Iraq and Afghanistan veterans carry with them to the civilan world hard-earned skills and defining experiences. But many are facing the residual effects of ten years of unending war, multiple rotations, ambiguous battle lines, lost friends and strained families. 

IAVA's new in-depth report, New York’s Newest Veterans, assesses the unique challenges impacting veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan in New York State. The report, which analyzes several key findings from the RAND Corporation’s recent study “A Needs Assessment of New York State Veterans: Final Report to the New York State Health Foundation,” identifies unemployment, mental health and navigating services and benefits as the top issues facing new veterans from New York. 

• Download IAVA's Report New York's Newest Veterans.
• Iraq or Afghanistan veteran? Share your story inside Community of Veterans.

About The RAND Study: The RAND Corporation, with the sponsorship of the New York State Health Foundation, has taken an important step toward better understanding the unique challenges facing new veterans. In 2009, IAVA partnered with RAND to recruit New York veterans and their families to participate in focus groups and an epidemiologic survey that looked at the needs of new veterans and their spouses in New York State. The focus groups provided a qualitative look into how a specific group of New York veterans and their families viewed their challenges at a specific point in time, while the survey provided a quantitative assessment of the challenges of a broadly representative sample of New York’s newest veterans and their spouses. Interested in learning more? Download the complete RAND study, “A Needs Assessment of New York State Veterans: Final Report to the New York State Health Foundation.”