State's wounded vets at bottom for benefits

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-wvets03.html

Marine Lance Cpl. Andrew Derrig was fixing a dented .50-caliber machine-gun round outside one of Saddam Hussein's palaces when the bullet exploded. The blast cut through his hand, blew out an eye and scattered shrapnel over the 18-year-old.

Now, a year and a half later, the 2002 graduate of Luther North High School in Jefferson Park has another concern: How much money will the federal Veterans Affairs office in Chicago decide his injuries are worth? Disability benefits can range from $109 to $6,576 a month for an unmarried soldier.

Derrig and other wounded soldiers returning from Iraq to Illinois have good cause to worry. The VA office here is one of the stingiest when it comes to deciding how much money a disabled vet's injuries are worth, a Chicago Sun-Times examination of federal records shows.

That finding comes even as the number of disabled vets is rising to what's expected to be record levels, because of the war in Iraq and other factors. snip

Some disabled vets have waited years for a ruling on their benefits. Some die waiting. Others press their appeals for decades.

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[rodeodance]

1. ok--time to fulfill your campaign promises Bush!! --support the wouded!!

[Solly Mack]

2. The quicker they fade away or die from lack of care

the easier it is to rewrite the history of the war.

The wounded and forever maimed are a threat to Bush Inc. They are constant reminders of his lies.

Bush won't help these soldiers

[JPace]

3. These are things young people should know before they sign up...

but our media fails them....as they fail all the American people.
Too busy following Scott Peterson.

[liberalcenter]

4. but few think about the VA

Or the lifelong fight they will have to endure if they are injured.

[ernstbass]

5. Why in the world

do most veterans vote for chimpie?