U.S. Military Medical Costs Hit $50 Billion!

At a time when the U.S. is so cash strapped, it is considering privatizing and slashing Medicare and Medicaid, U.S. Military medical costs have mushroomed to $50 billion annually, up from $19 billion in 2001.*

Wars and aging Pentagon and military brass baby boomers are driving those costs up and they will continue to rise sharply for many years to come. Upwards of 40,000 U.S. troops have been severely injured in the Iraq and Afghan Wars and their numbers are growing. But so are the numbers of soldiers suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and other psychological problems. When wars end, their problems don't end, as tens of thousands of Vietnam vets became drug addicted and homeless, needing long term care.

In addition to the growth of the numbers of military people needing that medical care, inflation will balloon the costs and the taxpayers will face a huge future responsibility. It is a responsibility we must bear on behalf of all those military personnel risking their lives for these wars our government has sent them to fight.

The longer the American people sit in silence, the longer these wars will go and there will be more severely injured and PTSD soldiers needing long term care, as they live with the misery from these wars. And as we see now in Libya, in our silence there will be more wars. So let's not sit in silence. Let's raise our voices for peace on behalf of the U.S. and allied soldiers and on behalf of all the victims U.S. wars cause and bring an end to the suffering before there are more people to endure it.

Dick
* http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304520804576343482047107402.html