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Northwest unaffected by vet care review
The investigation was sparked by scandal at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.
by Trevor Davis | News Reporter
President Bush's request for an investigation into the medical care available to returning veterans earlier this month won't affect local facilities, officials said.
The announcement of the investigation came a day after Maj. Gen. George W. Weightman, a two-star general in charge of the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., was fired over poor conditions at the Army's largest healthcare facility. The Washington Post revealed that soldiers experienced long waits for treatment and lived in dilapidated quarters at Walter Reed.
Bush wants to examine government health care facilities for wounded servicemen and women nationwide and examine their treatment from the time they leave the battlefield to the time they return to civilian life. The Defense Secretary will choose various Department of Defense hospitals throughout the country to inspect.
Oregon isn't home to any Department of Defense hospitals, but the state does have various facilities to care for veterans.
The Northwest's primary Department of Defense hospital, Madigan Army Medical Center in Tacoma, Wash., likely won't be impacted, said Jeremy O'Bryan, spokesman for Madigan.
"The situation at Walter Reed is specific to Walter Reed because of the types of conditions they see there," he said. "Every facility has its own set of circumstances."
He said that Madigan sees less extreme patient cases compared with Walter Reed. Walter Reed is one of the best-known and busiest facilities for soldiers wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan.
University junior Shane Addis, an Iraq War veteran with the United States Marine Corps Reserves, said he hasn't used a veterans' hospital, but he said he knew someone who got hit by a homemade bomb in Iraq.
"It shattered his jaw, and he lost his eye," Addis said. "He's recovering now, though."
Addis said some wounded soldiers say claiming disability is a lengthy process, and they often have to exaggerate their conditions to receive disability benefits.
The announcement of the investigation came a day after Maj. Gen. George W. Weightman, a two-star general in charge of the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., was fired over poor conditions at the Army's largest healthcare facility. The Washington Post revealed that soldiers experienced long waits for treatment and lived in dilapidated quarters at Walter Reed.
Bush wants to examine government health care facilities for wounded servicemen and women nationwide and examine their treatment from the time they leave the battlefield to the time they return to civilian life. The Defense Secretary will choose various Department of Defense hospitals throughout the country to inspect.
Oregon isn't home to any Department of Defense hospitals, but the state does have various facilities to care for veterans.
The Northwest's primary Department of Defense hospital, Madigan Army Medical Center in Tacoma, Wash., likely won't be impacted, said Jeremy O'Bryan, spokesman for Madigan.
"The situation at Walter Reed is specific to Walter Reed because of the types of conditions they see there," he said. "Every facility has its own set of circumstances."
He said that Madigan sees less extreme patient cases compared with Walter Reed. Walter Reed is one of the best-known and busiest facilities for soldiers wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan.
University junior Shane Addis, an Iraq War veteran with the United States Marine Corps Reserves, said he hasn't used a veterans' hospital, but he said he knew someone who got hit by a homemade bomb in Iraq.
"It shattered his jaw, and he lost his eye," Addis said. "He's recovering now, though."
Addis said some wounded soldiers say claiming disability is a lengthy process, and they often have to exaggerate their conditions to receive disability benefits.
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