More than a thousand Iraq and Afghanistan veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder would be given lifetime disability retirement benefits such as military health insurance under the terms of a settlement reached between the government and the veterans.
Attorneys for the veterans, the Justice Department and the military jointly filed a motion on Thursday that spelled out the terms. The settlement must be approved by a judge to be final.
The settlement stems from a class action lawsuit filed in 2008 by veterans unable to serve, at least in part, because of the anxiety disorder who said they were illegally denied benefits.
PTSD is an anxiety disorder that can develop after a terrifying event in which a person felt physically harmed or threatened.
