Stephen Mandile

• Branch: Massachusetts Army National Guard
• Rank: Sergeant
• Deployment: Iraq (12/2004 – 10/2005) with the 793rd Military Police Battalion
• Hometown: Uxbridge, MA
• Twitter Handle: @sjmandile

Background:

Stephen served in the Massachusetts Army National Guard as a Sergeant and deployed to Iraq from December 2004 to October 2005 as part of the 793rd Military Police Battalion. He is a Selectman on his town’s Select Board and a co-founder of the Cannabis Advancement Series and the 2019 Veterans Health and Medical Cannabis Study. These initiatives focus on providing education, services, support, and advocacy for veterans interested in using alternative healing approaches to treat physical, emotional, or psychological ailments.

Stephen’s work emphasizes reducing veterans’ reliance on opiates and other pharmacological drugs that can increase the risk of suicidal thoughts, actions, and overdose deaths.

Why IAVA?

Stephen is a member of IAVA because of its mission to empower and advocate for veterans. He believes the most pressing priority is for the VA to provide education and access to cannabis and other alternative therapies, which are helping him and countless other veterans but are currently prohibited by outdated VA policies.

Maintaining continuity of care is essential for veterans needing medication-assisted treatment, but many are forced to seek care and medication from private physicians, which becomes costly—especially for those on fixed incomes. Stephen feels that for the VA to gain the trust of veterans, it needs to conform to the individual needs of each veteran rather than forcing veterans to conform to its system.

He believes that a VA that listens to and adapts to veterans’ needs can significantly reduce veteran suicides and overdose deaths.