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War, War, War See other War, War, War Articles Title: Troops booted for pre-existing mental issues Troops booted for pre-existing mental issues By Kelly Kennedy - Staff writer Posted : Sunday Dec 12, 2010 12:57:38 EST From 2003 to 2008, more people were separated from the military within their first year of service for “pre-existing” psychiatric conditions than for any other reason, according to a military report. Those discharges do not qualify a service member for medical benefits or medical retirement pay after leaving. Twenty-two percent of soldiers who were given “existed prior to service,” or EPTS, discharges had psychiatric conditions, while 42 percent of Marine Corps EPTS discharges fell under that category. The figures for the Navy and Air Force were 24 percent and less than 1 percent, respectively. Whether the Marine Corps is not screening its new recruits for mental health issues as well as the other services, or whether other factors are at work, is not clear. According to the 2010 Accession Medical Standards Analysis & Research Activity Report, the Army approved 1,231 waivers for anxiety, dissociative and somatoform disorders from 2004 until 2009, and another 522 for depressive disorder. The Marines gave out 766 waivers during the same period for neurotic, mood, somatoform, dissociative or fictitious disorder, and 230 for “disturbance of emotions specific to childhood and adolescence.” But discharges for pre-existing mental health conditions far exceed recruitment waivers for those conditions. Psychiatric discharges are the top diagnosis for pre-existing discharges for Marines and soldiers. From 2004 to 2009, 4,359 soldiers and 3,636 Marines were discharged during their first year of service for pre-existing psychiatric conditions. Many, if not most, of those service members probably did not see combat because they were discharged while still in training. The second-most common disability discharge for soldiers from 2004 to 2009 was for “affective and nonpsychotic mental disorders.” In 2009, 2,798 soldiers left the Army on such discharges. The Marine Corps discharged 528 people for those disorders. The Air Force and the Navy’s rates are far lower. The Marines “have more guys in combat, so they have more cases of PTSD than the Navy,” said retired Army Lt. Col. Mike Parker, a veterans advocate who helps troops get correct disability retirement discharge ratings. “There aren’t too many sailors doing combat deployments — just the docs and SEALs. The Marine Corps is all combat.” Parker said that while most of the discharges for pre-existing conditions are among service members who have been in uniform only a short time, some are still being diagnosed with pre-existing psychiatric conditions after they’ve been in for several years and have served in combat — even more worrisome to veterans advocates who say that combat experience may play a role in their mental health issues. “I’m working with several Marines in that situation right now,” Parker said. Two years ago, Congress refined the rules for discharging people for “personality disorder” as a pre-existing condition after it became clear that many of troops really had PTSD or symptoms of that disorder that was caused by their combat experience. Discharges for personality disorder have subsequently declined, but Parker noted that discharges for other mental conditions have jumped since pre-existing personality disorder “became verboten” as a diagnosis for troops with combat experience. According to the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center report, adjustment disorder diagnoses rose from 35,774 in 2006 to 51,545 in 2009. Over the same period, anxiety disorder diagnoses rose from 14,140 to 23,609 and PTSD diagnoses rose from 8,416 to 14,193. Personality disorder diagnoses decreased from 7,459 to 5,020. Four senators wrote a letter to Defense Secretary Robert Gates in October asking him to address a “new loophole” that allows the military to discharge service members for “adjustment disorder” or a similar condition when they actually have PTSD. Service members discharged specifically for PTSD are entitled to an automatic disability rating of 50 percent, which comes with health care and other benefits. Adjustment disorder discharges do not bring the same benefits. “While it is a good thing that the Pentagon has moved away from unfairly discharging combat troops by erroneously claiming a service member had a personality disorder rather than addressing the harmful effects of combat stress, we need to ensure a new method is not being used to deny combat veterans the care and benefits they deserve,” the senators wrote. “Unfortunately, the recent drop in discharges for personality discharges has been accompanied by a disturbing rise in discharges ‘for the convenience of the government’ for ‘other physical or mental discharges not amounting to disability.’ ” The letter was signed by Sens. Kip Bond, R-Mo.; Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa; Patrick Leahy, D-Vt.; and Sam Brownback, R-Kan. They cited Pentagon data showing discharges for “other physical or mental discharges” have more than doubled, from 1,453 in 2006 to 3,844 in 2009. “We fear the rise in this category of discharges could reflect a failure to identify and treat troops for whom a deployment-related disability board would be more appropriate,” the senators wrote. They asked for the number of soldiers discharged for personality disorders and “other designated physical or mental conditions.” Retired Air Force Col. Mike Hayden, deputy director of government relations for the Military Officers Association of America, said MOAA believes all service members should receive a presumptive disability of 30 percent if they have served in the war zone — and there should be no argument that the problem was pre-existing. That would mean lifetime medical benefits, which, in the case of those with mental health issues intense enough to qualify for discharge, can mean the difference between relationship problems, homelessness, unemployability and a strong, stable, happy life. Hayden cited a June 2008 memo from Gates stating, “Is there a reason we could not change the disability rating presumption for wounded warriors to a minimum of 30 percent service-connected disability?” “We are of a similar belief that if a troop is healthy enough to send into harm’s way, then they are vested with the department and EPTS should no longer be an issue,” Hayden said. The Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center has recognized mental health as an issue and has launched a series of studies. “This report very likely underestimates the true incidence and prevalence of the disorders of incidence,” the report states. “Studies that employed anonymous questionnaires have measured the relatively high frequency with which service members have expressed their reluctance to seek assessment and care for possible mental health disorders. Those barriers include shortages of mental health professionals in some areas, and the social and military stigmas associated with seeking or receiving mental health care.” The report noted that more male service members spend time in the hospital for mental health issues than for any other reason. Mental health issues were the number two reason female service members were hospitalized, second only to pregnancy-related conditions.
Poster Comment: Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/Latest Begin Trace Mode for Comment # 3.
#3. To: Jethro Tull (#0)
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#5. To: Eric Stratton (#3)
In war time it doesnt happen.
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