Hotline to Help Homeless Veterans Falls Short
Inspector General Says A Quarter of Calls Go to Answering Machine
Wall Street Journal
By BEN KESLING
Dec. 4, 2014
A Department of Veterans Affairs hotline established to help homeless veterans missed thousands of opportunities to help at-risk vets last year, the agency’s inspector general said.
The VA’s National Call Center for Homeless Veterans, launched in mid-2012, didn’t consistently ensure that veterans who called the hotline received access to support services, according to findings released Wednesday.
“This is a huge national problem, our veterans deserve to have the phone answered when they call for help,” Rep. Jackie Walorski (R., Ind.), a member of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, said in an interview Thursday.
Ms. Walorski said this isn’t a one-off issue at the VA, but shows the depth of problems that face VA Secretary Robert McDonald , who has been at the helm since the end of July. “I think it’s symptomatic and we have a long way to go,” Ms. Walorski said.
Of the nearly 80,000 calls made to the hotline in fiscal-year 2013, more than 21,000 went to an answering machine because counselors weren’t available, and 13,000 calls weren’t returned because messages were inaudible or callers didn’t leave contact information, the inspector general said. And none of the more than 50,000 referrals made by the call center were monitored or followed up for quality control.
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Friday, December 5, 2014
After Fort Hood Massacre Soldiers May Finally Get Justice
House Passes Fort Hood Purple Heart Legislation
Senate expected to pass bill, pass to President Obama
NBC 5 News
December 4, 2014
Congressman Roger Williams (R-TX25) and Congressman John Carter (R-TX31) released a statement Thursday saying the House was sending legislation to the Senate that will make victims of the 2009 shooting at Fort Hood eligible for the Purple Heart.
According to the statement, the Senate is supportive of the House legislation and is expected to pass the bill next week and send it on to President Barack Obama.
The language providing those injured in the massacre Purple Heart status was included in the FY15 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) conference agreement.
The NDAA adjusts the Purple Heart criteria so that service members and civilians who experience an attack inspired by terrorism, receive the appropriate awards and recognition, the statement said. The language awards the Purple Heart to service members who are victims of an attack that was inspired or motivated by a U.S. State Department-designated foreign terrorist organization.
read more here
We face it all with a blend of bitterness and hope for justice. Hope that the American public will care enough when they know what has been going on to actually do something instead of settling for anything as if it is better than nothing.
Senate expected to pass bill, pass to President Obama
NBC 5 News
December 4, 2014
Congressman Roger Williams (R-TX25) and Congressman John Carter (R-TX31) released a statement Thursday saying the House was sending legislation to the Senate that will make victims of the 2009 shooting at Fort Hood eligible for the Purple Heart.
According to the statement, the Senate is supportive of the House legislation and is expected to pass the bill next week and send it on to President Barack Obama.
The language providing those injured in the massacre Purple Heart status was included in the FY15 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) conference agreement.
The NDAA adjusts the Purple Heart criteria so that service members and civilians who experience an attack inspired by terrorism, receive the appropriate awards and recognition, the statement said. The language awards the Purple Heart to service members who are victims of an attack that was inspired or motivated by a U.S. State Department-designated foreign terrorist organization.
read more here
We face it all with a blend of bitterness and hope for justice. Hope that the American public will care enough when they know what has been going on to actually do something instead of settling for anything as if it is better than nothing.
Denton native Zackary Filip, who was named 2010 Soldier of the Year by Army Times, said he was harassed and belittled when he sought help with his post-traumatic stress disorder at the Fort Hood Warrior Transition Unit.
(Vernon Bryant/Staff Photographer)
Maine Sheriff Tries to Prevent Veterans From Serving Jail Time for PTSD
Oakland Army veteran’s nightmare began with sexual abuse in the military
Roxane Montgomery is trying to get her life together with help from local police, including Kennebec County Sheriff Randy Liberty.
Central Maine
BY AMY CALDER STAFF WRITER
December 4, 2014
The pain runs deep for Army veteran Roxane Marie Montgomery.
The Oakland woman has been out of the military 19 years, but the trauma from being raped by two soldiers remains.
“I’m working at it,” she said. “It’s hard.”
Montgomery, 47, now lives day to day, plagued by an acute alcohol problem that she says was precipitated by the sexual trauma she experienced while serving in the armed forces.
She has been arrested many times for alcohol-related incidents, including driving under the influence, violating conditions of release and misuse of 911. She has been in and out of rehabilitation, sees a psychiatrist regularly and gets support from VA Healthcare Systems-Togus.
So far, nothing has worked. She does well for a while, then falls off the wagon.
Everyone who has been trying to help her — officials from the Oakland Police Department, the Kennebec County Sheriff’s Office and the district attorney’s office — say she is intelligent, accomplished, personable and has great potential, but she can’t seem to move past her demons.
Roxane Montgomery is trying to get her life together with help from local police, including Kennebec County Sheriff Randy Liberty.
Central Maine
BY AMY CALDER STAFF WRITER
December 4, 2014
Speaking at her parents’ home in Oakland recently, Army veteran Roxane Marie Montgomery speaks about being raped by two fellow servicemen while serving in the Persian Gulf War. She says that attack and the military’s response led to a downward spiral that involves alcohol addiction and arrests.
Staff photo by David Leaming
The pain runs deep for Army veteran Roxane Marie Montgomery.
The Oakland woman has been out of the military 19 years, but the trauma from being raped by two soldiers remains.
“I’m working at it,” she said. “It’s hard.”
Montgomery, 47, now lives day to day, plagued by an acute alcohol problem that she says was precipitated by the sexual trauma she experienced while serving in the armed forces.
She has been arrested many times for alcohol-related incidents, including driving under the influence, violating conditions of release and misuse of 911. She has been in and out of rehabilitation, sees a psychiatrist regularly and gets support from VA Healthcare Systems-Togus.
So far, nothing has worked. She does well for a while, then falls off the wagon.
Everyone who has been trying to help her — officials from the Oakland Police Department, the Kennebec County Sheriff’s Office and the district attorney’s office — say she is intelligent, accomplished, personable and has great potential, but she can’t seem to move past her demons.
FRIENDS WHO COUNT
Kennebec County Sheriff Randall Liberty, who at the Kennebec County jail opened the only veterans block in a Maine jail, knows Montgomery and her situation well. He suffered military-related post traumatic stress disorder himself and was the focus of “A Matter of Duty,” an MPBN television documentary about post-traumatic stress disorder that also featured Montgomery.
Liberty said many veterans suffering from PTSD self-medicate with alcohol or opiates, have problems with anger management, become disorderly, get involved in domestic violence and commit burglaries and robberies.
Liberty and others who try to work with veterans — including courts, police, crisis workers and others — have a heightened awareness of their problems, share information and try to find alternatives when one approach does not work.
About 140,000 veterans were incarcerated in state and federal prisons as of 2004, the last year for which data was available in a 2012 report, “Healing a Broken System,” by the New York-based Drug Policy Alliance. The report said a national survey of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans found that 9 percent of respondents reported being arrested since returning from service, with the arrests more strongly linked to substance abuse and mental health conditions such as PTSD.
read more here
Staff Sgt. Matthew R. Ammerman Killed in Afghanistan
Release No: NR-606-14
December 04, 2014
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
Staff Sgt. Matthew R. Ammerman, 29, of Noblesville, Indiana, died Dec. 3, in Zabul Province, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered from small arms fire while conducting a clearing operation.
He was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group, Eglin Air Force Base, Florida.
Thursday, December 4, 2014
Why I cannot support the latest "effort" to prevent suicides tied to military service
There is not a day that goes by when I do not hear about veterans complaining about what they are not getting at the same time reporters continue to simply push the message of what the DOD and the VA "are doing."
While it would be easier for me to just jump on the growing number of bloggers heals, I'd rather be able to sleep at night. The simple fact is none of the bills coming out of congress did what they were supposed to do. Suicides tied to military life went up after they decided to spend billions a year on what doesn't work.
We've seen the line of members of congress make grand speeches, pretending they have the answers when they apparently don't even understand the questions. We've also seen the line of veterans taking their own lives, facing off with police officers, crashing vehicles and ending up homeless. We see the destruction instead of healing and that is a pitiful place to be watching all of this from.
The outside world can cheer all they want about the latest bill needing to be passed but the rest of us are paying the price for how easily accepted as better than nothing these bills actually turn out to be.
So here is the bottom line and why we have been seeing the wrong results from all they have done thus far.
While it would be easier for me to just jump on the growing number of bloggers heals, I'd rather be able to sleep at night. The simple fact is none of the bills coming out of congress did what they were supposed to do. Suicides tied to military life went up after they decided to spend billions a year on what doesn't work.
We've seen the line of members of congress make grand speeches, pretending they have the answers when they apparently don't even understand the questions. We've also seen the line of veterans taking their own lives, facing off with police officers, crashing vehicles and ending up homeless. We see the destruction instead of healing and that is a pitiful place to be watching all of this from.
The outside world can cheer all they want about the latest bill needing to be passed but the rest of us are paying the price for how easily accepted as better than nothing these bills actually turn out to be.
So here is the bottom line and why we have been seeing the wrong results from all they have done thus far.
Over 80% of Veterans with PTSD Believe Current VA Treatment is Ineffective
IVN
By Wendy Innes
December 4, 2014
The Clay Hunt bill would also examine discharge characteristics for individuals with PTSD to ensure that those with PTSD aren’t dishonorably discharged for problems related to their PTSD and thus keep them from getting treatment at the VA. It would also establish a drug take-back program and allow the VA to work with veterans service organizations to help prevent suicides.
While this bill aims to make strides in mental health care, there are those who are critical of some of the provisions. In particular, there are some who question repaying student loans for new providers.
According to The Warriors’ Hope Project, only 16 percent of veterans believe the treatment they currently receive at the VA has been effective at treating their PTSD symptoms, which consists primarily of medication. The Warriors’ Hope Project asserts that the money that would be spent on this program could be better used in other ways, instead of paying for more psychiatrists to prescribe more medications.
According to The Warriors’ Hope Project, while both the Senate and House versions of the bill contain important provisions, neither go far enough to have a substantive impact on PTSD or veteran suicide.
The most important recommendation The Warriors’ Hope Project makes is to expand access to mental health care in the private sector. This would mean that veterans can seek out whatever help they feel is most beneficial to them and with whatever provider they are comfortable with.
Currently if a veteran wants to use a provider in the civilian world, they must pay for it out-of-pocket.
It’s unclear if either the Senate or House version of the bill will make it out of committee before the new session of Congress begins in January.
read more here
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