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43,000 Troops Listed as Unfit for Combat Deployed Anyway
From USA Today:
More than 43,000 U.S. troops listed as medically unfit for combat in the weeks before their scheduled deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan since 2003 were sent anyway, Pentagon records show.
This reliance on troops found medically "non-deployable" is another sign of stress placed on a military that has sent 1.6 million servicemembers to the war zones, soldier advocacy groups say....
Unit commanders make the final decision about whether a servicemember is sent into combat, although doctors can recommend against deployment because of a medical issue, Army spokeswoman Kim Waldron said....
In testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee in February, the panel's chairman, Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., asked Army leaders about an e-mail from the surgeon for the Fort Carson brigade that said medically "borderline" soldiers went to war because "we have been having issues reaching deployable strength."
"That should not be happening," Army Secretary Pete Geren told the committee. "I can't tell you that it's not, but it certainly should not be happening."
This isn't terribly surprising, considering the lengths the military is going to in order to get soldiers on the battlefield.
Thanks for posting this Jonathan. It can't be said enough how terribly our government is treating the Iraq and Afghanistan troops and veterans.
I believe it is shameful for the Defense Department or the Department of the Army to send men and women into both war theaters who are unfit for combat duty. This creates a situation where they can present a danger to others and themselves, and this is the fault of the Defense Department and the Service Branch they are apart of. Instead of sending personnel into the war zone, 1st priority are that servicemembers are psychologically fit, 2nd therapy whether it be individual or group, 3rd the dwell time needed for recovery, 4th making sure our servicemembers are healthy emotionally, psychologically, physically, and this should be a priority the Defense Department and all service brances must enforce. Finally, all military personnel are the responsibility of all service branches. It is your responsibility to take care of them. Because if they were members of your own family you would do everything with the powers you have in preventing them from deploying.