On the heels of congressional hearings about military sexual trauma (MST), the Government Accounting Office (GAO) asked the Veterans Administration (VA) to fold funding for MST treatment into overall budget requests for mental health services rather than categorize these services under "readjustment counseling "of the Vet Centers.

The VA disagreed with GAO recommendations that Vet Centers be recorded under mental health care services. VA spokesperson John R. Gingrich challenged the recommendation, saying it would bump into "stigma associated with seeking mental health services by combat Veterans and Veterans who have experienced military sexual trauma" compared to a more traditional mental health model. But the VA routinely reject MST claims, said former Marine Captain Anuradha K. Bhagwati even though they have hired staff to work with rape victims.

Excluding Vet Centers, is among the reasons, that the GAO said the VA's $4.4 billion request falls short of the actual costs for mental health needs of veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan. Separate budgeting also sidelines Congress from oversight. The 271 Vet Centers assist in the transition to civilian life, and are designed as a community-based services. Vet Centers are often the first place where women receive services as they get ready to return to civilian life. More than $1.4 billion is currently spent in out-patient settings.

A report released by the GAO last year indicated that among women veterans screened, as many 21 percent of experienced MST, and 15 percent of those serving in Iraq or Afghanistan reported MST. There is widespread belief that the actual numbers are higher because soldiers are apprehensive about reporting rape. When they do, women say they are ostracized, discredited, and their careers jeopardized. Unlike civilian life, they are not allowed to transfer or quit. The unwanted incident often leads to PTSD or another trauma-induced mental health crisis in addition to physical health problems reported the many witnesses at the House hearings.

Sharply critical of the VA's failure to enumerate the services it provides across the board, or the numbers of people either being served or providing the services, the GAO noted:

"VA had additional spending in fiscal year 2009 for mental health services that VA did not report as mental health spending in its budget justification or in any other publicly available report. Specifically, VA did not report as mental health spending the amounts it spent for those mental health services that it (1) paid non-VA providers to provide in community settings and (2) provided in VA settings not primarily used for providing mental health services, such as nursing homes. VA also did not report as mental health spending the amount it spent for counseling services to address mental health issues provided by VA Vet Centers."

The GAO report was released the day after congressional hearings about the ramifications of sexual abuse of women. Approximately 15 percent of women vets report military sexual trauma, a number that is probably low based on the likelihood of under reporting.