Daniel Johnson

Blast Pressure Injuries May Affect More Than the Brain of Troops, New Data Shows Data from a live-fire mortar exercise by U.S. Army troops indicates that simply standing near mortars can significantly disrupt Autonomic Nervous System, or ANS, functioning within a day to worse leve...

www.military.com/daily-news/2...

Article I wrote for Military.Com on new data pointing to to blast overpressure injuries not just affecting the brain, but also the functioning of the heart, digestion, and other systems. Servicemembers and veterans are reporting all types of medical issues.

www.economist.com/finance-and-...

Articles like this are attempts to build rationale behind a course of action. The next administration is going to seriously attempt to cut veterans benefits using this logic. Sending people to war and then complaining about having to take care of them is absurd.

It's weird to think something I worked on was a finalist for the National Reporting category for the
#PulitizerPrize this year. A year ago, blast overpressure affecting servicemembers wasn't talked about much, and now large scale legislation in Congress targeting the issue has been introduced.

Bill in Congress Would Force Action on U.S. Troops’ Blast Exposure The Pentagon would be required to modify weapons, update safety guidelines, train medical staff and track individual troops’ exposure to repeated blasts that can injure their brains.

www.nytimes.com/2024/04/09/u...

Along with other reporting, 3 weeks ago I wrote for the
NYT opinion page on TBIs caused by soldiers' own weapons creating blast overpressure.

Today , the Senate and House are introducing a new bill on the issue. Glad to see legislative impact from writing.