Family Caregivers

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are producing a greater percentage of combat veterans suffering from multiple severe injuries, compared to earlier wars. While modern protective gear and battlefield medicine have greatly improved from previous conflicts, the intensity of these poly-trauma injuries presents great challenges to the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), in meeting their acute, rehabilitative and long-term care health needs.

The family members of these poly-trauma victims typically race to be at the bedside of wounded combat veterans, and remain with them throughout their treatment, recovery and rehabilitation. Often they move to be near the military treatment or VA health care facility during the veteran’s course of care. These family members end up shouldering a great and lifelong burden as home and institutional caregivers, giving up or severely restricting their own employment, education and social interactions that are taken for granted in the normal course of life. Furthermore, family caregivers often suffer severe financial and personal hardships as a consequence providing care to a severely disabled veteran. Yet, in their absence an even greater burden of direct care would fall on DoD and VA, at significantly higher financial cost to the government and a reduced quality of life for severely wounded war veterans.

The U.S. government owes its highest obligation to those who are put in harm’s way and become severely disabled as a consequence of that service. As a matter of equity and fairness, immediate family members of severely injured combat veterans should be afforded generous relief, assistance and care for the duration of the lives of veterans injured in military service to our nation.

We must Stand Up for family caregivers of severely wounded and disabled veterans. That means supporting legislation to provide a comprehensive set of supportive services, including financial support, health and homemaker services, respite, education and training and other necessary relief to immediate family member caregivers of veterans severely injured, wounded or ill from combat service.

Help Ensure That VA Has Sufficient Funding To Support Family Caregivers– Contact Congress Today