Ruben Rosario: We're Quick To Send Them Off To War, But Slow To Help

The following is an ongoing national disgrace:

According to a weekly monitoring of government data by the Center for Investigative Reporting, there are 820,514 veterans -- including 11,488 here in Minnesota -- awaiting a response to claims of a disease, injury or illness suffered in the military.

On average, it is taking a little over eight months for the Department of Veteran Affairs to respond to a claim, and if a veteran decides to appeal a denied claim, it takes an average of 1,299 days -- or roughly 31/2 years -- to get a ruling.

We are quick to send many of them off to war but nowhere near as quick in getting them the help they need when they come back to us. That's why two nonprofit veterans-advocacy groups -- Veterans for Common Sense and Veterans United for Truth -- are not giving up on their so-far-unsuccessful, five-year-long battle in the courts to rectify the situation...