As Vet Group Grays And Ages, New Blood Tries To Inspire Change
The Veterans of Foreign Wars, once a thriving group, is seeing dwindling membership. In New Orleans, Iraq and Afghanistan veterans are trying to revitalize a VFW post, but old-timers are pushing back.
View ArticleObama Calls For More Veterans Affairs Spending At VFW Convention
President Obama addressed the Veterans of Foreign Wars convention in Pittsburgh Tuesday, pushing for increased spending at the VA, as the department is locked in an impasse with Congress over how to...
View ArticleThe U.S. Declared War On Veteran Homelessness — And It Actually Could Win
In 2009, then-Veterans Affairs head Eric Shinseki declared that all homeless veterans would have housing by 2015. New Orleans has made big strides, but in Los Angeles, the problem persists.
View ArticleIn New Orleans, There's Hope That Veteran Homelessness Can Be Solved
New Orleans has made huge strides towards ending veteran homelessness in the city. (This story first aired on August 4, 2015 on All Things Considered.)
View ArticleSome Veterans Affairs Reforms Undermine Medical Recruitment Efforts
The Department of Veterans Affairs is suffering a shortfall of physicians, especially in mental health. A steady flow of scandals and attempts at strict reform by Congress may be hurting recruitment.
View ArticleMelissa Stockwell Among Triathletes Aiming To Make Rio's Paralympics
For the first time, the triathlon will be an event at the Paralympics. Stockwell, an Iraq veteran, has won international paratraithlons before, but she's still got to qualify for the U.S. team.
View ArticleU.S. Office Of Special Counsel Calls Out VA Firing Of Whistleblowers
According to the U.S. Office of Special Counsel, the Department of Veterans Affairs rarely fires anyone for misconduct — except for the employees who blow the whistle on it.
View ArticleAmerican Dad Fights For The Afghan Interpreter Who Aided His Fallen Son
Some 13,000 Afghans and Iraqis who worked with the U.S. are awaiting visas they were promised. NPR's Quil Lawrence looks at a case involving an Afghan interpreter who was in the thick of the fighting.
View ArticleThousands Of U.S. Military Interpreters Wait For Visas
NPR follows up on the status of "AK," one of many Afghan and Iraqi interpreters for the U.S. military still waiting for a visa, and why thousands of interpreters struggle with the process.
View ArticleBehind Bars, Vets With PTSD Face A New War Zone, With Little Support
"For my PTSD issues, jail is the least therapeutic atmosphere you could ever imagine," says Iraq veteran David Carlson. "You come in one way and you leave three times worse."
View ArticleVA Restores Benefits To Vietnam Vet After Believing He Was Dead
A Vietnam veteran tells NPR he was recently informed by the Department of Veterans Affairs that it believed he was dead. The VA's records for tens of thousands of other people remain flawed; agency...
View ArticleAdvocates Question Whether Veterans Day Promotions Have Gotten Off Track
There's a huge gap between what vets consider real support and self-interested promotions. Advocates welcome businesses goodwill but are leery about the way some use Veterans Day to self promote.
View ArticleDefying Stereotypes, Number Of Incarcerated Veterans In U.S. Drops
The study from the Bureau of Justice Statistics is the first government report that includes significant numbers of veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
View ArticleVeterans' Advocates Highlight Progress On Homelessness, Claims Backlog
New Year's day 2016 is the deadline for two ambitious goals set at the Department of Veterans Affairs — ending the backlog of disability claims and reaching zero homeless veterans. Neither goal has...
View ArticleService Members, Not Citizens: Meet The Veterans Who Have Been Deported
Military service does not guarantee U.S. citizenship, which has meant a group of veterans has wound up together just over the border in Tijuana, Mexico, at a refuge they've dubbed "The Bunker."
View ArticleFor Fertility Treatment, Wounded Veterans Have To Pay The Bill
U.S. military health care covers the high cost of in vitro fertilization, but the Veterans Affairs health system doesn't. The discrepancy is putting vets with combat injuries in a bind.
View ArticleFor The VA's Broken Health System, The Fix Needs A Fix
After scandals around veterans waiting too long for care in 2014, Congress pushed through a $10 billion fix to get those vets care, fast. Now it's almost unanimous: The fix is broken.
View ArticleDespite Low Unemployment, Veterans Struggle To Find Meaningful Jobs
Unemployment for recent veterans has hit a historic low, but it's not clear how many veterans are able to use their military experience to get meaningful employment.
View ArticleAs Farmers Age, The Plan To Turn Veterans On To Agriculture
As American farmers are getting older, a younger cohort is entering the civilian workforce. Government programs are trying to help veterans become farmers for reasons both economic and therapeutic.
View ArticleAfter The Battle, The Harvest: Programs Help Vets Move Into Farming
As thousands of younger Americans leave the military — which has been downsizing lately — the USDA would like them to consider carrying the torch as older farmers start to retire.
View Article