Posted on Aug 26, 2015
Veterans discharged for misconduct have higher risk of homelessness. I read this and I don't think it's true. What do you think?
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I read this report and believe the VA is publishing something that isn't true. No other studies have been done by this doctor, plus, I think he is biased. It actually pisses me off. See what you think.
The researchers used data on 448,290 U.S. active-duty military service members who were separated from the military between 2001 and 2011, deployed in Afghanistan or Iraq, and who subsequently used Veterans Health Administration services.
Service members who separate from the military have Department of Defense codes attributing the separation to misconduct including drugs, alcoholism, offenses and infraction, disability, early release, disqualified, normal, or unknown.
Almost 25,000 of the people in the database had been separated for misconduct, less than six percent of the total group.
According to the report 26% of folks discharged for misconduct are homeless when they first show up at the VA. Of course, in my opinion, they get it all exactly backwards. The military gives bad conduct discharges to people who exhibit anti-social behavior, so yeah, they’re probably going to exhibit anti-social behavior when they hit the streets, too. It’s not the type of discharge that causes the behavior, it’s the type of person that gets those discharges.
The study goes on to blame PTSD and combat experiences for the anti-social behavior, but they don’t mention how many of the separated service members actually participated in a PTSD-producing event. Additionally, as we’ve seen several times, the VA has done a piss-poor job of separating pretend veterans from the actual veterans, so what safe guards did the good doctor use in this study? Some of our friends have jobs in the private sector for helping veterans and they’ve lost their jobs for scrutinizing these pretend veterans too closely.
I could have told Doctor Gundlapalli how his study would end before it started. Rather than focus on the 10% of his sampling who are still homeless after 10 years, he should be looking at how the other 90% are beating those odds.
https://celebrity.yahoo.com/news/veterans-discharged-misconduct-higher-risk-homelessness-153400314.html?soc_src=mail&soc_trk=ma
The researchers used data on 448,290 U.S. active-duty military service members who were separated from the military between 2001 and 2011, deployed in Afghanistan or Iraq, and who subsequently used Veterans Health Administration services.
Service members who separate from the military have Department of Defense codes attributing the separation to misconduct including drugs, alcoholism, offenses and infraction, disability, early release, disqualified, normal, or unknown.
Almost 25,000 of the people in the database had been separated for misconduct, less than six percent of the total group.
According to the report 26% of folks discharged for misconduct are homeless when they first show up at the VA. Of course, in my opinion, they get it all exactly backwards. The military gives bad conduct discharges to people who exhibit anti-social behavior, so yeah, they’re probably going to exhibit anti-social behavior when they hit the streets, too. It’s not the type of discharge that causes the behavior, it’s the type of person that gets those discharges.
The study goes on to blame PTSD and combat experiences for the anti-social behavior, but they don’t mention how many of the separated service members actually participated in a PTSD-producing event. Additionally, as we’ve seen several times, the VA has done a piss-poor job of separating pretend veterans from the actual veterans, so what safe guards did the good doctor use in this study? Some of our friends have jobs in the private sector for helping veterans and they’ve lost their jobs for scrutinizing these pretend veterans too closely.
I could have told Doctor Gundlapalli how his study would end before it started. Rather than focus on the 10% of his sampling who are still homeless after 10 years, he should be looking at how the other 90% are beating those odds.
https://celebrity.yahoo.com/news/veterans-discharged-misconduct-higher-risk-homelessness-153400314.html?soc_src=mail&soc_trk=ma
Posted in these groups: 
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
Homeless
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Homeless
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 15
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Well, as a Veteran and a nurse, I worked at a military installation and seen the records of these individuals. Lots of drug addicts and thugs who should have never been enlisted to begin with. Yet, the US military was so desperate that they enlisted them anyway. General discharge that one day becomes honorable for service not completed. That right there is a big problem many Vietnam veterans have a problem with...
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Not surprised and don't know that I have any good suggestions to resolve this problem.
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The bigger issue, as far as I know is mental illness. The military discharged untold numbers of folks with combat PTSD during these wars, claiming they had "personality defects" and thus had fraudulently enlisted. This was a very cynical tactic taken to avoid treating and paying for disability related to PTSD, something the military is still lacking in.
Then there are other veterans who have mental illness other than PTSD. These folks will often have disciplinary issues and substance abuse issues. Again, the military tends to discharge these folks, rather than dealing with the illnesses.
So the bottom line is that the misconduct is often symptomatic of bigger problems that DOD won't take on. These people are put out with not so much as a thank you, never mind benefits. And they get an OTH or lower discharge classification, or are processed for fraudulent enlistment for personality defect, they also tend to lose eligibility for VA disability compensation and healthcare.
So the military is, bottom line, creating this situation by not properly dealing with active duty folks who have PTSD or other types of mental illness, and instead sweeping the problem under the rug.
SGT (Join to see) if you're angry about this, and you rightfully should be, it's time to pressure your Congressmen and Senators to make changes to correct these wrongs done to folks who, after all, deployed down range and saw combat. The old rule "you broke it, you bought it" should apply, and DOD and VA need to be held accountable for proper treatment of these folks...
1LT Sandy Annala CPT (Join to see)
Then there are other veterans who have mental illness other than PTSD. These folks will often have disciplinary issues and substance abuse issues. Again, the military tends to discharge these folks, rather than dealing with the illnesses.
So the bottom line is that the misconduct is often symptomatic of bigger problems that DOD won't take on. These people are put out with not so much as a thank you, never mind benefits. And they get an OTH or lower discharge classification, or are processed for fraudulent enlistment for personality defect, they also tend to lose eligibility for VA disability compensation and healthcare.
So the military is, bottom line, creating this situation by not properly dealing with active duty folks who have PTSD or other types of mental illness, and instead sweeping the problem under the rug.
SGT (Join to see) if you're angry about this, and you rightfully should be, it's time to pressure your Congressmen and Senators to make changes to correct these wrongs done to folks who, after all, deployed down range and saw combat. The old rule "you broke it, you bought it" should apply, and DOD and VA need to be held accountable for proper treatment of these folks...
1LT Sandy Annala CPT (Join to see)
SGT (Join to see)
I think it stinks. I thought if a service member admitted they have PTSD to their command, they would be booted out. I didn't realize it would cause them to be kicked out with criminal charges.
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SGT (Join to see) not every soldier with PTSD was kicked out with charges. Keep in mind that the majority of misconduct surrounded substance abuse. Why? Because they were hurting and they could find a way to self-medicate, when the military wasn't doing anything for them.
Those who were booted for "personality disorders" were, I believe, primarily booted administratively "for the good of the service" with General Discharges, although some may have been given OTH depending on their situation.
But, you are correct that it stinks.
As a personal anecdote, I enlisted after having had major ear surgery. I was accepted. When my left ear got destroyed while on patrol on a submarine, I surfaced at that point. But I am service connected for my hearing because things got worse.
The bottom line - they were accepted at the MEPS. They should have been given proper care, so they would not have had to resort to self-medication with booze or drugs.
Further, as was noted to me privately, when a veteran has a General or OTH, it becomes extremely difficult to get gainful employment, even if they are healthy. When the vet is suffering from PTSD, substance abuse, and a whole litany of physical issues, it's just worse. So many of these folks end up homeless, because they were cast adrift, denied VA benefits, and may not qualify for Social Security disability either. So where else can they go?
Those who were booted for "personality disorders" were, I believe, primarily booted administratively "for the good of the service" with General Discharges, although some may have been given OTH depending on their situation.
But, you are correct that it stinks.
As a personal anecdote, I enlisted after having had major ear surgery. I was accepted. When my left ear got destroyed while on patrol on a submarine, I surfaced at that point. But I am service connected for my hearing because things got worse.
The bottom line - they were accepted at the MEPS. They should have been given proper care, so they would not have had to resort to self-medication with booze or drugs.
Further, as was noted to me privately, when a veteran has a General or OTH, it becomes extremely difficult to get gainful employment, even if they are healthy. When the vet is suffering from PTSD, substance abuse, and a whole litany of physical issues, it's just worse. So many of these folks end up homeless, because they were cast adrift, denied VA benefits, and may not qualify for Social Security disability either. So where else can they go?
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