Candidate calls treatment part of 'sacred pact'

Associated Press, May 28, 2007 -- CONWAY, New Hampshire -- Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said yesterday that the country is not providing enough mental health services for active duty troops and veterans. He proposed spending hundreds of millions of dollars more each year for better care.

"We cannot expect our young men and women to serve in our armed forces, if we are not making sure they get the treatment they deserve," Obama said during a town hall-style meeting that brought more than 1,000 people to a school gym.

"That should be part of the sacred pact we make with our veterans."

Traveling over the Memorial Day weekend with his family in this early nominating state, the Illinois senator urged the Pentagon to recruit more mental health professionals to help identify and treat problems. He said improvements are needed at every stage of military service: recruitment, deployment, and reentry into civilian life.

"Let's lead, by showing the world how we treat our veterans when they come home. . . . We still don't make sure those who have problems have the adequate counseling; we don't help families the way we should," Obama said.

Obama has made his opposition to the war in Iraq a central part of his campaign.

His fervent opposition has helped rally antiwar voters. Obama's criticism of the war yesterday prompted a standing ovation and cheers.

Obama was serving in the Illinois Senate when Congress authorized the war in Iraq.

According to Obama's plan, mental health treatment would be a regular part of military life. There would be improved screening and treatment and no denial of benefits due to preexisting conditions. Military families would receive more counseling and support.

Obama aides said he would propose increasing the Veterans Affairs Department's budget. The changes he advocates are expected to cost several hundred million dollars a year, they said.

To help cover the cost, Obama proposed better collection of unpaid taxes owed by defense contractors.

A second source could come from recovering more money from third-party payers at Defense Department and VA hospitals.

An internal VA review released this month said veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan are at increased risk of suicide because not all agency health clinics have 24-hour mental care available.

The report by the department's inspector general was the first comprehensive look at VA mental health care, particularly suicide prevention.

Troops and veterans say they are suffering more psychological problems because of repeated and extended deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan.

Earlier this month, a panel of medical specialists said the surge in the number of veterans suffering post-traumatic stress disorder requires development of better tests to evaluate affected personnel and determine how best to compensate them.