Veteran disability payments to increase as number of veterans decreases

The U.S. will spend an estimated $59 billion or more annually in 2033 to compensate disabled veterans, compared with $29 billion annually currently, according to internal Department of Veterans Affairs documents obtained by the Associated Press, the AP/Kansas City Star reports.

According to VA, while the number of total U.S. veterans is expected to decline from 24 million to 15 million in 2033, the annual cost -- when factoring out inflation -- of treating disabled veterans is expected to rise from $29 billion to $33 billion in today's dollars, an increase of more than 10%. In addition, VA officials acknowledge the estimate could increase by 30%.

The decline in the total number of veterans is attributed to older veterans from World War II and Korea dying. However, the total number of disabled veterans has increased 25% since 2001 to 2.9 million, compared with a 4% increase during the six-year period before the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan began, according to data from the VA and U.S. Census Bureau. Advances in medical care are helping injured veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars stay alive after "devastating injuries" that likely would have killed veterans from earlier wars, according to the AP/Star.

In addition, more veterans are aware of the benefits to which they are entitled, according to Steve Smithson, a deputy director at the American Legion. Smithson said, "It's not like the WWII generation and Korean War generation, where they weren't aware of what they could file for -- and they were also reluctant to file if they didn't think they needed it." According to VA, of the 755,000 veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, more than 181,000 collect disability benefits.

Veterans are also living longer, and because payments increase as veterans age, individual veterans are costing VA more than they have in the past. According to VA, Vietnam War veterans constitute the largest group of veterans receiving disabilities payments, as many of their conditions worsen over the years, costing VA more money. According to the AP/Star, more than 947,000 Vietnam veterans were receiving disability payments at the end of 2006 (Kerr, AP/Kansas City Star, 5/11).

Suicide Rates

Rising suicide rates among veterans "is causing major concern among veterans' groups and lawmakers," the San Francisco Chronicle reports. An average of 18 U.S. veterans commit suicide daily, according to a recent CBS News report that has been confirmed by VA. According to the California Department of Public Health, in 2006, 21% of the 3,198 suicides in the state were veterans; however, veterans constituted 6% of California's 37.1 million residents. Although causes for the rate increases are unknown, mental health professionals attribute them to post-traumatic stress disorder, which affects up to 30% of soldiers who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to the Chronicle.

According to VA spokesperson Kerri Childress, the department is increasing its prevention efforts by hiring more mental health care workers, creating a veteran suicide hotline and adding suicide prevention coordinators at all VA medical facilities (Koopman, San Francisco Chronicle, 5/12).