The Alaska Star: Report says Guard provides inadequate care
By Jill Fankhauer, Octover 23, 2008
Veterans For America, a veterans advocacy group based in Washington, D.C., released a report on the Alaska Army National Guard Oct. 15 that stated the Guard does not adequately care for soldiers who return from deployment. The report accuses Gov. Sarah Palin of not taking action to address this issue.
The final finding of the report said “it would be unwise for the United States to continue to deploy the Alaska National Guard in large numbers until this situation facing Alaska National Guard members and their families is adequately understood and remedied.”
Lt. Gen. Craig Campbell, commissioner of the Alaska Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, said the report is unsubstantiated.
Campbell called a press conference Oct. 13 regarding the preliminary report that was released to the public Oct. 1. The Guard did not see the preliminary report before it was released, nor did it know when the final report would be released.
“There are always things we can do better,” Campbell said. “And in Alaska we are challenged by a large geographical area and sparse infrastructure on getting people back and forth, but what the VFA fails to do, and I wish they had of done, is to be objective to help us with some constructive ideas, constructive solutions, not just accusations and unsubstantiated accounts.”
The final VFA report was released Oct. 15.
The final report included the same findings as the preliminary report, but delved deeper into issues and provided further details on possible solutions.
Campbell criticizes the VFA report for lack of scientific data.
For example, the VFA report states “Food Bank of (Alaska) has seen an increase of 400 percent of military families relying on their assistance.”
Susannah Morgan, executive director of Food Bank of Alaska remembers being interviewed by an advocate for VFA a few weeks ago.
“I told him that our food pantries are reporting a 20 to 30 percent increase in clients, but that I did not have specific data for veterans. I advised him to call the Armed Services YMCA,” Morgan said.
The report did not include references to the Armed Services YMCA, nor did it note that Food Bank of Alaska and many Alaska food pantries do not collect data on military status when handing out food. Also, Food Bank of Alaska does not directly serve clients — it serves as a wholesale supplier to food pantries and kitchens.
The VFA report states they were told the 3rd Battalion, 297th Infantry Regiment had experienced a dramatic rise in suicides. The Guard responded that there have been no post-deployment suicides of Alaska Guard members.
“VFA’s report suggests otherwise and is flat wrong,” Campbell said.
In a press conference, Campbell was clear about his opinion of VFA and its findings.
“What’s reflective of Veterans for America is that they don’t understand Alaska,” Campbell said.
The VFA report is based on a year of submissions to the group’s Web site that included statements about struggles with post-deployment mental health, lack of access to medical care and hardships on Alaska Native villages who lost men to deployment — men who would be home providing food from hunting and fishing.
Those submissions triggered VFA to send an employee to Alaska in September 2007 for initial research. Last month, VFA sent a three-person team to Alaska for 10 days to assess the needs of veterans in Alaska.
The VFA report states “the VFA National Guard Program has found that the post-deployment challenges facing the Alaska National Guard are more daunting and widespread than any other that VFA has encountered.”
The organization recommends the Guard and Veterans Administration work with the Alaska Tribal Health Consortium to provide more localized medical services to veterans.
The Guard said it is already working with the Veterans Administration, which was given legal authority by Congress in September to allow veterans to get care from Indian Health Services, a federal medical program, or tribal health organizations.
Campbell said this issue has been one of Palin’s priorities. Campbell also said the Guard sends reintegration teams to rural Alaska to address these issues and make sure veterans get the benefits they are due.
The Guard said Palin has advocated for improved benefits for veterans, including becoming one of five states to provide veterans with home loans from the proceeds of issuing tax-exempt Qualified Veterans Mortgage Bonds. Palin also signed into law a provision allowing veterans free hunting and fishing licenses.
“We need to set the record straight,” Campbell said in a press release. “The Alaska National Guard is a professional organization that works hard to ensure its Guardsmen and families receive the highest level of care and this report has substantial claims that need to be corrected.”
VFA did not return the reporter’s calls regarding the final report.
The full report is available online at www.veteransforamerica.org.