Before the United States engages in further military action by engaging with Syria, I want Congress to answer my question: With the current state of our Veterans Administration Health Care System, how do you plan to provide and afford timely care for our service men and women?
There is a huge failure to provide for the population of soldiers we currently have. Two wars on two fronts is going to be a lot more casualties. Constant budget cuts as well as service men and women pulling the benefits they are entitled to after the economy crashed, the war in Afghanistan, and the second Iraq war have already overloaded that system. How is it ethical to send people into another war when it is a known fact that the care they may require if they survive their 3rd, 4th, or 5th tours will not be available to them?
Why is this important?
I firmly believe it is important for us as a nation to take care of our troops and to fulfill the promise of affordable and appropriate care that is made to them when they enlist to serve their country. The Veterans Administration Health Care System is not a handout. It is the right of every soldier who serves to receive VAHCS benefits.
This system, as highlighted by recent scandals in the media, clearly cannot handle it's purpose of providing affordable, appropriate, and timely health care. Another large influx of veterans from a Syrian conflict would cause more devastation within this system. Please help me protect our current veterans' benefits by ensuring we don't create more of them until this broken system is fixed and funded. Thank you.
