President Obama Signs Executive Order to benefit his whole veteran community.

Fair play to the man, this comprehensive announcement certainly looks impressive.

Fact Sheet: President Obama Signs Executive Order to Improve Access to Mental Health Services for Veterans, Service Members, and Military Families | The White House

That's what you call a Military Covenant Mr Cameron!

 

It an Excellent thing, but Why did he wait until he was in a reelection campaign to issue it? why not 3 years ago when it might have saved more lives?

 

Oh Goldy you old cynic you!

 

Are we doing the same here?

 

Since you brought it up, why didn't Bush do it 11 years ago when he decided he was going to set fire to the CENTCOM area?

 

Bush Increased DVA funding to the highest levels it ever had. 115% since 2001.


THE BUSH RECORD - FACT SHEET: The Bush Administration Has Provided Unprecedented Support for Our Veterans



Increased funding for veterans' medical care by more than 115 percent since 2001.
FY 2009 funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) totals more than $97 billion, nearly double the level of funding when the President took office and the highest level of support for veterans in history.
Provided more than $6 billion to modernize and expand VA medical facilities and more than $1 billion over the past three years to support traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder treatment and research.
Honored our veterans with a hallowed, final resting place by implementing and fully funding the largest expansion in the national cemetery system since the Civil War.
Improved Care And Services For Wounded Warriors

Created the Commission on Care for America's Returning Wounded Warriors – co-chaired by former Senator Bob Dole and former Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala – to ensure that wounded service members and veterans receive quality care and services and can live lives of hope, promise, and dignity. Nearly all of the Commission's recommendations have already been implemented, such as:
Expanded training, screening, and staff resources to help service members and veterans suffering from mental health disorders.
Created a joint Recovery Coordinator Program for seriously injured service members.
Initiated a pilot program to replace the cumbersome system of two separate disability examinations with a single, comprehensive medical exam.
Established a Center of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury and expanded VA's polytrauma system of care to 21 network sites and clinic support teams to provide state-of-the-art treatment to injured veterans at facilities closer to their homes.

 

Meanwhile in the United Kingdom, British Veterans were lucky to get a free pint of beer and a pat on the back for their service.

"Thou shalt seek no reward but the satisfaction of thy master"

 

Well, My War Pension did go up by £3.42 p.w last April.

 

I wondered how long it would be till one of our esteemed American posters pissed all over it.

I'm lucky enough that I'm actually aware that I'm British and thus couldn't give the remotest shit who is the President of the USA. Whoever he is, he will be a ****, just as any British Prime Minister will be also be a ****.

Only a **** could do the necessary amount of lying, bumlicking, uttering false promises etc necessary to bag the top job, here or there. And, here or there, the top bloke will continue to weep and wail and rend his garments about the plight of the common man, whilst selling him down the river and trousering cash by the hundredweight.

 

Well to play devils advocate it could be said why didn't Lyndon Johnson do it 47 years ago when he decided he was going to escalate the US involement in Vietnam?

 

Believe me there still is a long way to go to help all the Vets here. And the standards of care may not be even across the country. I was lucky in that the VA Hospital near me had an excellent physical therapy program. I went 4 days a week for over a year and regained the use of my right arm. Something the Army had said was not likely to happen. And I give full credit to the Very demanding Physical Therapist who was tougher on me than my Drill Sergeant had been 27 years before. She Pushed me and the others including a young Marine who had shattered both arms, we helped each other. Yet this afternoon I get news of yet another of the youngsters from my old unit has committed suicide at lunchtime today. An 24 years old OEF vet. Dont get me wrong I do appreciate what Obamas doing, I just wish we could catch these kids Before they harm themselves.

 

Yes, and so what else is new

 

We are the Pilgrims, master; we shall go
Always a little further: it may be
Beyond the last blue mountain barred with snow,
Across that angry or that glimmering sea...

etc etc

 

Goldie -

Excellent summary of some of the facts re Bush's effort efforts to beef up medical care for veterans. Thanks for psoting.

One fact omitted was that changing military demographics caused him to create a Committee on the Status of Women Veterans. The committee focused on the VA medical system and making sure it meets the needs of women. Women, as most of you may know, are different from men and have different needs. At the time many VA hospitals did not drugs needed by women patients. The chairperson of the committee was MG Irene Trowell-Harris USAF. Smart lady! Started life picking cotton on her dad's farm and had an MPH from Yale and a Doctor in Nursing Education from Columbia before she made Major General. Awesome lady. (full disclosure: The former wife, a CDR in USNR served on the women veteran's committee)

Another factor in Bush's efforts was that during the big Clinton-era drawdown of the military a number of military and naval hospitals that provided services to military retirees so increases were badly needed in the VA system to enable them to serve retirees.

 

So it sort of entitles veterans to the same crisis mental health care as every citizen of the UK is entitled to?

Kewl.