Last night, President Obama announced plans to send 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan in 2010.

“While we understand the strategic reasons for this decision,” said National Veterans Foundation President Shad Meshad, “we are deeply concerned about the welfare of the troops that will be deployed.  This is the longest, all-volunteer, modern war in which the United States has ever been involved.”

“We have seen Veterans with families who have served in three or four combat deployments, who have been stop-lossed at least once to extend a tour of duty to more than a year, and who are on the list to be potentially recalled for another deployment, based on this troop surge. 

With each combat deployment, the likelihood of a soldier incurring PTSD, a traumatic brain injury, a limb amputation or death increases drastically. 

In addition, there are not nearly enough services to help these men and women transition back to civilian life after living in such extreme combat conditions for so long.   Too many Veterans are coming back from Afghanistan to end up in jail, jobless, homeless, dependent on drugs or alcohol, or involved in domestic abuse.  There needs to be a plan, not just for our efforts in Afghanistan, but for the long-term well-being and mental health of these troops, who are being asked to do more than soldiers of almost any other period in our history.”

Freddy Cordova, an Iraqi War Veteran, now working as an Information Services Representative at the National Veterans Foundation, is eligible to be recalled,due to the troop surge. 

Cordova joined the U.S. Army at 20, three days after President Bush declared war on Iraq. He felt it was his duty to serve. Five years and four combat tours of duty later, he separated from the Army an E-5 Sergeant.  By then, he had his Combat Infantryman Badge, Expert Infantryman Badge, Airborne Wings, three Army Commendation Medals, four Army Achievement Medals, a chest full of ribbons and a Presidential Unit Citation for his units’ action in Mosul.  During one of his deployments, Cordova’s tour of duty came under the government’s stop-loss policy, extending his combat deployment to almost 18-months.

Studies show that soldiers who experience tours of longer than a year are at a significantly higher risk for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.  

Cordova was single when he joined the Army, but now has a wife and two children.  “Some of the guys from my old unit have already been recalled,” said Cordova.  “I can’t imagine what it would do to my family if I have to go back.  I have been out for more than a year.  I’ve already served a lot of combat time. My wife and kids need me here now.” 

The National Veterans Foundation provides crisis counseling and resource referrals to both active duty military and Veterans through its Lifeline for Vets™, as well as services for unemployed and homeless Veterans.  Since the beginning of the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars, the organization has seen a dramatic increase in returning Veterans with readjustment problems struggling with the lack of government support services to help them transition after war.  

To support the National Veterans Foundation’s programs for troops and Veterans, please visit www.help-veterans.org.