Stop-loss in the United States Military

The stop-loss policy implemented by the U.S. Military can have a negative impact on a soldier’s mental and physical well being, and can often leave his or her family scared, worried, and in financial duress. Many soldiers who are being stop-lossed are fighting to be compensated for their additional service, and to have the policy eradicated.

What is Stop-loss?

Stop-loss is the United States government policy of involuntary extending a soldier’s tour of duty immediately after his enlistment terms are over. Commonly, soldiers who are stop-lossed are those whose enlistment period ends during a combat tour, or those who are due to leave within 90 days of the start of a combat tour. Because of the policy, many remain long past the date they expected to return. The stop-loss policy is used so that the Army does not have to replace seasoned soldiers with ones who have not trained with the unit.

How Many Soldiers are Stop-lossed?

According to the organization Veterans for America, the United States Army’s stop-loss orders have jumped dramatically since the government has ordered combat tours in Iraq extended. Numbers fluctuate, but anywhere between 9,000 to 16,000 soldiers have been stop-lossed each year since the War on Terror began.

Veterans Reaction to Stop-loss

Many U.S. Army officials consider being stop-lossed a "backdoor draft" and assert that once they have completed their enlistment period, they should be allowed to return home. Officials have argued that when a soldier has mentally prepared himself to return home at a certain date, only to have his plans reversed, he can suffer emotionally. This highly unpopular policy inspired the critically acclaimed movie "Stop-Loss" and brought the issue to light for many Americans.

According to Veterans for America, many soldiers are asking for extra pay for the unexpected time they had to spend on combat tours. Soldiers like Spc. Justin Sheeter of Wooster are rooting for Congress to pass legislation to pay him extra for each month he was forced to remain in the military. Sheeter points out that returning to civilian life, especially in times of economic downturn, is difficult enough without the extra money. A bill like the one Sheeter is lobbying for might also increase troop moral and ease financial burdens on military families. Additionally, both Senators Mccain and Obama have stated that they would like to see the end of stop-loss orders. According to Wikipedia, in 2007 the Iraq Veterans Against the War have also launched a national campaign to cease the stop-loss program.

Some veterans who are stop-lossed while on military leave in the United States have chosen to defend their right to stay at home and have refused to return to service. Military personnel who choose not to return to combat when they are stop-lossed are considered AWOL, or Absent With Out Leave. After thirty days, these soldiers are dropped from their units and considered deserters. Since the beginning of the Iraq war, no service member in the United States has served more than 18 months in prison for desertion. Desertion may also be punished by Court Martial, or trial in a military court to determine guilt.

Truly, it may not come to light until the end of the Iraq war how many veterans are possibly on the run, in this country or elsewhere, because of the stop-loss policy. It does not seem humane to force soldiers, who have already laid their lives on the line to serve this country, to serve longer than expected or to return to service immediately after coming home. Soldiers already face physical, emotional, and mental trauma due to their service. The stop-loss policy should be curbed by lawmakers and these soldiers should be compensated for their time in the service. Ironically, lawmakers should heed the phrase: stop loss.

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