Supreme Court won't take combat veterans' mental health appeal

[Recursion]

Source: Yahoo!

The Supreme Court on Monday refused to consider a challenge by veterans who said delays by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in processing combat-related mental health claims contributed to suicides by veterans.

Without comment, the court let stand a May 2012 decision by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, in San Francisco, which said it could not conclude that the VA broke the law by letting some veterans' healthcare claims stagnate for several years, and that only Congress or the president could direct changes.

That 10-1 decision reversed a 2-1 ruling by a panel of that court a year earlier that ordered the VA to ensure that suicidal veterans are seen immediately. The smaller panel cited the agency's "unchecked incompetence" in handling post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health claims.

Non-profit groups including Veterans for Common Sense and Veterans United for Truth Inc had argued that because the agency took so long to process claims, it contributed to the despair that has led to the roughly 6,500 suicides among U.S. veterans each year.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/supreme-court-wont-combat-veterans-mental-health-appeal-164608570--finance.html

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What an absolute travesty. I know the Legion is doing a letter writing campaign if anybody's looking for something to do.

[heaven05]

1. right wing

supreme court nominees or all justices felt this way about vets? We are shameful when it comes to treatment of our vets injured in two unnecessary wars.

[pasto76]

3. hard to say

both sides are frequently silent when it comes to the very serious and lethal problems our troops are facing. If you havent seen that FB post by michael moore(has led to some controversy via fox news) look it up. he is _dead on_.

[obama2terms]

2. We don't help our veterans enough

[lunasun]

4. roughly 6,500 suicides among U.S. veterans each year....

[undergroundpanther]

6. more die from suicide than from combat. Think about that.

[undergroundpanther]

5. Someone wants people to suffer& die

in the supreme court.Someone in that court likes the idea of soldiers losing it and hurting others or killing themselves . Are soldiers just bullet sponges for chicken-hawks and banksters? War IS a racket..Poverty is a racket too.. both play into each other.

That sick ass old outdated stiff lipped bullshit mentality of if combat scars your mind you aren't really suffering is a load of shit from the mouths of the ignorant and callous.... I think people in the military who disagree with that stupid supreme court decision.cheating soldiers out of help refuse to fight for these pigs in robes until they are guaranteed if combat scars their mind that they won't be written off when it makes their life fall apart later.

PTSD never seems to go away. Mine is not combat related,but it has made my life a disaster.I've tried to kill myself too. And the politicians and rich fucktards who start wars let them go and fight it by themselves than.When their chicken hawk pampered butts come back with PTSD I suggest they get over it. The people who get us into wars,create the blow back need to become 'bullet sponges' in Iraq . See if THEY like being shot at.

I disagree with the wars totally,I sympathize with the soldiers who go there and come back wounded deep inside. I feel bad for the Iraq Citizens.As for people thinking of going over there do as they did to stop the war in Vietnam,Disobey, sit there on the tarmac and don't go there. Enough soldiers do it the wars will be over.If nobody goes along with the racket how can it profit the ones who profit from war to keep creating wars and letting people who fight it for them,to suffer& die ? Seems like they do like it in the supreme court since suicides out number combat deaths..Its all culling the herd to these war pigs I think.

The supreme court just decided to let soldiers with PTSD suffer until they die,in other words let their memories kill them. Fuck you selfish ignorant cheep and murderous supreme court assholes.

[MADem]

7. How many Supreme Court justices currently sitting have served in uniform?

I think the answer is none.

[Recursion]

8. Stevens was the last veteran

As well as the last Protestant.