Support for Civilian Contractors Returning Home from Combat Zones

Throughout our nations history many civilians have served the US government in war zones. During this service civilians have faced the same dangers as uniformed veterans. However, upon returning home, these civilians have not always received the support and care they need and deserve.

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) are increasingly prevalent among returning Civilian Veterans due to the types of service they are asked to perform - similar to their Uniformed Service Member counterparts. These injuries can take months or years to become apparent after time spent in a war zone. Many injuries, including TBI, lung ailments and cancers that are caused by exposure to certain war zone conditions may take years to manifest. 

Since 9/11, many military veterans have gone on to serve as US Government Civilians and/or Contractors in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere upon leaving the Uniformed Services. While Uniformed Service Member veterans are readily served by the US Department of Veterans Affairs, for ailments or injuries sustained during active duty, their benefits can not be applied for any ailment or injury incurred while serving as a U.S. Government civilian and/or contractor in a deployed environment.

US Government civilians and contractors, and their families deserve the care and support of the US Government after their return home. Currently, Worker's Compensation and Defense Base Act (DBA) insurance are the primary forms of support provided to injured Civilian Veterans. Due to the lack of capacity of both Worker's Compensation and DBA insurance, many US Government departments and agencies have developed their own funds to assist in providing support to and care for their US Government Civilian workforce. As an example, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) has the CIA Memorial Fund and the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) has the FBI Agents Association - Member Assistance Fund to provide support for their employees.

However, these forms of care, while appreciated, do not solve all Civilian Veterans needs. Much of the healthcare information developed for the military is not applied to civilians. For example, while Walter Reed Hospital may have the best amputee surgeons and rehabilitation physical therapists in the world, civilians are often unable to access these services and must rely on civilian doctors with little to no experience with gunshot wounds, severe head trauma and related war injuries. The case is even more pronounced for PTSD. The U.S. military has spent billions of dollars developing expertise and means to treat military PTSD sufferers; however, this expertise cannot be accessed by those Civilian Veterans that are in need of this very same support.

Similarly, Worker's Compensation and traditional health and life insurance are not set up to deal with war injuries or death. Often Civilian Veterans simply cannot access the care they need. It can take years for injuries to be adequately treated and benefits may not be granted.

In emergencies, time is everything. When a civilian volunteers to serve during wartime, this citizen should rest comfortably knowing that should the unthinkable happen, they and their family will be taken care of and supported by their government. Similarly, during a domestic terrorist attack, which could happen at any time and without warning, we need to ensure there is no ambiguity regarding the level of government support for those would-be volunteers who decide to answer the call and render assistance to their fellow citizens during times of despair. If we do not assure volunteers that they will be taken care of, perhaps a chance exists that someone would hesitate before answering the call. This could be an even larger tragedy.

The CVA seeks to rectify this situation and support Civilian Veterans. Initial steps toward this goal include:

• Helping Civilian Veterans navigate the US Government, Agency, Contractor and other support services to better serve Civilian Veterans and their families. This will include an extensive list of websites, contact information and rules and policy information so that Civilian Veterans can help themselves.
• The CVA will also seek to hire knowledgeable support personnel who can personally help Civilian Veterans and their families obtain care.
•  The CVA will work to ensure that any person who risks their lives to help during a terrorist event is taken care of and their families are taken care of no matter what happens.
• The CVA works with military veteran support organizations to ensure that military veterans who become Civilian Veterans are taken care of properly.

Other Veteran Organizations

Civilian Veterans Association - http://www.civilianveteran.org/
Hope for the Warriors - http://www.hopeforthewarriors.org/ 
Wounded Warrior Project - http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/ 
CIA Officers Memorial Foundation - http://www.ciamemorialfoundation.org/ 
FBI Agents Association - http://www.fbiaa.org/ 
American Foreign Service Association - http://www.afsa.org/ 
United War Veterans Council - http://unitedwarveterans.org/