We can only hope it’s a good thing. I Hope it’s a good thing. But consider some recent changes, and some very real history of both the Military and the VA.
Maparker, and Jason has posted extensively about the ways the Military cut costs of the soldiers injured and unfit for duty. While the numbers of medical discharges increases dramatically the costs have remained stable.
The military uses VASRD to rate those soldiers.
The VA has determined just recently, a soldier no longer must prove a stressor for PTSD. This means you don’t have to have treatment record while in theater, you don’t need a LOD, CIB, CAB etc. This sounds okay until you examine the way the VA currently treats PTSD for rating purposes. Like my husband many soldiers are not given Permanent and Total disability, rather they are rated, and must request Individual unemployablity, without a rating of permanent and total there are no benefits for dependents. The GAO just recently reported there are too many veterans being rated at IU, and suggest the VA tighten their requirements to get it. So if you break it down-
The examiner who determines your PTSD, gets to use subjective evidence to determine your condition. They use VA rating rules and measurements. Without the proof of stressors, the examiner has a lot less to prove you have PTSD. They are less likely to find PTSD, meaning your not as likely to get treated for it. That would be a crime. Okay so they are more likely to find you have a personality disorder. As far as the VA goes, now they must prove your personality disorder was made worse by your service, and you will be rated appropriately, you may or may not get an increase. Here is where the problem comes in, The military uses VASRD to rate you. Conditions deemed to have existed prior to service and follow their natural course will not be rated. This covers most personality disorders. This means more soldiers will be administratively discharged.
I posted this because it needs to be posted. PTSD is real, those effected need to be treated with the same respect that any injured soldier deserves. They deserve the same benefits, and proper diagnoses. We can’t afford to bury our heads in the sand and pretend it’s not gonna happen. If they don’t recognize it, our soldiers will not get the treatment they so desperately need.
