundry) $15 a day."John's unit returned to Germany in mid-2006, but he says, "We were treated like dirt still, and being late in the morning was a serious thing because they were afraid of people killing themselves overnight."After a few months out of Iraq, John felt "a tantalizing taste of freedom and what life should be like, not what life in the army is."

Rather than deploying to Afghanistan later this year, he approached the Military Counseling Network and decided to go AWOL.While MCN counsels US troops on a range of early discharge possibilities, case manager Tim Huber says that conscientious objection and hardship are currently the most prevalent choices: "These two discharges reflect an expansive array of problems with the military, including problems with the morality of the current war in Iraq, family issues, a dismissive attitude on the military's part towards post-traumatic stress disorder, and a general fed-upedness towards rotational deployments with no end in sight."

Huber and MCN Director Michael J. Sharp face a daunting workload. Since the beginning of this year, they have handled roughly ten new soldier cases every month - a 30% increase over the numbers averaged in 2006.Of course, the majority of US troops in Germany are not seeking early discharge. The military has become a way of life, and that can present challenges when they eventually return home and look for civilian work.That's where Sudie Nolan-Cassimatis comes in, a vibrant woman who teaches job-application skills to retiring service members.

As part of the Department of Labor's Transition Assistance Program, Nolan-Cassimatis travels across Germany to different military bases each week, coaching classes of 10-50 on the finer points of entering the US job market. Basics such as writing résumés and answering interview questions are covered in the course, but as Nolan-Cassimatis observes, "these things seem very straightforward to those of us who have never been in uniform, but don't seem at all straightforward to folks who have spent their careers in the military."She's clearly dedicated to her work: "Mostly, I am amazed and touched each week at the stories I hear from soldiers. Many of them have been deployed twice or more, even the soldiers who are only 22 years old, and they have a resilient spirit.

They've given up multiple years of their lives. Many of them have kids that they've been away from for years at a time. I think it's only fair that they get a shot at a job on the outside."Nolan-Cassimatis knows firsthand about having a loved one serving in a war zone. Her husband Dimitri is currently in Baghdad working as a Squadron Surgeon.Before deploying, Dimitri Cassimatis was a cardiologist at the sprawling Landstuhl Regional Medical Center (LRMC) in southwestern Germany.

It is the largest American hospital outside of the US and the first stop for medical and psychiatric evacuees out of Iraq and Afghanistan.C-17 cargo planes drop off the wounded day and night, and LRMC's staff of 2,200 can handle 1000 beds in an emergency. A typical day at LRMC sees nine new acute cases.On a recent visit to the facility, the Iraq war's toll on US troops was brutally evident. A 23-year-old soldier, physically shattered and facing blindness, was among many battling for life in the Intensive Care Unit. Couldn't even see the newly-earned purple heart pinned to his pillow.In the next ward, a fresh-faced young woman whose neck had been crushed during a bad fall. A 19-year-old nearby contemplating life with just one leg.

Relentless stories of IED (improvised explosive device) attacks and sniper assaults; youth putting a brave face on lives torn apart and innocence lost.The wounded at LRMC may be under the radar for most Germans, but debate continues over whether the US military presence there ultimately perpetuates the Bush administration's wars. Just last week, a group of Iraq veterans and German peace activists demonstrated outside Katterbach Army Airfield in Bavaria, trying to convince active-duty soldiers preparing for a 15-month deployment to reconsider. As Adam Kokesh, a 25-year-old member of Iraq Veterans Against the War (IVAW) told the Berliner Zeitung newspaper, "There is no military solution for Iraq. An army can only destroy."

Kokesh and other US veterans were also trying to raise awareness about the struggle of those in the Bavarian town of Ansbach working to resist the expansion of a US military base there.Advocates point out that Americans have lived peacefully in the country for decades, supporting the economy, contributing to communities and befriending locals. But as Lori Hurlebaus of Courage to Resist notes, "Even if the German military was not involved in the invasion of Iraq, there is a military conducting a war of aggression from German soil."Action ideas:
1. Read more about Agustín Aguayo's case (http://www.aguayodefense.org/) and check out the site's great links. Aguayo returned to California in May for a whirlwind speaking tour; invite him to speak in your city via the site.
2. Learn more about war resisters at Courage to Resist (http://www.couragetoresist.org/).
3. Read more about early discharge possibilities at the Military Counseling Network (http://www.getting-out.de/).
4. Check out Iraq Veterans Against the War (http://www.ivaw.org/) founded in 2004 "to give a voice to the large number of active duty service people and veterans who are against this war, but are under various pressures to remain silent." Adam Kokesh and another IVAW member, Liam Madden, are being harassed by the Marines for their antiwar activities. Learn more and take action at the IVAW site.
5. Visit Veterans for Commonsense (http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/), which aims "to raise the unique and powerful voices of veterans so that our military, veterans, freedom, and national security are protected and enhanced, for ourselves and for future generations." Note: Originally published: June 10, 2007
http://www.heatherwokusch.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=125

PD
Personality Disorder

Senators Request Discharge Reviews and a Halt to Personality Disorder Discharges
by: Ernie1812
Thu Dec 27, 2007 at 14:37:57 PM EST
With bipartisan support, Senators urge President Bush to establish a Special Discharge Review Program to address the appalling practice of discharging service members on the basis of a "pre-existing personality disorder," thereby prohibiting treatment by the VA for the condition, and for a temporary moratorium on the military's use of such discharges.
Senator Barbra Boxer (D-CA) remarked, "It belittles the sacrifice of our men and women in uniform when you punish-instead of treat-those with combat injuries. When our brave service members are injured in combat, we cannot deny them benefits, blame their conditions on a pre-existing disorder, or refuse them the care and support they deserve."
Republican Senator Kit Bond of Missouri commented, "It is critical that the government starts treating all of our troops' battle wounds - physical and mental, visible and invisible."

Joshua Kors posted the letter here: http://www.joshuakors.com/letter2.pdf
Senator Barbra Boxer posted a press release on the letter: http://boxer.senate.gov/news/releases/record.cfm?id=289875
However, according to a recent AFPS article ( http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=48489 )DOD still doesn't get what the big deal is. Accoding to Col. Joyce Adkins, director of psychological health and strategic operations, "'separation,' or discharge, on the basis of a personality disorder can benefit the discharged servicemember because it serves as a 'safety valve,' freeing the servicemember from further obligation to military service. 'If you have a job and you don't fit well with that job, you can quit,' she said. 'In the military, you can't just quit that easily. This is a way to say that this person doesn't fit well with this job and to allow them to pursue other employments.' "
Why all the fuss anyway, as the Col. put it "in large systems, like military health care, there are bound to be some issues with 'quality control.'"
...makes you feel all warm and fuzzy doesn't it.
Ernie1812 ::
Senators Request Discharge Reviews and a Halt to Personality Disorder Discharges
http://www.vetvoice.com/showDiary.do;jsessionid=14DB5C730E80369CB682C83BD1A31BB6?diaryId=299

This is what an appeal looks like and is about trying to get a correction from PO discharge into PTSD discharge.

Docket No. MD06-00905

7
DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY

NAVAL DISCHARGE REVIEW BOARD (NDRB)

DISCHARGE REVIEW

DECISIONAL DOCUMENT





FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY





ex-LCpl, USMC

Docket No. MD06-00905



Applicant's Request



The application for discharge review was received on 20060622. The
Applicant requests the Discharge Characterization of Service received at
the time of discharge be changed to honorable. The Applicant requests a
documentary record discharge review. The Applicant designated Disabled
American Veterans as the representative on the DD Form 293.



Decision



A documentary discharge review was conducted in Washington, D.C. on
20070419. After a thorough review of the records, supporting documents,
facts, and circumstances unique to this case, no impropriety or inequity
in the characterization of the Applicant's service was discovered by the
NDRB. The Board's vote was unanimous that the character of the
discharge shall not change. The discharge shall remain General (Under
Honorable Conditions) by reason of convenience of the government due to
a personality disorder.





PART I - ISSUES AND DOCUMENTATION



Decisional Issues



Equity: Applicant claims her discharge characterization should be
honorable because her medical records suggest her diagnoses should have
been PTSP/Major Depression and not Personality Disorder.



Documentation



In addition to the service record, the following additional
documentation, submitted by the Applicant, was considered:



Applicant's DD Form 214 (Member 4)

Letter from R_ L. C_, Jr., dtd May 2, 2006

Department of Veterans Affair Benefits Claim Letter, dtd
November 16, 2004 (6 pgs)

Department of Veterans Affair Benefits Decision Letter, dtd October 21,
2004, (13 pgs)



PART II - SUMMARY OF SERVICE



Prior Service (component, dates of service, type of discharge):



Inactive: USMCR (DEP) 20000622 - 20010107 COG

Active: None



Period of Service Under Review:



Date of Enlistment: 20010108 Date of Discharge: 20030218



Length of Service (years, months, days):



Active: 02 01 11

Inactive: None



Time Lost During This Period (days):



Unauthorized absence: None

Confinement: None



Age at Entry: 18



Years Contracted: 5



Education Level: 12 AFQT: 73



Highest Rank: LCpl MOS: 6317



Final Enlisted Performance Evaluation Averages (number of marks):



Proficiency: NA* Conduct: NA*



Decorations, Medals, Badges, Citations, and Campaign Ribbons Awarded or
Authorized, (as stated on the DD Form 214): National Defense Service
Medal, Rifle Marksman Marksmanship Badge



*Not Available





Character, Narrative Reason, and Authority of Discharge (at time of
issuance):



GENERAL (UNDER HONORABLE CONDITIONS)/PERSONALITY DISORDER, authority:
MARCORSEPMAN Par. 6203.3.



Chronological Listing of Significant Service Events:



010909: Counseling: Advised of deficiencies in performance and conduct
(Violation of Article 86, unauthorized absence on 010914 (0715-0750)
from your appointed place of duty.), necessary corrective actions
explained, sources of assistance provided, disciplinary and discharge
warning issued.



020206: Counseling: Advised of deficiencies in performance and conduct
(Failure to satisfactorily past the PFT.), necessary corrective actions
explained, sources of assistance provided, disciplinary and discharge
warning issued.



020213: Counseling: Advised of deficiencies in performance and conduct
(Violation of Article 86, unauthorized absence on 020208 (0610-0630 and
020208 0900-0915) from your appointed place of duty.), necessary
corrective actions explained, sources of assistance provided,
disciplinary and discharge warning issued.



021122: Counseling: Advised of deficiencies in performance and conduct
(Diagnosis of Personality Disorder.), necessary corrective actions
explained, sources of assistance provided, disciplinary and discharge
warning issued.



021125: Medical evaluation by G_ W. N_, CDR MC USN, Head Mental Health:

This is at least the fifth psychiatric evaluation who's psychiatric
history is extensively documented in her medical record. She was seen
on 021122 in the Mental Health Clinic at Naval Hospital Beaufort due to
her complaints of depression and for an evaluation for suitability for
duty.

Diagnoses:

Axis I: Major Depression, Single Episode, Moderate, DSM IV 296.22

Axis II: Borderline Personality Disorder, DSM-IV 301.83

Findings and Recommendations:

LCpl E_ suffers from a longstanding disorder of character and behavior
that is of such severity as to interfere with her ability to function
effectively in the military environment. She lacks insight into the
severity of her condition and is not motivated to alter her behavior.
Because of this lack of insight it is unlikely that she will respond to
therapeutic interventions and her maladaptive behavior is likely to
persist. While not imminently suicidal, she is an ongoing risk for harm
to self and others it is recommended that the 6105 entry be waived and
she be administratively separated from the Marine Corps per MARCORSEPMAN
6203.3 by reason of unsuitability.



021227: Substance Abuse Counseling Center : SNM was
evaluated and does not meet criteria for Alcohol Abuse or Dependence.
SACC recommends SNM attend the next Early Intervention class if
available prior to separation.



030109: Applicant notified of intended recommendation for discharge as
general (under honorable conditions) by reason of Convenience of the
Government due to a Personality Disorder. The factual basis for this
recommendation was a mental health professional, diagnosed as having a
personality disorder. Applicant informed the least favorable character
of service possible was as general (under honorable conditions).



030109: Applicant advised of rights and having elected not to consult
with counsel, elected to waive all rights except the right to obtain
copies of the documents used to support the basis for the separation.



030109: Commanding Officer recommended Applicant's discharge with a
general (under honorable conditions) by reason of Convenience of the
Government due to a Personality Disorder.



030204: SJA review determined the case sufficient in law and fact.



030204: GCMCA, Commanding General, 2d Marine Aircraft Wing directed the
Applicant's discharge with a general (under honorable conditions) by
reason of Convenience of the Government due to a Personality Disorder.



Service Record was missing elements of the Summary of Service.



PART III - RATIONALE FOR DECISION AND PERTINENT REGULATION/LAW



Discussion



The Applicant was discharged on 20030218 by reason of convenience of the
government due to a personality disorder (A) with a service
characterization of general (under honorable conditions). After a
thorough review of the records, supporting documents, facts, and
circumstances unique to this case, the Board found that the discharge
was proper and equitable (B and C).



The Applicant claims her discharge characterization should be honorable
because her medical records suggest her diagnoses should have been
PTSP/Major Depression and not Personality Disorder. The Applicant was
diagnosed with "Borderline Personality Disorder with Major Depressive
Disorder features" by competent medical authority at the Mental Health
Clinic, Naval Hospital, Beaufort, SC, and was recommended for
administrative separation from the Marine Corps by reason of
unsuitability. Thus, the Board finds that the Reason for Discharge
reflects the Applicant's mental health status at the time of her
discharge, and was proper and equitable at the time of issuance.
"Personality Disorder" is an accurate narrative description of the
reason for the Applicant's discharge. Relief is not warranted.



The documentation and statements provided by the Applicant were not
sufficient to overturn the presumption that the Applicant was properly
diagnosed with a personality disorder. The Applicant was diagnosed with
a personality disorder by a competent medical authority on 20021125.
The evidence reviewed did not persuade the Board that this diagnosis and
subsequent administrative separation were improper or inequitable.
Relief denied.



The Applicant remains eligible for a personal appearance hearing,
provided an application is received, at the NDRB, within 15 years from
the date of discharge. The Applicant can provide documentation to
support any claims of post-service accomplishments or any additional
evidence related to this discharge. Representation at a personal
appearance hearing is recommended but not required.



Pertinent Regulation/Law (at time of discharge)



A. Paragraph 6203, CONVENIENCE OF THE GOVERNMENT, of the Marine Corps
Separation and Retirement Manual, (MCO P1900.16F), effective 02 Sep 01
until Present.



B. Secretary of the Navy Instruction 5420.174D of 22 December 2004,
Naval Discharge Review Board (NDRB) Procedures and Standards, Part V,
Para 502, Propriety.



C. Secretary of the Navy Instruction 5420.174D of 22 December 2004,
Naval Discharge Review Board (NDRB) Procedures and Standards, Part V,
Para 503, Equity.



PART IV - INFORMATION FOR THE APPLICANT





If you believe that the decision in your case is unclear, not responsive
to the issues you raised, or does not otherwise comport with the
decisional document requirements of DoD Instruction 1332.28, you may
submit a complaint in accordance with Enclosure (5) of that Instruction.
You should read Enclosure (5) of the Instruction before submitting such
a complaint. The complaint procedure does not permit a challenge of the
merits of the decision; it is designed solely to ensure that the
decisional documents meet applicable requirements for clarity and
responsiveness. You may view DoD Instruction 1332.28 and other
Decisional Documents by going online at ``http://Boards.law.af.mil.''



The names, and votes of the members of the Board are recorded on the
original of this document and may be obtained from the service records
by writing to:



Secretary of the Navy Council of Review Boards

Attn: Naval Discharge Review Board

720 Kennon Street SE Rm 309

Washington Navy Yard DC 20374-5023



http://boards.law.af.mil/cgi-bin/quickview.cgi?filename=NAVY/DRB/Marine%202006//MD0600905.rtf
You can find appeals on line in just about every case.

The point of posting this is because we still do not know how many were discharged under PD or if they were ever evaluated again to see if they were given the wrong diagnosis, were able to receive compensation and treatment, find jobs, lost their homes or their families, or committed suicide. When it comes to CO, we hear about stories that unfold here, and some stories about them going to Canada, but we have not heard of the stories about them in Germany. CO and PD need to come out of the closet just as PTSD is finally becoming something we do talk about.

DOD claims 85% of discharges for personality disorder were right?

Military Works to Improve Personality Disorder-Based Discharge Process
By John J. Kruzel
American Forces Press Service


WASHINGTON, Dec. 20, 2007 – The military is working to improve the way it implements a policy of discharging troops based on pre-existing personality disorders, Defense Department health officials said today.

Several articles in summer 2007 claimed that some 22,500 troops had been discharged -- in some instances, wrongly discharged -- after being diagnosed as having personality disorders. In response, the Defense Department launched a “secondary review.”

In the ongoing investigation thus far, officials have reconfirmed that 85 percent of servicemembers initially determined to have personality disorders were correctly diagnosed. Roughly 1.5 percent, however, were misdiagnosed, officials said.

“We have looked at most of them, and some, on review, have been incorrect diagnoses,” Dr. S. Ward Casscells, assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, told reporters at the Pentagon today.

Casscells denied the most inflammatory claim made in the articles: that the military was shirking its responsibility to those affected. “When the articles first came out, the tenor was, ‘Military is labeling people (with) personality disorders so they don’t have to pay benefits,’” he said. “We did not find any evidence of that.”

Echoing Casscells’ comments, Air Force Col. Joyce Adkins, director of psychological health and strategic operations, defended the policy, but acknowledged possible flaws in implementation.

Adkins clarified that a personality disorder does not necessarily bar an individual from serving in the armed forces. “Certainly there are many people who have personality traits that we would characterize as a disorder who have stayed in the military,” she said. “It’s only when their personality doesn’t fit well with the job that they are separated.”

Moreover, Adkins said a “separation,” or discharge, on the basis of a personality disorder can benefit the discharged servicemember because it serves as a “safety valve,” freeing the servicemember from further obligation to military service.

“If you have a job and you don’t fit well with that job, you can quit,” she said. “In the military, you can’t just quit that easily. This is a way to say that this person doesn’t fit well with this job and to allow them to pursue other employments.”

Adkins added that the “large majority” of such discharges occur within the first two years of military service.
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=48489
Linked from VAWatchdog.org
Then this would mean they let in people with personality disorders and all their pre-enlistment test are not worth crap. It would mean that they have a lot of soldiers running around with mental disorders. Wouldn't it? So what do you think the DOD should really be releasing in these case? That they are wrong 85% of the time, or they were right and their test make sure those who enlist are in fact fully capable of carrying out their orders? We're talking about 25,000 veterans here. Somehow I doubt they all took the test and bluffed their way through them. I really doubt they were rightfully dishonorably discharged. If they are trying to save money by admitting combat causes trauma and some develop PTSD, then they not only lost their reputation for taking the best and the brightest, they also dishonored the military as a whole by trying to pull a stunt like this. kc

Less Than Honorable When Military Turns Against PTSD

All Things Considered, December 20, 2007 ·
"Our military families deserve better," President Bush declared in October as he sent a proposed bill to Congress. The legislation, he said, would make it easier for our troops to receive care for PTSD, "and it will help affected service members to move forward with their lives."
But veterans advocates say that even if the military and the Department of Veterans Affairs became models for helping troops with mental health problems, it wouldn't help a large category of vets who are already wounded and forgotten. These soldiers and Marines came back from combat, couldn't get adequate help, "flipped out" and misbehaved in some way — and as a result, were kicked out of the military without all the financial and medical benefits that veterans usually receive.
"I think it's an outrage that we have not taken proper care of them," said Sen. Christopher "Kit" Bond (R-MO), one of the most influential voices on veterans' affairs. "Too many of these people have been kicked out because of the results of the stress they've been under."
'Head and Shoulders Above His Peers'
NPR has tracked down dozens of vets across the U.S. to put a face on the problem.
Until he got PTSD, Patrick Uloth was a poster boy for the Marines in Iraq. He enlisted right out of high school, fought two tours and quickly was promoted to lance corporal. His commander hailed him as "head and shoulders above his peers." He received an award for valor, for helping save his unit one night near Fallujah.
But, like just about every Marine and soldier who has fought in Iraq, Uloth saw violence and death in ways that most people can barely imagine. During one patrol, for instance, a suicide bomber's vehicle exploded in front of Uloth's convoy.
Uloth said that the explosion left one of his Marine buddies decapitated. He remembers that he and two other Marines "scooped the Marine into bags, because he was in pieces." When Uloth rushed to another victim, he realized it was one of his best friends. "There was a large hole in the back of his head," Uloth says.

go here for the rest

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=17362654







Uloth says that if he had benefits, he'd check himself into a psychiatric hospital because, although he can seem charming and cheerful on the surface, he says he is in deep emotional trouble.


Uloth's Superior Speaks
Letter from Uloth's Platoon Sergeant

(Requires Adobe Acrobat)

Uloth says that when he went to the mental health center at Camp Pendleton's hospital to ask for help, they were so overwhelmed by returning troops with mental health problems that he couldn't book a therapy appointment for months. The staff eventually gave him sporadic counseling, and prescribed a cocktail of powerful medications, but Uloth complained that the drugs made him feel worse.

So, he took off from Camp Pendleton without permission: Uloth went AWOL, as it's commonly called. (The Marines call it UA for "unauthorized absence.")

But he didn't disappear. Instead, Uloth checked himself into a psychiatric center he had heard about at an Air Force base in Mississippi. He started getting intensive therapy, which he couldn't get at his own base.

When Uloth's commanders learned where he was, they sent two guards to arrest and restrain him with handcuffs and metal shackles. They locked him in a jail cell at Camp Pendleton for almost two months, even though a military medical staff member concluded that he was "unfit for confinement."

Listen: Matt McLauchlen explains to NPR's Daniel Zwerdling how
he has "fallen through the cracks" of the military system.

add



Read Letter to President Bush
Letter: Sen. Bond Calls for Special Discharge Review Program
(Requires Adobe Acrobat)

How many more reports do we have to read to understand these men and women risked their lives for us, were wounded in the process, and then they were betrayed by less than honorable treatment of them? When are we going to get this right for all of them? Are we even really trying? I've heard testimonies for years about PTSD and the way the veterans have been treated and I've heard a lot of promises to change what is wrong but have seen very little evidence of it.

Is anyone in Washington giving these veterans the same sense of urgency they did when they issued the orders to deploy them and get them there? It seems only logical and honorable to take care of them when they are wounded. So what's the problem? It can't be money because in the long run taking care of them now saves a lot of money. Is it still ignorance? After years of testimonies by experts and over 30 years of studies, there isn't that much more they have to know before they figure out they have a serious problem. How many more times do they have to hear the figures of the ever growing number of veterans with PTSD not being taken care of, committing suicide because they are not being taken care of or about the numbers of the wounded being kicked out of the military with dishonorable discharges? Seems like we have a bigger problem with the congress being less than honorable to them than the other way around.

Homeless veterans in this country need help now!

Homeless Vets Need Assistance
by Ralph Stone‚ Dec. 05‚ 2007

"Support our troops." How often have we heard this Bush administration mantra whenever Congress or the public demands Iraq funding accountability or an Iraq withdrawal timeline? Yet, once the troops become veterans, too often they are woefully neglected. In a 2006 survey, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) estimates that 26% of homeless people are veterans. VA further estimates that at least 195,827 veterans are homeless in the United States, a conservative estimate, 49,724 in California, and 3,000 in San Francisco, with 1,356 of these 3,000 classified as "chronically homeless." The VA defines "chronically homeless" as an individual with a disabling condition who has been continually homeless for a year or more or has had four or more episodes of homelessness over the past three years.
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Hannity needs to pay attention to PTSD, his crew is

Soldier Discharges

By SFC(R)L 31 for problems they said resulted not from post-traumatic stress disorder but rather from a personality disorder that pre-dated his military service. Schmidt's mother, Patrice Semtner-Myers, says her son was told that if he agreed to ...

Sean Hannity Discussion - http://forums.hannity.com

I admit I don't listen to Hannity on the radio anymore and I don't watch FOX but since I get most of what is on the net about PTSD and have never seen anything from Hannity or even indicating he has been paying attention to this at all, forgive me if I missed it.

I am so relieved to see that so many care about the way our troops and veterans are being treated on both sides. This is wonderful! There are very few in this country denying this is happening now. Maybe on this we can all come together and take a stand for our troops in a way that will really matter to their lives and their families. After all, both sides claim they are not against the troops. Now is the chance for both sides to prove it!

Donald Schmidt Combat Wounded by PTSD, Discharged and Denied

Veterans are denied mental health help
By Philip Dine
POST-DISPATCH WASHINGTON BUREAU
10/21/2007

WASHINGTON — After two combat tours in Iraq on a "quick reaction team" that picked up body parts after suicide bombings, Donald Schmidt began suffering from nightmares and paranoia. Then he had a nervous breakdown.

The military discharged Schmidt last Oct. 31 for problems they said resulted not from post-traumatic stress disorder but rather from a personality disorder that pre-dated his military service.

Schmidt's mother, Patrice Semtner-Myers, says her son was told that if he agreed to leave the Army he'd get full benefits. Earlier this month, however, they got a bill in the mail from a collection agency working for the government, demanding that he repay his re-enlistment bonus, plus interest — $14,597.72.

Schmidt, 23, who lives near Peoria, Ill., is one of more than 22,000 service members the military has discharged in recent years for "pre-existing personality disorders" it says were missed when they signed up.

"They used these guys up, and now they're done with them and they're throwing them away," Semtner-Myers said.

Her frustration extends to Capitol Hill, where the stage is being set for a confrontation between Congress and the Pentagon.

Rep. Bob Filner, D-Calif., chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, calls the treatment of these troops "disgraceful."

"If they have personality disorders, how did they get in the military in the first place?" Filner asks. "You either have taken a kid below the standards, in which case you've got obligations after you send him to war, or you're putting these kids' futures in danger with false diagnoses. Either way it's criminal."
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This is not supporting the troops and is not taking care of the wounded. It is treating them as if they would have been better off not joining at all. If they get hurt on the job with private companies, they get workman's comp. If they get hurt in service to this country, they get treated like this! It is disgraceful and should be criminal considering private companies cannot get away with this.

DOD still using Personality Disorder to discharge their duty to wounded

Nation
Military Bars Soldiers with 'Personality Disorders'

Day to Day, October 16, 2007 · Thousands of military personnel have been dismissed for "personality disorders" since the war in Iraq began.

The military says the soldiers had pre-existing mental conditions that it is not responsible for treating. But soldiers, their families and veterans' groups counter that the mental condition is post-traumatic stress disorder caused by their experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Daniel Zwerdling says if a soldier's medical unit diagnoses him with PTSD, the treatment could last months and make the military liable for the soldier's disability benefits. But if the soldier is diagnosed with a personality disorder — a condition that predates his military service — then the treatment would only last a couple weeks and the military would not be liable for the disability benefits.

Zwerdling says he found no evidence of a military psychiatrist diagnosing a soldier with a personality disorder in order to avoid the extended treatment and costs. However, he did hear that the personality disorder diagnosis has been used to discharge problem soldiers quickly.
William Wooldridge, who was an Army specialist in Iraq, says he was dismissed from the service for having a personality disorder.

During his second enlistment, Wooldridge says he underwent a stressful deployment to Iraq and had a breakdown. When he returned to the U.S., he was evaluated by an Army psychiatrist and received a discharge for having a personality disorder.

Wooldridge fought the diagnosis and eventually got it changed to PTSD.

Zwerdling says the military also needs to figure out how it will deal with the tens of thousands of soldiers and Maries who are returning home with serious mental health problems that interfere with their daily lives.

Currently, he says, the military has a terrible system for dealing with mental health problems and it is not doing much to make the system better.

Zwerdling and Wooldridge talk to Alex Chadwick about the issue.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=15323415

Pentagon turns veterans into the enemy they love to screw

10/5/07, 1:28 am EST
PFSD: Pentagon F*cks-over Soldiers Disorder
Two items today should make all of us call our congressmen.
First is this news from the St. Louis Dispatch, that the Pentagon has been discharging tens of thousands of combat troops on the pretense that the mental health problems they’ve developed after serving in Iraq aren’t PTSD — but rather pre-existing “personality disorders.”

The pre-existing part is the kicker — because it means that the Pentagon, acting like your least favorite HMO, won’t pick up the cost of the medical care of these troops after it discharges them.

“They’ve kicked out about 22,000 troops who they say have pre-existing personality disorders. I don’t believe that,” Missouri Sen. Kit Bond told the newspaper. “And when you kick them out, they don’t get the assistance they need, they aren’t entitled to DOD or Veterans Administration care for those problems.”

Bond and Obama have introduced a bill to attempt to remedy this outrage.

Number two is almost as aggravating:
Turns out the Army is nickel and diming National Guardsmen returning from 22 months in Iraq. More than 1,100 of these troops should be eligible for full educational benefits under the G.I. bill. But the clever bean counters at the Pentagon deployed them for only 729 days… exactly one day short of the 730 days needed to guarantee thousands of dollars a year for college.
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10 discharges a day for "personality disorder"

Many soldiers get boot for 'pre-existing' mental illness
St. Louis Post-Dispatch September 29, 2007
By Philip Dine

WASHINGTON -- Thousands of U.S. soldiers in Iraq - as many as 10 a day - are being discharged by the military for mental health reasons. But the Pentagon isn't blaming the war. It says the soldiers had "pre-existing" conditions that disqualify them for treatment by the government.

Many soldiers and Marines being discharged on this basis actually suffer from combat-related problems, experts say. But by classifying them as having a condition unrelated to the war, the Defense Department is able to quickly get rid of troops having trouble doing their work while also saving the expense of caring for them.

The result appears to be that many actually suffering from combat-relatedproblems such as post-traumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain injuries don't get the help they need.

Working behind the scenes, Sens. Christopher "Kit" Bond, R-Mo., and Barack Obama, D-Ill., have written and inserted into the defense authorization bill a provision that would make it harder for the Pentagon to discharge thousands of troops. The Post-Dispatch has learned that the measure has been accepted into the Senate defense bill and will probably become part of the Senate-House bill to be voted on this week.

read more here

Department of Defense to Armed Forces:It's your fault

Treating the trauma of war – fairly
In relabeling cases of PTSD as 'personality disorder,' the US military avoids paying for treatment.
By Judith Schwartz
from the August 20, 2007 edition

Bennington, Vt. - The high incidence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among soldiers returning from Iraq is one of the many "inconvenient truths" of this war. Inconvenient largely because it is costly: The most effective and humane means of treating PTSD are time-intensive and long-term.

The military, however, has changed the terms and given many thousands of enlisted men and women a new diagnosis: "personality disorder." While the government would be obliged to care for veterans suffering from combat-related trauma, a personality disorder – defined as an ingrained, maladaptive way of orienting oneself to the world – predates a soldier's tour of duty (read: preexisting condition). This absolves Uncle Sam of any responsibility for the person's mental suffering.

The new diagnostic label sends the message: This suffering is your fault, not a result of the war. On one level, it's hard not to see this as another example of the government falling short on its care for Iraq war veterans. Yet there's another, more insidious, bit of sophistry at work. The implication is that a healthy person would be resistant to the psychological pressures of war. Someone who succumbs to the flashbacks, panic, and anger that haunt many former soldiers must have something inherently wrong with him. It's the psychological side of warrior macho: If you're tough, you can take it. Of course, we know this is not true. Wars forever change the lives of those who fight them and can leave deep scars.

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Iraq War soldier accuses U.S. Army of deception

Smith’s not alone. The Department of Defense reported in the last six years, 5,600 soldiers were discharged due to “personality disorders.”
Iraq War soldier accuses U.S. Army of deception
A Tehachapi soldier said he was cheated by the United States Army when his benefits and enlistment bonus was taken away after he was honorably discharged.
PFC Richard Smith said this military disgrace is unfair, and lawmakers could soon make a change.

Smith said a misdiagnosis sent him home from the Iraq War.

“There are so many people that are coming home and this is happening to them,” Smith said. “It’s just not right.”

He said like many soldiers, he was suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), but the U.S. Army discharged him due to a pre-existing “personality disorder.”

“It follows me around forever,” said Smith. “It’s on my record. My future employers will see it. It says right there, ‘Honorably discharged for personality disorder.’”

Smith is forced to pay back his signing bonus and may lose his military benefits, as well.

“They charged me $7,000.48, and they are doing an interest on it until I pay it back,” he said.

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Watch video here

http://www.kget.com/mediacenter/local.aspx?videoId=19778

What a difference a year makes at Fort Carson

Aug 14, 2007 5:25 pm US/Mountain

Ft. Carson Wounded Warrior Unit Helps Vets Recover
By Robert Weller, AP Writer

(AP) FORT CARSON, Colo. Spc. Crystal Witte feels guilt, can barely hear and has minor brain damage. All qualify the medic to be a member of one of the Army's newly created wounded warrior units.

Witte, 22, says the treatment she has received since joining the unit of about 100 soldiers at Fort Carson has helped her. "The medical care here has been excellent," said Witte, wounded last year in a rocket explosion in Ramadi, Iraq.

Col. Kelly Wolgast, commander of Fort Carson's Evans Community Hospital, says the unit's primary mission is to heal, so soldiers can return to service or function in civilian society as quickly as possible.

It will have a high ratio of caregivers to soldiers, among them people with "an acute awareness" of psychiatric injuries, including civilian doctors. There is no time limit on how long soldiers are in the unit.

"This is for soldiers who need a little extra time in their recovery," Wolgast said.

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Last year, Fort Carson was not just ignoring PTSD, but discharging anyone saying they had it under "personality disorder" and this year, they are trying to make up for the lost time. This is wonderful for those presenting with symptoms of PTSD so they can have their wounds treated early on. Early treatment stops it from getting worse and the recovery odds are a great deal better.

What does this do for those already discharged falsely under "personality disorder" and still in need for treatment? They are living without anything to help them. With this kind of a discharge, they get absolutely nothing along with this on their records for the rest of their lives. So what is being done to correct the damage done to them? What steps are being taken to correct this outrageous injustice done to them?

Kathie Costos

Namguardianangel@aol.com

www.Namguardianangel.org