VFA’s Military Reports

Pennsylvania’s National Guard, Under Great Strain

The citizen Soldiers of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard have borne a disproportionate share of the burden of our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Veterans for America (VFA) has found.

Pennsylvania’s 20,000 citizen Soldiers and Airmen rank among the largest Guard forces in the nation, and the most heavily deployed over the last seven years. The state has lost 43 Guard members in the Global War on Terror, more than any other. And the deployments continue at a breakneck pace in Pennsylvania, with more than 5,000 of its Guard members scheduled to deploy in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom within the next two years. Read the report

VFA agrees strongly with Lieutenant General (Alaska) Craig Campbell, adjutant general of Alaska, and Alaska Governor Sarah Palin that Alaska’s Guard troops are among the finest. VFA calls on them both to do right by our troops and to have the moral courage that their leadership requires to address the significant shortcomings in post-combat care that our report highlights. Read the report

It is commonly known that a very small percentage of the American population has borne a disproportionate burden of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. What is less commonly understood is that our Army’s Brigade Combat Teams (BCT’s) – a subset of this already small population – have been repeatedly sent to the frontlines, enduring high-intensity combat for extended periods with inadequate time at home between tours.

Our report finds that soldiers who have seen the most combat are the ones being deployed over and over. In seven years since the United States was attacked by al Qaeda and over five since the war in Iraq began, four BCT’s have been deployed four times. Ten BCT’s have been deployed three times, and almost all have served at least twice. Department of Defense studies prove that with each deployment Soldiers are 60% more likely to develop severe post-combat mental health problems. Read the report

Since September 11, 2001, the mission of the Army National Guard has transformed from a force primarily dedicated to domestic missions to a de facto operational reserve for the active-duty Army. VFA has chronicled, state-by-state, the National Guard units that are serving on the frontlines. What is revealed is the severe intensity of combat they have experienced and the insufficient amount of time granted off between tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.

National Guard Soldiers have been known for decades as “weekend warriors.” They leave civilian life one weekend a month and two weeks a year to fulfill their duty to their state and country—except for nearly the last seven years. Five brigade combat teams of the National Guard have served two tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan and one, Indiana’s 76th Brigade Combat Team, just left for its third tour. New Jersey is deploying roughly half of its National Guard. Overusing the National Guard and exposing them to high-intensity combat and extended tours is not sustainable. We cannot maintain our military strength if we continue to knowingly compound their war wounds. Read the report

Soldiers from Fort Drum are bearing a disproportionate burden of the costs of our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Unfortunately, the mental health care system at Fort Drum is not meeting the demands of this burden.

Of all U.S. Army divisions, the 10th Mountain Division, based at Fort Drum, New York, has been the most affected by our country’s crushing recent deployment cycle. Since September 11, 2001, the 2nd Brigade Combat team is the most deployed brigade in the Airmy, having recently completed its fourth tour. In all, the 2nd BCT has been deployed for more than 40 months since 9/11, yet has had insufficient dwell time between tours, coupled with a remarkable intensity of combat. During its most recent deployment, 52 members of the 2nd BCT were killed in action, 270 members were listed as non-fatality casualties, and two members remain MIA.

VFA visited Fort Drum and found that some Soldiers requiring mental health treatment had to wait up to two months for an appointment, due to a lack of mental health professionals on-base and at the nearby hospital in Watertown, NY. Read the report

Veterans for America’s “Trends in Treatment of America’s Wounded Warriors” identifies a number of interrelated trends adversely affecting servicemembers and veterans suffering from the “signature wounds” of Iraq and Afghanistan - traumatic brain injury (TBI) and psychological trauma.

VFA investigators have visited every demobilization site in the United States and overseas, where they have monitored the quality of treatment, family support, rehabilitation, and other services that should enable a wounded servicemember to readjust to civilian life.

VFA has found that medical care for mental health and TBI is often inadequate or poorly delivered, and when a servicemember is discharged, decisions are often made by the military that negatively affect veterans for the rest of their lives. Read the report

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