The American Legion has completed an investigation of the quality of care that veterans receive for TBI and PTSD by the Department of Defense and the VA. The seven-member committee that drafted the report includes a retired Army colonel who served on the Joint Staff Wounded Warrior Integration Team and a public health researcher at Columbia University, but no medical personnel.
The committee members visited military, VA and private medical facilities, read previous reports and studies, and interviewed many patients, caregivers and doctors to develop the findings. The committee called the care “limited and inadequate.” It found that current treatment emphasizes opioid painkillers and had little in the way of alternative treatments such as biofeedback, yoga or acupuncture. It recommended that the DoD and VA accelerate research and ensure that the departments work with private-sector researchers to discover new treatments. It also recommends Congress provide additional funds for research and calls for better oversight within VA and DoD of patients’ medications.
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