Women are serving on the front lines as never before in our nation's history and unfortunately, that is creating challenges. Of the 1.7 million troops who have been deployed in support of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, more than 190,000 — or about 11 percent — are women.

Are Women Veterans Treated Differently at VA? - An internal report recently released from VA, shows that female veterans do not receive the same level of medical care as their male counterparts. Female veterans do not receive the same quality of outpatient care as male veterans at about one-third of the 139 Department of Veterans Affairs facilities that offer it. The VA's review found the health care disparity even as women are serving on the front lines in record amounts. William Duncan, associate deputy undersecretary at VA, said the disparity between men and women's health is not acceptable and the department is working aggressively to address the issue. He said, "We're striving to understand the reason for these health disparities in veterans health care based on personal characteristics." Women make up about 14% of the US Armed Forces and about 5% of VA's population, but that number is expected to nearly double in the next two years.

Women Veterans and Homelessness - According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, there are roughly 7,000 homeless women veterans living in the United States. And as more women return from active duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, officials expect that number to rise. Pete Dougherty, director of VA's homeless veterans programs, says that combat-related stress is a risk factor for homelessness. "We're finding among younger women, that they play a much more mission-critical role," he said. Additionally, Dougherty said that sexual trauma is another risk factor for homelesness and about 75 percent of female veterans report being victims of sexual abuse, experienced either in the military or in civilian life. He said that his department has set aside special grants for shelters outside the VA system to develop special housing and programs for homeless women veterans. Currently, out of 500 Veterans Affairs-run homeless shelters, 300 can house women, but none of those accept children and only 15 have programs aimed specifically at women veterans.

Sexual Trauma and Women Veterans - In 2007, the Department of Veterans Affairs found that women are reporting signs of mental health issues when they return home at a higher rate than their male counterparts.
The VA diagnosed 60,000 veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder. Of those, 22 percent of women suffered from "military sexual trauma," which includes sexual harassment or assault, compared with 1 percent of men. Dr. Darrah Westrup, who counsels female veterans at the VA-run Women's Health Clinic in Menlo Park, California, says another factor contributing to poor mental health is the high amount of sexual trauma reported by women screened by VA. She says many women have trouble reporting the trauma to their superiors out of fear of retribution. "When you are in a war zone, your survival depends on people watching your back and on unit cohesion," Westrup said. "The same individuals who attacked you are those who will be protecting you, or you'll be fighting alongside the next day."

VA has been authorized to provide specialized counseling and treatment for the aftereffects of sexual trauma that occurred during military service. Call 1-800-827-1000 for veterans to receive information, assistance and referrals on issues related to sexual trauma in the military

VA Center for Women Veterans - VA maintains a website for women veterans. The URL is http://www1.va.gov/WOMENVET.