Suicide is one of the greatest concerns among veteran health advocates, and scientists recently announced an ambitious new study to see if nutrition could play a role. The $10 million research project will try to determine if omega-3 fatty acid could lower suicide risk, according to The Associated Press.
The study is being led by Medical University of South Carolina, the Veterans Administration and the National Institutes of Health and will be conducted by the Army. To test the impact of omega-3, commonly found in fish oil supplements, researchers will provide veterans already receiving mental health treatment with a smoothie containing the nutrient, while another group will receive a placebo. The thought process is that omega-3s help maintain brain function and neural processing.
"One of the questions this study hopes to address is do we see a clinical effect that is strong enough that the military would then consider providing supplements to all military personnel, not just those who are already experiencing depression?" Bernadette Marriott, the study's principal investigator, told the AP.
The results could have a far-reaching impact on how the mental health of veterans is treated. According to Army findings, approximately 31 percent of soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan have depression or post-traumatic stress disorder.
October 1 marked an unwelcome change in military benefits for some retirees. The beginning of the month signaled increases to TRICARE Prime fees, which jumped by as much as 17 percent for some military families, according to Army Times.
The change in policy affects certain retirees differently. For instance, those who enrolled in the program on or after October 1 of last year will pay an annual fee of $269.28 for an individual policy, up more than $9 from the previous rate. For families, it jumped from $520 to $538.56. The increase is even more significant for retirees who enrolled before October 1, 2011. Their rates will grow from $230 to the current levels for individuals and from $460 for families.
The increase comes as a of result a stipulation in the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act, which said that TRICARE Prime fees can be subject to an annual increase that falls in line with cost of living adjustments. This marks the second time since 1995 the program has seen a fee increase.
The increases to TRICARE Prime are part of an ongoing effort by the Department of Defense to help reduce the burden healthcare costs are putting on an already-strained budget. According to The Huffington Post, expenditures on healthcare reached $53 billion in 2011, almost three times the rate in 2001.
The raid that killed Osama bin Laden was one of the American military's proudest moments of the last two years, and a new film dramatizing the events leading up to and including the mission is headed to TVs across the country. Dubbed Seal Team Six: The Raid on Osama bin Laden, the movie is set to debut on November 4 on the National Geographic Channel, reports The Associated Press.
The movie is the latest foray of the storied May 2, 2011 raid into the pop culture world. Most recently, one of the Navy SEALs who took part in the mission published a first-hand account in September, and Academy Award winning director Kathryn Bigelow is releasing a big screen account later this year.
Seal Team Six, though a dramatized version of the event, has been looked at by everyone from retired Navy SEALs to historians familiar with bin Laden's life to be sure it is as accurate as possible.
"While some aspects of the characterizations have been dramatized for creative reasons, the core story is an accurate portrayal of an event that ended the longest manhunt in American history," National Geographic said in a press release, according to the AP.
Navy SEALs have earned a great deal of attention as of late. Most notably, the 2012 big screen hit Act of Valor starred active duty members of the elite military sector.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics revealed some encouraging statistics on Friday, reporting that the nationwide unemployment rate dropped to 7.8 percent in September. The good news also applied to post-9/11 veterans, whose unemployment rate fell to 9.7 percent, considerably lower than the 10.9 percent in August, according to Military Times.
Soldiers who left the service after September 11, 2001, have often struggled to find jobs in the weakened economy. However, the White House and Congress have made improving the transition process a priority and have helped create employment programs over the last year.
Still, though pieces of legislation like the VOW to Hire Heroes Act, which created tax incentives for companies to give veterans jobs, have been successful, some say there is more the Department of Defense can do to help servicemembers find employment opportunities once they leave the Armed Forces. Specifically, experts say it should be easier for veterans to get state licensing for jobs that can benefit from the skills they learned while serving in the military.
"It's no secret that a large percentage of America’s veterans are struggling to find work, having faced jobless rates as much as two-thirds higher than in the comparable civilian population in the past year," James Koutz, the national commander of the American Legion, told the House and Senate Veterans' Committee, according to the Times. "We cannot let up."
Although the unemployment results should be taken with a grain of salt because of the small sample size, the findings continue a months-long downward trend that is encouraging for veteran advocates across the country.
There have undoubtedly been some successes in helping troops get back to work, but one of the most recent efforts to be proposed in Congress was met with a swift defeat. The bill, which was sponsored by Senator Patty Murray, would have created jobs for an estimated 20,000 troops, was shot down by Senate Republicans due to questions over how it would be paid for, The New York Times reports.
Veterans looking for assistance with the job hunt can visit AFBA's Career Center, which helps pair employers and recruiters with qualified servicemembers.
The children of members of the military have a much different experience than other youngsters, and that is especially true when it comes to schooling. In an effort to address those challenges, the White House recently announced a new initiative to help prepare the country's teachers for the unique needs of military children.
The announcement was made by second lady Jill Biden and Army chief of staff Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, and is highlighted by a partnership between the White House and 100 colleges and universities across the country. The schools pledged to implement training for their future teachers that educates them about the challenges military children face, one of the most common of which is having to transfer from school to school.
"Through each transition, they are faced with leaving their friends and adjusting to new schools and new surroundings, all of which can affect a student's opportunity to achieve academic success," Biden said at George Mason University. "As a teacher, this issue is particularly close to my heart."
The program, known as Operation Educate the Educators, is sponsored by American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education and the Military Child Education Coalition, but is being led by the Joining Forces initiative, which was started by Biden and first lady Michelle Obama.
The American Legion recently conducted a survey of 25 Veterans Affairs medical centers, and though the organization found the level of care to be impressive, there was certainly room for improvement. Specifically, the Legion cited the fact that the Washington VA office could be more involved, according to Military Times.
The findings, published in the System Worth Saving Task Force Report, suggested that the considerable efforts made to provide better care at VA centers over the last several years have paid off. Most of the programs were focused on improving a better quality of care, but the Legion says the VA still needs to implement some changes to make sure strides continue to be made.
"If [the] VA is truly moving toward a patient-centered model of care, it needs to move away from automation and toward a more personalized approach," Jacob Gadd, the Legion's deputy director of health, said in a statement.
The DoD and VA have both made veterans' health a priority, as evidenced by their latest move. The two departments recently invested more than $100 million to research the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury.
Women have broken down many barriers in the military in recent years, but they are still not allowed to serve in the infantry and similar combat-arms specialties. However, for the first time, female soldiers have been taking part in infantry training to see how they respond to the intense regimen, USA Today reports.
The move brings women one step closer to yet another milestone, but it certainly won't be easy. The Marine Corps' Infantry Officer Course features a great deal of psychological and physical stress. So much so, in fact, that about 25 percent of all trainees don't make it through to completion.
The infantry, which is often on the front lines of combat, is the one of the last remaining hurdles for female soldiers. Though there are some critics of the Pentagon's move, the Department of Defense has been making more positions open to women over recent months. Earlier this year, the DoD made more than 14,000 positions available to women, according to the publication.
It's a smart move to open up more positions, given the role that female soldiers played in Iraq and Afghanistan. More than 280,000 women served in the two wars, many of whom found themselves in intense firefights and other combat situations, even though they weren't technically infantry members.
Smartphone apps have made life easier for many people, and that includes military families. The latest program comes from somewhat of an unlikely source. Sesame Street recently released its military families app that comes equipped with a number of resources designed to help parents assist their children through sometimes-difficult transitions of military life.
The program covers a wide range of topics including deployment of a parent as well as their return from overseas, both of which can cause a great deal of stress for youngsters and adults alike. The app, which is available for the iPhone and Android, highlights the importance of addressing the mental well-being of the youngest members of military families.
Numerous studies have shown that deployment of a family member can have a significant impact on children. In fact, a 2010 study that focused on children between 3 and 8 found youngsters with a parent deployed were about 11 percent more likely to visit a clinic due to a mental health issue.
"Military deployment doesn't just affect the soldier, but it's the family back home," Dr. Gregory Gorman told ABC News. "Not just the spouse but children, too."
Thousands of servicemembers are expected to separate from service in the coming months and years as the United States leaves Afghanistan, and one of the leading military officials says there needs to be more conversations about how veterans are treated when they come home. Joint Chiefs chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey told an audience at Kansas State University that there needs to be a discussion of how to help soldiers transition back to civilian society, The Associated Press reports.
With about 750 soldiers in attendance, Dempsey spoke about the challenges many soldiers face after they leave the service. Those obstacles can be even larger if they feel the country has not recognized their service. Though there have certainly been strides in the last few decades, he says there should be an effort to help vets return to school or get jobs once they return.
"We ought to have that conversation," Dempsey told the crowd, according to the AP. "I just don't want to wake up one day and decide that I should have had a conversation with America before it occurs."
The need to address veterans' issues, such as employment and education, is especially high. Officials estimate that approximately 300,000 soldiers will separate from service each year for the next four years.
Military families face a host of challenges, and sometimes they encounter substantial financial hurdles. However, while there is certainly a need for assistance on such matters, some members of the Armed Forces say there is not much available, according to Financial Advisor magazine.
Joseph Montanaro knows the financial challenges firsthand. A former member of the Army National Reserve, Montanaro went on to become a chartered financial analyst (CFA), and says that troops are often given little guidance on money matters, some of which could cost servicemembers hundreds of thousands of dollars. For instance, determining when it's best to separate from service is an important financial decision.
"When to leave the military can be a $300,000 to $400,000 decision between the pension and benefits the military member may be giving up by quitting before retirement," Montanaro told the publication.
Of course, there are other considerations to make as well. Everything from retirement benefits and healthcare to life insurance plays into financial planning for military families. Although troops could use some more financial guidance, there has been a growing effort to provide the necessary education, and Holly Petraeus has been leading the charge. Most recently, Petraeus traveled to Marine Corps Base Hawaii to answer troops' questions and concerns.