Soldiers say unfit troops being deployed - Army News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Army Times

Soldiers say unfit troops being deployed

FAIRBANKS, Alaska — A group of active-duty soldiers at Fort Wainwright is accusing commanders of forcing medically unfit soldiers to deploy to Iraq.

The soldiers are gathering signatures to send a petition to Congress calling for a full investigation.

Sgt. Jesse Raymo — among those spearheading the effort — says he sustained a sports-related shoulder injury in January 2005 just before deploying to Iraq with the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team.

Raymo says he was denied access to an MRI because his supervisors thought it was too close to deployment.

He was later injured again in a roadside bomb, then he was part of a convoy that was shot at by insurgents.

Lt. Col. Jonathan Allen says soldiers are thoroughly reviewed by a medical board and deployed only after doctors say they’re ready.