A coalition of veterans groups has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government alleging that troops returning from Afghanistan and Iraq have received deficient medical care and financial support.
The lawsuit, filed Monday in San Francisco, in the western U.S. state of California, charged that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (the VA) has broken the law by failing to promptly provide medical services to returning soldiers. The lawsuit also claims that the VA is working too slowly to process veterans' applications for disability benefits.
According to the lawsuit, the VA is failing to provide treatment for post traumatic stress syndrome to all the service members who need it.
The veterans groups said that if drastic measures are not taken immediately, the result will be broken families, homeless veterans, and an increase in drug abuse and alcoholism.
The Department of Veterans Affairs has not responded to the lawsuit.