WASHINGTON, Dec. 3, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — The Veterans Consortium (vetsprobono.org) is proud to announce the continued success of a three-year grant from the John and Daria Barry Foundation to fund the Women Veterans Legal Assistance Program, the only national program that focuses exclusively on the unique legal needs and challenges of women veterans.

The grant allows The Veterans Consortium to expand services to women veterans nationwide, with a particular focus on PTSD related to military sexual trauma (MST), and claims for women specific issues, such as reproductive health. 

The additional support for women veterans is important because in 2021, the VA’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) found that more than half of MST-related claims were improperly processed, putting these women at increased risk for depression, substance abuse, PTSD, suicide, and homelessness. Women veterans are four times more likely to become homeless than their male counterparts and are the fastest-growing group in the homeless population.

Since October of 2022, the program has served 329 women veterans, directly represented 62, and rightfully restored $900,000 in retroactive benefits.

The John and Daria Barry Foundation’s grant to The Veterans Consortium did more than change lives, it saved lives.

• After surviving repeated sexual assaults, a woman who served in the U.S. Navy went AWOL, and received a dishonorable discharge in the 1970s.  Her resulting PTSD ruined decades of her life, and she’d repeatedly contemplated suicide.  Thanks to this program, her pro bono attorney clearly documented the Military Sexual Trauma-related PTSD, restored her honor with a new discharge rating, and got her the retroactive benefits she’d earned. 
  
  
  
  
• A U.S. Marine Veteran was diagnosed with breast cancer after serving at Camp Lejeune, where industrial solvents and benzene have been found in the water.  Her pro bono attorney demonstrated the potential link between the contaminated water and the veteran’s cancer, and improved her disability rating and benefits, which allowed her to get the life-saving care she’d earned.

“Women veterans’ cases need specific expertise, and this grant empowers us to help them get the benefits they deserve.” said Chesley Roberts, Deputy Director, from The Veterans Consortium.

The John and Daria Barry Foundation is committed to improving opportunities for underserved communities, with a focus on veterans, education, and the environment. 

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SOURCE The Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program

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