The Air Force and Department of Defense (DOD) are on the verge of abandoning one of their own, leaving him to contemplate suicide and more.
Their lack of concern is evident as they prepare to unlawfully discharge Staff Sergeant Kyle Matthews, a nine-year veteran of the Air Force. Jeremy “Weed” Sorenson, a former Air Force fighter pilot and director of Guard and Reserve Affairs for the Uniformed Services Justice & Advocacy Group (USJAG), spoke about this case, which he considers to be particularly egregious.
SSgt. Matthews, who returned from a deployment to the Middle East last year, sought mental health treatment upon his return as he was not the same man that left for deployment, according to his wife.
“Over the course of the last 15 months,” Sorenson said, “[SSgt. Matthews] has participated in multiple off-base inpatient and outpatient treatment programs [at the request of health officials from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in Wrightstown, New Jersey].”
As a result, he was diagnosed with multiple mental health conditions, including bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and panic disorder.
Despite requiring further inpatient treatment, medical personnel began outpatient treatment at the New Jersey Air Force base.
Sorenson was shocked to learn “they denied that he had any of the previous diagnoses [and determined that] multiple off-base providers had erred.
Conveniently, the Air Force has diagnosed him with adjustment disorder, and borderline personality disorder, both of which are non-compensable under the Disability Evaluation System.”
It’s also interesting to note that one of the medications SSgt. Matthews has been prescribed is lithium—which he has been prescribed for over six months to treat bipolar disorder. “Yet, the Air Force refuses to acknowledge the diagnosis [of bipolar disorder],” Sorenson revealed. “How can a medication be prescribed while the diagnosis is denied?” he questioned.
On the brink of SSgt. Matthews’ “unlawful separation,” USJAG will not be silenced on this issue, considering the release of various documents and recordings to the public.
Sorenson said, “We have a plethora of medical documentation, including some which demonstrate that the Department of Defense medical providers are coordinating with his chain of command to make these diagnoses in order to administratively separate him without benefits.”
USJAG has documentation from SSgt. Matthew’s civilian providers, “documenting conversations with the military providers indicating the same,” the USJAG director of Guard and Reserve Affairs also disclosed.
Reluctantly, Sorenson also shared that SSgt. Matthews has attempted to commit suicide on at least three occasions in the last 15 months. “And to compound what he’s already dealing with, they’re precluding his disability benefits and trampling on his rights,” Sorenson argued.
“I am appalled by the DOD’s attempt to deny him his benefits while also denying him his right to due process under the Fifth Amendment. This is the senior leadership of the Air Force and DOD violating the Constitution of the United States. It must be stopped!”
For the past two months, Troy McIntosh, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Reserve Affairs and Airman and Guardian Readiness, who has a background in culinary arts, has been handling the case.
According to Sorenson, he has personally refused SSgt. Matthews access to his complete medical record, which is mandated to be provided to him under HIPAA.
For Sorenson, “this is part of a coordinated effort to prevent [SSgt. Mathews] from accessing information which demonstrates the malfeasance of the Department of Defense.”
In addition, he said, McIntosh has “lied on multiple occasions” and “blatantly provided false information” related to the diagnosis and treatment of SSgt. Matthews.
In the fight for the treatment and benefits that SSgt. Matthews has earned through nearly a decade of service, Sorenson said, “It has been an absolute circus with a lack of truthful communication from the DOD.”
“I have personally engaged with [SSgt. Matthews’] chain of command, all the way up to the Secretary of the Air Force and I’ve been ignored, lied to, and misled,” Sorenson shared.
“This has been brought to the direct attention of Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who has fallen in line with the lower levels, ignored the issue, and has taken no action.”
According to Sorenson, SecDef Austin has been provided “everything he needs to make the right decision and bring the DOD into compliance with the law”—but he has refused to do so. This tells Sorenson that “because the Air Force knows [SSgt. Matthews] has all these problems, and knows he’s at high suicide risk, it appears to me that they basically just want to get him off their books before he commits suicide.”
SSgt. Matthews will be separated from the Air Force without benefits or health care on Tuesday, despite the lack of intervention from the DOD. Tragically, he will be left to face thoughts of suicide alone and unable to support his wife and six children.
How could the U.S. Air Force and Department of Defense have allowed this to happen?
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