Report: 1/3 of warrior-unit soldiers addicted

WASHINGTON, Jan. 25 (UPI) -- A U.S. military report says up to 35 percent of the 10,000 soldiers in Warrior Transition Units are dependent or addicted to prescription painkillers.

An Army inspector general's report released Tuesday says 25 percent to 35 percent of the soldiers assigned to the special wound-care companies -- established after the 2007 Walter Reed Army Hospital scandal -- "are over-medicated, abuse prescriptions and have access to illegal drugs" as they wait sometimes more than one year for a medical discharge, USA Today reported.

"This report shows that there continue to be soldiers falling through the cracks of the Army's efforts to care for their wounded, ill, and injured," said Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., a senior member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee. "It illustrates that soldiers are waiting too long for routine examinations, that many (warrior units) have not been provided the uniform guidance they need, that access to mental health professionals is too often scarce and that too many soldiers are abusing drugs as they struggle to recover both mentally and physically."

Col. Darryl Williams, the newly appointed commander of the units, questioned the report's findings and said they are not statistically valid because they are based on estimates from case workers and nurses.