Memorial Day Thoughts On Veterans’ Health
Opinion writers pause on the holiday to urge recognition of soldiers who deal with mental health injuries when they return from war as well as other issues -- including President Donald Trump's budget -- related to vets' health care.
The Washington Post:
Veterans With Mental-Health Injuries Deserve Purple Hearts, Too
This Memorial Day, we honor Americans who made the ultimate sacrifice and gave their lives during service to their country. This recognition should include veterans who survived war but could not survive the peace that followed because of very real mental injuries suffered in combat. At least 20 veterans commit suicide every day in the United States. These are lives lost to war, and we must account for them today. (Nathan Fletcher, 5/29)
The Wall Street Journal:
As Numbers Sink In, Concerns Rise Over Trump’s Veterans Affairs Budget
President Donald Trump is proposing more money for the Department of Veterans Affairs, but veterans groups and lawmakers are lining up against some of the administration’s priorities, especially cuts in payments to disabled veterans who are unable to work and increases for an outside care program that has yet to be formulated. Mr. Trump’s 2018 proposed budget would boost overall VA spending to $186.5 billion, an almost 6% increase. But as advocates and lawmakers of both parties have taken a closer look, they have grown concerned about the administration’s plans to reorder spending within the department. (Ben Kesling, 5/29)
Cleveland Plain Dealer:
As We Remember Our Fallen, We Also Care For Our Wounded And Sick Veterans
On Monday, our nation will celebrate the annual observance of Memorial Day. As is our tradition, we will pause and reflect on the sacrifices of our country's veterans, especially those who gave their lives to protect our freedom. Such brave men and women selflessly paid the ultimate price for our priceless rights -- our right to free speech, our right to worship as we choose, our right to assemble when we need to come together. (Tony Milons, 528)
Chicago Tribune:
Memories Of 'M*A*S*H' By A Real-Life MASH Doctor
When the Korean War started in June of 1950, there was a shortage of doctors in the U.S. Army Medical Corps. To serve this need, the government instituted a "doctor draft" and by the beginning of 1951, the first drafted doctors began arriving in Korea. I was one of them, just a few years out of medical school with little surgical training and certainly no experience with "battlefield medicine." The thought of going to Korea scared me to death. It wasn't so much that I feared getting injured or even killed, but what really worried me was that I might not be a good enough doctor to provide the lifesaving skills that our soldiers would need. (Robert L. Emanuele, 5/26)
