The widow of an Iraq war veteran is suing the federal government for negligence after her husband committed suicide while in outpatient care for depression at a Veterans Affairs hospital.
Tiera Woodward said her husband, Donald, sought treatment at a VA hospital in Lebanon, Penn., but was not seen by a psychiatrist for more than two months.
According to the group Veterans for Common Sense, over 150,000 veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have already sought mental health care from the VA.
“Each tragic veteran suicide is yet another painful reminder of the human cost of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and VA’s abject failure to provide timely and appropriate mental health care,” said Paul Sullivan, the group’s executive director. “How many wake-up calls does [the] VA need?” (Associated Press, Oct. 8)
