Medical Neglect?

Panel to investigate U.S. military hospitals

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U.S. Marine amputee Aaron Schoenfeld at a hearing by the Senate Armed Services Committee about conditions at Walter Reed Army Medical Center on March 6, 2007. (Photo: Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)

March 8, 2007

President George W. Bush says he wants to get to the bottom of complaints about the nation's military and veterans’ hospitals. To do so, he has set up a panel of investigators. It will look into complaints that American soldiers returning from combat in Iraq and Afghanistan aren't getting proper medical care.

"We have an obligation, a moral obligation to provide the best possible care and treatment to the men and women who have served our country," said the President. "They deserve it. And they are going to get it."

The President is taking action after recent reports that wounded veterans had received second-rate care at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. The Washington, D.C., hospital is considered one of the country's top medical facilities in treating injured troops.

Several soldiers treated at Walter Reed have reported that they were released from the hospital just days after suffering serious wounds. Other veterans have had to wait months before receiving their disability benefits. On Wednesday, military leaders vowed to begin to fix the system.

"When you're seeing over 1 million patients a week, you have to be very good," said Jim Nicholson, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. "If there is any one patient who doesn't get the care that they deserve, that's unacceptable."

Meanwhile U.S. Senator Daniel Akaka (Democrat of Hawaii) is calling for more funds for veterans' health care. The number of soldiers filing disability claims has skyrocketed, and there simply aren't enough staff members to process their claims in a timely manner, said Akaka in a written statement.

Senator Jon Tester (Democrat of Montana) is asking for additional support for the doctors and nurses who care for the nation's wounded soldiers. "We are burning them out," said Tester.

Former Senator Robert Dole of Kansas, a Republican, and former Secretary of Health and Human Services Donna Shalala, a Democrat, will co-chair the nine-member committee that President Bush set up. Mr. Dole was seriously wounded during World War II and spent years undergoing treatment. Shalala was part of the Clinton administration in the 1990s.

 

Critical Thinking Question

Read today's news story, and then answer the following question.

Why do you think military and veterans' hospitals are important?

Join a discussion of this question on our bulletin board.

 

Karen Fanning is a contributing writer for Scholastic News Online.

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