Twenty Two Per Day
By Four Walls
@FourWalls (86855)
United States
September 22, 2015 5:50pm CST
I'll be offline for a day, so I want you to meditate on the number 22.
Every day, on average, twenty two U.S. veterans commit suicide.
Many of these deaths could have been prevented if the veteran had only received treatment at a VA facility. Sadly, the Department of Veterans Affairs bogs down treatment and disability ratings in mountains of red tape so enormous that they dwarf Mt. Everest. The average wait time to get a disability claim processed is three YEARS...and that doesn't count things like appeals and reconsiderations!
Earlier this year a friend of mine lost his 30-year-old son, an Iraqi veteran, to suicide. The VA wouldn't treat him. In the worst possible twist, the day after the young man's death the VA called to say they now had room to see him.
This has to stop. The government that sends these men and women into battle has to own up to the scars -- including the emotional ones -- they come home with, and promptly and professionally treat them.
4 people like this
4 responses
@pcunix (210)
• Middleboro, Massachusetts
12 Oct 15
I am not a veteran. I do have some friends and close relatives who are, but none of them have medical issues.
I am continually DISGUSTED by the way we treat our damaged vets. We should spend whatever money it takes to make them whole if we can and to give them the most comfort humanly possible if we cannot. NO ONE should even question for a moment any taxes or inconvenience necessary for that purpose. NO ONE.
1 person likes this
