Wounded soldiers become homeless waiting for benefits

[LynneSin]

Source: Raw Story & AP

Wounded soldiers become homeless waiting for benefits

(AP) Thousands of wounded soldiers discharged from the Army risk financial ruin as they wait six to nine months for their disability benefits. The Army has taken steps to ease the strain, but it’s taking awhile for those policies to take hold.

Nearly 20,000 disabled soldiers were discharged in the past two fiscal years, and lawmakers, veterans’ advocates and others say thousands could be facing financial ruin while they wait for their claims to be processed and their benefits to come through.

“The anecdotal evidence is depressing,” said Rep. John Hall, D-N.Y., who heads a subcommittee on veterans disability benefits. “These veterans are getting medical care, but their family is going through this huge readjustment at the same time they’re dealing with financial difficulties.”


<<<<snip>>>>

The amount depends on the soldier’s injuries, service time and other factors. But a typical veteran and his family who once lived on $3,400 a month might have to make do with $970 a month. Unless a soldier has a personal fortune or was so severely injured as to require long-term inpatient care, that can be an extreme hardship.





Read more: http://rawstory.com/news08/2008/06/17/wounded-soldiers-become-homeless-waiting-for-benefits/

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While John McCain still draws his $58k a year so many are suffering without.

[barbtries]

1. jeez this just makes me sick

they aren't nearly so slow at throwing the bodies at war. bastards.

[Overseas]

2. John Sidney McCain III and Republicans say we need to control our spending on veterans.

But the same folks totally oppose a windfall profits tax on oil companies, and want to make the tax cuts permanent.

Maybe if The Rapture comes soon enough...

[King Bacon Fat]

4. Of course they do...

But how do they feel about Senators raking in almost 60 grand tax-free on top of their Senate salary and their wife's beer distribution fortune?

I'm not saying that John McCain doesn't deserve his yearly pension, he was wounded pretty badly. But why not others? Why should today's veterans be treated so poorly because they were born too late to fight in a war where the government actually cared about them after their term of service ended?

[xxqqqzme]

9. I'm sorry he was treated poorly

but come on, let's get real. I was amazed he is classified as a 100% disabled - he walks on 2 legs, has use of both hands, has both eyes, can speak & hear. He has restrictive arm movement, that's it. (I will be the first to tell you that restrictive arm movement makes life difficult at times, as a head injury left my left side paralyzed.) He can dress himself, bathe unattended, eat unaided, perform personal hygiene unattended....I don't get it since I know veterans w/ more profound & restrictive, debilitating injuries who are are only considered 40, 50 or 60% disabled.

[izquierdista]

12. How many of those veterans

Had 100% admiral in their family lineage?

[OhioChick]

3. That's how the repubs

"Support the Troops."

[EFerrari]

5. What a fucking disgrace. n/t

[Ysabel]

6. disgusting (n/t)...

[pattmarty]

7. UNFUCKINGBELIEVABLE!!!!!!

[phantom power]

8. What's sad is how fucking predictable this was.

Like watching a slow-motion train wreck. And all the very very serious talking heads blathering about how Iraq Really Is Different Than Vietnam.

[irislake]

10. Homeless soldiers

Why don't they go live with rich Republicans? Support your troops!

[AlphaCentauri]

13. "Support your troops" for the Rep morons is like going to the football game

and have a hot dog.

[superconnected]

11. You'd think the billions spent on the war would cover this, but no

the crooks who got the money won't give back to the people who got maimed over it.

It was always a profiteers war. They don't care who gets killed and maimed over the setup to profiteer (in this case a bloody war).

May the profiteers in this, rot in hell.