Veterans Affairs to increase benefits for mild brain trauma

[Mesteryo]

Source: USA Today

The government plans to substantially increase disability benefits for veterans with mild traumatic brain injuries, acknowledging for the first time that veterans suffering from this less severe version of the Iraq war's signature wound will struggle to make a living.

"We're saying it's real," said Tom Pamperin, a deputy director for the Department of Veteran Affairs, about the significance of the change to benefits in the regulation the VA plans to publish today.

Up to 320,000 troops who served in Iraq and Afghanistan suffered traumatic brain injury, a RAND Corp. study estimated this year. The vast majority of the cases are mild and came from exposure to an explosion, often from a roadside bomb. Most veterans with mild cases recover, Pamperin said, but some are left with permanent problems.

Compensation could reach $600 a month, the VA said. Currently, veterans with symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, sensitivity to light, ringing in the ears and irritability and insomnia collect $117.

Read more: http://www.usatoday.com/news/military/2008-09-22-tbibenefits_N.htm

[BrklynLiberal]

1. Hmmmm. Let's see now..That would be about 5 years late, wouldn't it?

..and those amounts could sure help them to live nicely...:sarcasm:

[bobbolink]

2. WOW!!! A whole $600 a MONTH!!! Why, they'll all live like royalty on that!

:wtf: :crazy: :nuke:

[uppityperson]

3. It is a start, but not enough.

[Bigmack]

4. No such thing as "mild" brain trauma.

A person is what his or her brain makes them. ANY change makes them not the person they were. Sometimes they're a lot like they were, and sometimes not so much. It doesn't take much of a change to ruin a marriage... a delicate balance already... or a relationship with kids.

It's bad enough that people get brain trauma by accident, but for us to send men and women knowing that a sizable percentage of them will be permanently changed, and for nothing is cruel beyond words.

$600 a month!... How about $1 million per marriage, or $5K per sleepless night?