CNN) – President Barack Obama will detail on Tuesday how his administration is attempting to rectify shortfalls in caring for war veterans, just as new threats abroad could require more sacrifices for American military families. Speaking at an annual American Legion conference in Charlotte, Obama was set to announce new executive actions aimed at improving mental health services and financial opportunities for servicemen and women, according to the White House. The actions include expanding research into post-traumatic stress disorder and brain injuries, developing ways to prevent suicide among veterans, and making it easier for veterans to transition into mental health services provided by civilian doctors or the VA after leaving active duty. The President also plans to announce new partnerships with financial lenders to make it easier for veterans to negotiate lower mortgage and student loan interest rates. The speech comes months after a CNN investigation uncovered massive patient wait times at Veterans Affairs hospitals, along with flawed management practices that encouraged employees to hide the delayed care. The systemic problems within the department led to the resignation of Eric Shinseki, a retired Army general who had headed the troubled agency since Obama took office in 2009. The American Legion, whose annual conference Obama will speak at Tuesday, was among several veterans groups calling for Shinseki to step down. His replacement, former corporate chief Robert McDonald, was approved unanimously by the Senate at the end of July. Lawmakers also green-lighted $16 billion in new funding to build more VA facilities and hire more workers, though some said the measure didn’t do enough to criminalize the wrongdoing at the agency. The White House, previewing Obama remarks Tuesday, said the administration would work “as long as it takes” to remedy health care problems within the veterans system, noting the agency was announcing this week a new plan to recruit better quality doctors and nurses. Officials also pointed to new efforts to protect whistle blowers who come forward with information about wrongdoing at Veterans Affairs. Obama was also set on Tuesday to note homelessness among U.S. veterans has dropped by a third over the past four years. Problems at the Department of Veterans Affairs stem partly from the surge of servicemen and women coming home from wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, two engagements begun before Obama took office that he’s vowed to wind down. U.S. combat troops left Iraq in 2011 while the last combat troops are set to leave Afghanistan by the end of this year. Yet a new threat posed by the militant group ISIS has forced Obama to begin airstrikes again in Iraq, with the potential for further U.S. military action in Syria. The White House has adamantly maintained that no U.S. combat troops will be sent to fight in the region. On Monday, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said it was possible that Obama speaks about the current Middle East situation during his remarks to the American Legion conference. “I wouldnt rule out a mention of the situation there, because certainly there are men and women in uniform who are sacrificing for the security of this country there,” he said. “But what the speech will be focused on will be making sure that were doing everything that we promised to keep our commitment to Americas veterans.”
Posted on: Tue, 26 Aug 2014 12:55:04 +0000