Monday, February 22, 2010
For years following the invasion of Iraq in 2003, the media reported U.S. casualty figures released by the Department of Defense—which regularly excluded thousands of Americans from the publicized totals. Even though they were often engaged in dangerous operations, these individuals were not uniformed members of the U.S. Army or Marines Corps, but instead private contractors who have had their share of deaths and injuries.
A joint investigation by ProPublica, ABC News and the Los Angeles Times has determined that more than 1,700 civilian contractors have died in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2001, with another 40,000 injured. Many of these survivors have had to endure struggles getting medical treatment paid for under a taxpayer-financed federal system known as the Defense Base Act.
Even when recognized for their contributions, many contractors have received little attention, accepting their Defense of Freedom medal, the civilian equivalent of the military’s Purple Heart, in quiet, out-of-the-way ceremonies.
-Noel Brinkerhoff
War Contractors Receive Defense of Freedom Medal for Injuries, But Attract Little Notice (by T. Christian Miller, ProPublica)
Contractor Casualties (Department of Defense) (pdf)
Defense Base Act Case Summary by Nation (U.S. Department of Labor)
The Other Afghanistan Surge: Contractors (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)
Injured in Iraq and Afghanistan, Contractors Fight AIG for Medical Care (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)
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