REHABILITATION
INSUFFICIENCIES DISABILITY AND COMPENSATION
Tens of thousands of troops have been wounded in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and brain injuries are being noticed more than ever before. Added to the physical difficulties of rehabilitation is a backlogged Veterans Affairs system and an inefficient bureaucracy that sometimes keeps injured veterans from getting the best help.
MEDICAL EVACUATION
PostTraumatic Stress Disorder
COST
QUALITY OF CARE
ELIGIBILITY AND ENROLLMENT
Wounded Action BY WILL DORAN
A
When shrapnel ripped through the left side of Chris Ray’s body while he led a patrol in Afghanistan, he considered himself lucky. Lucky he was alive, despite the wounds covering his body. Lucky he managed to roll into a ditch, escaping the small arms fire pouring in from the ambushing Taliban fighters. But, he says, mainly just
lucky that he was the only one in his squad who was hurt. That concern for those around him is a trait that Ray, a corporal in the U.S. Marine Corps, says is one of his most important. It’s what allowed him to make it through months of combat, leading soldiers who were sometimes no more than 20 years old. It’s one of the things he prides himself on as a leader. FEBRUARY 2012 | 30