Blog

According to new data, American veterans recently crossed a chilling new milestone. California veteran benefits lawyers wonder if the military will take these new statistics seriously. For the first time, the number of veterans committing suicide is higher than the number of veterans being killed as a result of automobile accidents.

For years now, automobile accidents have been the number one noncombat-related cause of death for American veterans. That is no longer true. According to the Pentagon's Medical Surveillance Monthly Report, which was released recently, over the past 2 years, more veterans have committed suicide, than have died in automobile accidents.

Between 2005 and 2011, the proportion of suicides increased substantially, while the proportion of veteran deaths due to automobile accidents decreased sharply. In fact, in 2010 and 2011, more veterans were killed as a result of suicides, than transportation accidents. In 2011, suicides accounted for one out of every 4 veteran deaths from noncombat causes. The problem is much worse than it seems. The statistics show that in 2012 approximately one veteran committed suicide every day.

For years, the profile of the average young American vet corresponded with an increased risk of death in an auto accident. Members of the military are young, male, and high school educated, and that matches the profile of civilian accident victims too. Overall, young males are much more likely to be killed in an accident, regardless of whether they are civilians or military members.

However, the military has been focusing on safe driving campaigns, and that may have contributed to a reduced accident fatality rate among veterans. At the same time, the number of suicides involving veterans returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan has spiked considerably.

In a major boost to the rights of veterans who were exposed to contaminated well water at Camp Lejeune, Congress has proposed expansion of Veterans Affairs Department treatment for people who were exposed to the well water.  California veteran benefits lawyers agree with this proposal.

The proposal is contained in the comprehensive bill HR 1627. The proposal would include Navy and Marine Corps members and their families who were stationed at Camp Lejeune and were exposed to well water contaminated by carcinogens. The veterans and their families were exposed by drinking and bathing in the contaminated water. These veterans and their families were exposed to the contamination between the 1950s and 1980s. As many as 750,000 people are believed to have been exposed to the water.

For many years now, North Carolina lawmakers have been calling for the federal government to cover the costs of health care for persons who were exposed to the contaminated water, and suffered illnesses. While there was agreement about the need to provide healthcare for veterans exposed to these carcinogens, there was plenty of disagreement about which entity would be responsible for the care. The Camp Lejeune base is owned by the Defense Department. Now, it has been proposed that the Veterans Affairs Department be responsible for covering the illnesses and injuries resulting from the contamination.

This is a very important proposal, and any such step to include veterans as well as their families in healthcare plans by the Veterans Affairs Department, is rare. The Veterans Affairs Department typically concentrates on treatment for veterans, not their families. Veterans, who were stationed at the Camp Lejeune Base between January 1, 1957 and December 31, 1987 for a minimum of 30 days, may be eligible for the coverage.

The incidence of post traumatic stress disorder among veterans is likely to reach epidemic proportions as the number of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan increase. The federal administration is under increasing pressure to come up with new techniques to treat this debilitating psychological illness. A team of researchers is experimenting with the use of virtual reality simulations to treat symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder.

Researchers at the University Of California collaborated with a counseling center in Pasadena to use virtual reality simulations to help veterans with post traumatic stress disorder cope and prevent their symptoms. California veterans benefits lawyers find that this approach is much different from techniques used in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder in the past. The use of virtual reality doesn’t only help veterans cope with the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, but also helps prevent the symptoms altogether.

A person who is using this virtual reality program can control the simulation via a computer, and can program a barrage of visual, audio and even olfactory simulations that are designed to mimic the experience of a military convoy making its way through terrorist-ridden terrain in Iraq and Afghanistan. The user has to wear wraparound goggles and use a joystick, to control his point of view and his reactions. He is required to negotiate the hazards that pop up as he is traveling with his military convoy. The virtual reality program is as lifelike as possible, exposing the veteran to sights, smells and sounds that are as similar to his combat environment as possible.

The study found that veterans, who know clearly that this is a simulation and not reality, suffered very extreme physical reactions when they were placed through the program.