Brain injury and disease are among the enduring legacies of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, with significant numbers of veterans experiencing PTSD.
The Washington Post
ORLANDO, Fla. — President Obama on Saturday announced a new initiative to help treat veterans with brain injuries and mental-health conditions, as he and first lady Michelle Obama paid tribute to disabled veterans before departing on their summer holiday.
Speaking to the annual conference of Disabled American Veterans, which represents 1.2 million people nationwide, Obama announced a $100 million grant to research centers, led by the University of Texas in San Antonio and Virginia Commonwealth University, dedicated to treating brain injury and mental-health issues, particularly post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
He also said his administration would launch a new effort to share research among the numerous federal agencies studying and providing treatment to veterans with neurological problems.
Brain injury and disease are among the enduring legacies of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, with significant numbers of veterans experiencing PTSD. In addition, the suicide rate among veterans has soared in the past decade.
“I’m not going to be satisfied until every veteran ... gets the support and help they need to stay strong,” Obama told about 4,000 veterans gathered in Orlando. “We’ve got to end this epidemic of suicide among our veterans and troops.”
Obama’s administration has faced withering criticism from veterans advocates for the backlog of claims from disabled veterans, which stood at more than 600,000 in March. The backlog has been an embarrassment for a president who had pledged to promptly tend to the needs of veterans.
But Obama said Saturday that his administration has had success in reducing the backlog by more than 20 percent and is on track to eliminate it by 2015.
“I’m going to be honest with you: It has not moved as fast as I want it. That’s been unacceptable,” he said.
He blamed the delays on an influx of new veterans with PTSD and new claims by veterans affected by Vietnam-era Agent Orange.
“We are not where we need to be, but we’re making progress,” he said.
Obama became emotional as he discussed his four-year acquaintance with Cory Remsburg, a U.S. Army ranger who suffered a severe brain injury in Afghanistan but has slowly been on the mend.
“The war in Afghanistan may just be ending, but for Cory and our disabled veterans, the work has only just begun,” he said.
Obama also used his appearance in Orlando to discuss two policy and political challenges he is facing in Washington, D.C.: the deep across-the-board spending cuts known as sequestration, which exempts the Veterans Affairs Department, and challenges to his health-care law.
“Going forward, the best way to protect the VA care you have earned is to get rid of this sequester altogether,” Obama said. He also urged veterans not to be “hoodwinked” by those claiming the Affordable Care Act will affect the care they receive from Veterans Affairs.
The first lady’s appearance before the group was notable because she and Jill Biden, the vice president’s wife, have forged the “Joining Forces” initiative to provide jobs to veterans by getting commitments from major U.S. corporations to hire them.
In introductory remarks, Michelle Obama recalled the story of a former Army sergeant who was severely wounded in his legs but finally walked again. Addressing the veterans, she said: “I see a group of people who know how to get back up.” She added: “You will never have to get back up all on your own. Not while we’re here.”
The president also extolled his wide-ranging efforts to help reduce unemployment among veterans and announced his administration would launch a new effort to work with community colleges and universities to provide veterans with special support so they complete higher education.
The Obamas addressed the meeting before departing for an eight-day vacation in Martha’s Vineyard, Mass., where they have held their summer holiday since first coming to office.
The vacation is shorter than usual, reflecting the domestic and foreign challenges the president continues to face. U.S. officials have been warning of a significant terrorist threat, one that led to the closing of 19 U.S. embassies and consulates across the Middle East and Africa over the past week. Eighteen were set to reopen Sunday.
Tensions, meanwhile, are escalating with Russia, after former intelligence contractor Edward Snowden was granted a one-year asylum there and, in part as a result, Obama canceled a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin scheduled for next month.
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