Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Troops Who Have Been Wounded Are Being Discharged For Misconduct At Increasingly High Rate
The New York Times: Wounded Troops Discharged For Misconduct Often Had PTSD Or T.B.I.
Three-fifths of troops discharged from the military for misconduct in recent years had a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury or another associated condition, according to a report released Tuesday by the Government Accountability Office. The report, mandated by Congress, for the first time combined military medical and staffing data, as well as data from the Department of Veterans Affairs, to show that tens of thousands of wounded troops were kicked out of the armed forces and severed from benefits designed to ease their transition from service in war. (Philipps, 5/16)
In other veterans' health care news —
The Washington Post: Trump’s Claim Veterans Received ’42 Percent More’ Approvals To Get Non-VA Health Care
The Choice program allows veterans to get health care in the private sector if they face a long wait time or live far from the nearest VA Medical Center. This was a key provision in the August 2014 Veterans Access, Choice and Accountability Act — a bipartisan response to the scandal that erupted over veterans’ delayed access to medical care at VA facilities across the country. Veteran watchdogs have criticized VA for not acting quickly enough to use the appropriated money to improve patients’ access to medical care. Is it true that veterans have received 42 percent more approvals to get non-VA health care through the Choice program? (Lee, 5/17)
