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"A few weeks after Jarrid Starks ended his Army service in May, he went to an office in Albany, Ore., to enroll for veterans health-care benefits.
Starks brought medical records that detailed post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a twisted vertebra and a possible brain injury from concussions. Other records documented his tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, where his bravery fighting the Taliban was recognized with a Bronze Star for Valor.
None of that was enough to qualify him for health care from the Department of Veterans Affairs.
That's because Starks left the military this year with an other-than-honorable discharge — his final year of service scarred by pot smoking and taking absences without leave (AWOL).
He was told to fill out a form, then wait — possibly a year or more — while officials review his military record to determine whether he is eligible for health care.
"I was absolutely livid," Starks, 26, recalls. "This just isn't right." "
.....
"Amid a surge in suicides among recent veterans, politicians have increased VA budgets by billions of dollars to help expand and improve the treatment of PTSD, traumatic brain injuries and other conditions. They talk about forging a "seamless transition" from military medical care to the VA.
But federal law draws a sharp dividing line between honorably discharged veterans, who are offered access to veterans health-care and disability compensation, and those whose misdeeds may put those benefits at risk.
Veterans who fall below the threshold of an honorable discharge must submit to a VA review of whether they engaged in "willful and persistent misconduct," and if so, whether that makes them ineligible for health-care or disability benefits.
"Each case is going to be different, so it is important to go through all the evidence," said Leah Mazar, a Veterans Benefits Administration analyst. "This is not something the VA makes up. This is based on the laws and regulations." "
"A few weeks after Jarrid Starks ended his Army service in May, he went to an office in Albany, Ore., to enroll for veterans health-care benefits.
Starks brought medical records that detailed post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a twisted vertebra and a possible brain injury from concussions. Other records documented his tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, where his bravery fighting the Taliban was recognized with a Bronze Star for Valor.
None of that was enough to qualify him for health care from the Department of Veterans Affairs.
That's because Starks left the military this year with an other-than-honorable discharge — his final year of service scarred by pot smoking and taking absences without leave (AWOL).
He was told to fill out a form, then wait — possibly a year or more — while officials review his military record to determine whether he is eligible for health care.
"I was absolutely livid," Starks, 26, recalls. "This just isn't right." "
.....
"Amid a surge in suicides among recent veterans, politicians have increased VA budgets by billions of dollars to help expand and improve the treatment of PTSD, traumatic brain injuries and other conditions. They talk about forging a "seamless transition" from military medical care to the VA.
But federal law draws a sharp dividing line between honorably discharged veterans, who are offered access to veterans health-care and disability compensation, and those whose misdeeds may put those benefits at risk.
Veterans who fall below the threshold of an honorable discharge must submit to a VA review of whether they engaged in "willful and persistent misconduct," and if so, whether that makes them ineligible for health-care or disability benefits.
"Each case is going to be different, so it is important to go through all the evidence," said Leah Mazar, a Veterans Benefits Administration analyst. "This is not something the VA makes up. This is based on the laws and regulations." "
