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Vets who were exposed to chemicals in the Panama Canal Zone want to be included in the PACT Act

Caption: Steven Price served in the Army in the Panama Canal Zone. He says he was exposed to Agent Orange, DDT, and other toxins. He later developed chronic B-cell leukemia., Credit: Courtesy Steven Price

People who served in the Canal Zone were left out of a law that made it easier to get care and benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Bought by WRFA-LP, KTEP, and WHRV

3M has agreed to pay $6 billion over faulty earplugs. Now, plaintiffs must decide whether to accept.

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: 3M's dual-ended "Combat Arms" earplugs were issued to troops from 2003 to 2015. They were designed to let conversation, commands, and other normal sounds through, but blunt the force of loud noises like gunfire., Credit: Jay Price / American Homefront

About a quarter million troops and veterans have signed on as plaintiffs in litigation claiming the "Combat Arms" earplugs - manufactured by a 3M s...

Bought by KPBS, WRFA-LP, Texas Public Radio, KRPS, North Country Public Radio and more

The VA is facing a growing number of claims as a key PACT Act deadline approaches

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: Volunteer Veteran Service Officers Hugh Reid (right) and Eric Isaksen help a veteran file a disability claim at American Legion Post 327 in Norfolk, Virginia., Credit: Steve Walsh / American Homefront

The law passed last year makes millions of veterans eligible for new benefits, including post 9/11 vets who were exposed to burn pits.

Bought by North Country Public Radio, KPBS, WRFA-LP, Texas Public Radio, RadioFreePalmer and more

The Pentagon has begun implementing a law to reduce suicides, 18 months after Congress passed it

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: U.S. Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Gilbert R. Cisneros Jr. signs a policy to implement the Brandon Act on May 5. Attending the signing were Patrick and Teri Caserta, the parents of Brandon Caserta, a Navy sailor who died by suicide, Credit: Jack Sanders / U.S. Air Force

The Pentagon has put in place "The Brandon Act" - named after a Navy sailor who died by suicide in 2018. It allows service members to go outside th...

Bought by WRFA-LP, KUT, and Texas Public Radio

Policymakers say addressing extremism among veterans is a 'delicate' challenge

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: According to the George Washington University Program on Extremism, more than a hundred veterans were criminally charged in connection with the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol., Credit: Brett Davis / Flickr

While still a small percentage of the total veteran population, the number of veterans committing extremist violence has risen sharply, according t...

Bought by WRFA-LP, KUT, KPBS, North Country Public Radio, and Texas Public Radio

More Vietnam vets now qualify for disability benefits, but it may be years before they see the money

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: Vietnam Veteran Jim Scott, who now volunteers for the Bladder Cancer Advocacy Network, shared his story at the 2018 Bladder Cancer Think Tank. Scott attributes his disease to his exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam., Credit: Bladder Cancer Advocacy Network

Veterans suffering from certain medical conditions became eligible for "presumptive" VA disability benefits last year. But the claims they're filin...

Bought by KWMU St. Louis, KRPS, WRFA-LP, North Country Public Radio, KPBS and more

For the first time, the VA is helping some veterans with PTSD get service dogs

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: Army veteran Scot Pondelick said Venus, his PTSD service dog, has helped him feel more comfortable spending time in public and around groups of people., Credit: Chris Haxel / American Homefront

Congress has mandated a pilot program that will pay to train service dogs and place them in veterans' homes.

Bought by KCUR, WRFA-LP, KMXT, KUT, and Texas Public Radio

In hot real estate markets, buyers using VA mortgages can have a hard time competing for homes

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: Real estate agent Leslie Alford said the housing market near Ft. Riley, Kansas has been "crazy" this year,” with “a whole lot less houses for sale, a whole lot more competition for them, and higher prices.”, Credit: Courtesy Leslie Alford

Troops and veterans sometimes are hurt by misconceptions about VA mortgages, or they encounter sellers who don't want their home to go through a VA...

Bought by WRFA-LP, Texas Public Radio, KRPS, and KUT

A study shows PTSD carries a stigma for veterans - regardless of whether they suffer from it

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America erected this window display in New York City as part of a 2015 PTSD awareness campaign., Credit: IAVA

Fewer than 20 percent of veterans suffer from PTSD, but most Americans think the disorder is far more common.

Bought by KRPS, KLCC, KCUR, KPBS, WRFA-LP and more

Arlington National Cemetery is filling up, so the Army may limit who can be buried there

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: Kathi Dugan, 73, retired from the Navy after 30 years. Her parents are both buried at Arlington National Cemetery, but Dugan may not be able to join them if the Army proceeds with a plan to cut eligibility for in-ground burials., Credit: Desiree D'Iorio / American Homefront

Many former troops consider an Arlington burial their final veterans benefit. But space for in-ground burials is getting scarce, so some vets may b...

Bought by WRFA-LP, Texas Public Radio, KPBS, KBCS 91.3 FM Community Radio, and North Country Public Radio

Tiny Home projects are expanding, offering homeless veterans independence and security

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: The first Veterans Community Project campus in Kansas City, Mo. features 49 tiny homes for homeless veterans. The organization hopes to have similar villages in eight cities by the end of 2022., Credit: Chris Haxel / American Homefront

In cities nationwide, groups addressing veteran homelessness by replacing the traditional shelter model with tiny homes.

Bought by WTIP, WAMC Northeast Public Radio, WRFA-LP, Texas Public Radio, KJZZ and more

Some states are doing what the federal government won't: Giving veterans benefits to gay ex-troops

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: Former Navy sailor Louis Miller stands on the deck of the USS Enterprise aircraft carrier. Miller was kicked out of the Navy in 1992 for being gay., Credit: Courtesy Louis Miller

Thousands of troops were expelled for being gay before Congress changed the law in 2011. Though many still don't qualify for federal veterans benef...

Bought by KMXT, KPBS, KPCC, North Country Public Radio, KCUR and more

The Marines' first west coast female boot camp is over, and it may be years before it happens again

From: American Homefront Project

A group of female recruits completed Marine boot camp in San Diego this spring - the first time the Corps has trained women outside of Parris Islan...

Bought by KMXT, WAMC Northeast Public Radio, and KPCC

National Native American Veterans Memorial celebrates a complicated tradition of service

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: The National Native American Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. opened in November. The monument incorporates water for sacred ceremonies, benches, and lances where visitors can tie cloths for prayers and healing., Credit: Ron Cogswell / Flickr

Native Americans join the military at a high rate, but some struggle with the military's role in displacing and subjugating Indigenous people throu...

Bought by KMXT, Texas Public Radio, WUSF, North Country Public Radio, and KRZA

Slowly and cautiously, the VA is reopening its medical clinics

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: Medical personnel care for a patient in the parking garage of the James A. Haley Veterans' Hospital in Tampa. Much of the emergency department has been relocated outside., Credit: Ed Drohan / James A. Haley Veterans' Hospital

Medical facilities run by the Department of Veterans Affairs are reopening at a slower pace than many civilian health systems. But the VA has recen...

Bought by Colorado Public Radio, KPBS, and Texas Public Radio

COVID-19 has upended the business model of American Legion posts, but Legionnaires are innovating

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: Comedian Fernando Sanchez warms up attendees of American Legion Post 397's comedy night Oct. 10. The Monterey Park, Cal. post has turned to events like this to raise money during the pandemic., Credit: Robert Garrova / American Homefront

American Legion posts across the country serve as a community hub for veterans and their families. But the pandemic has put the future of many post...

Bought by KRZA, Texas Public Radio, WUSF, KPBS, and Colorado Public Radio

After initially saying it wouldn't, the VA now will remove Nazi symbols from two veterans cemeteries

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: A gravestone for a German POW in the San Antonio VA cemetery. The stone is engraved with a swastika and an inscription that references Adolf Hitler., Credit: Military Religious Freedom Foundation

The stones, engraved with swastikas, mark the graves of German POWs who died in the United States during World War II.

Bought by WUSF, Colorado Public Radio, and Texas Public Radio

The VA has embraced artificial intelligence to improve veterans' health care

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: Drs. Andrew Borkowski (left) and Stephen Mastorides analyze slides under a microscope to spot cancer in tissue samples. They trained a computer to do the same thing., Credit: Stephanie Colombini / American Homefront

Researchers at the Tampa veterans' hospital are training computers to diagnose cancer. It's one example of how the Department of Veterans Affairs i...

Bought by KPBS, WOUB, Texas Public Radio, KPCC, and Colorado Public Radio

A new law allows troops to seek compensation for malpractice by military doctors

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: Congresswoman Jackie Speier, left, meets with Army Sergeant Richard Stayskal, center, his wife, Megan, and his attorney, Natalie Khawam, in Speier’s Washington office before an April 2019 subcommittee hearing on the Feres Doctrine., Credit: U.S. House of Representatives

Congress has established an administrative process for service members to pursue malpractice claims. But they still can't sue in civilian court.

Bought by WUSF, Texas Public Radio, and Colorado Public Radio

The VA is teaching intimacy skills to veterans to try to save their marriages

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: John and Barbara Browning attended a Warrior to Soul Mate session to improve their marriage in light of the John’s PTSD symptoms and other health challenges. 'He never told me what he went through in Vietnam until he went to pieces,' Barbara said., Credit: Carson Frame/American Homefront

The Department of Veterans Affairs is offering couples retreats to help former service members communicate with their spouses.

Bought by WAMC Northeast Public Radio, WUSF, WOUB, KPCC, and Colorado Public Radio

After generations of grief and frustration, families of Korean War MIAs are more optimistic

From: American Homefront Project

Caption: U.S. Defense Department forensic anthropologists in Wonsan, North Korea examine the contents of boxes containing the possible remains of U.S. MIAs July 27, 2018., Credit: David Marshall / U.S. Army

Families hope advances in DNA technology and thawing U.S./North Korean relations will help the government recover and identify long-missing remains...

Bought by KBCS 91.3 FM Community Radio, KPBS, Texas Public Radio, and WUSF