WASHINGTON — Only one in five veterans returning from combat duty in Iraq or Afghanistan with signs of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is actually screened for it, the Government Accountability Office reported. Using data provided by the Department of Defense, GAO investigators found in review that 9,145 (5%) of the 178,664 service men and women deployed in Afghanistan or Iraq may be at risk for developing PTSD, but only 2,029 (22%) of the at-risk group were referred for further mental health evaluations. In March, researchers from the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association that 35% of Iraq war veterans sought mental health services for any reason in the year after returning home. Of them, 12% per year received a diagnosis of a mental health problem, the investigators found, and an additional 23% per year were seen in mental health clinics but did not receive a diagnosis. More than half of those who were referred for a mental health problem received follow-up care, but less than 10% of all returning vets who were treated for mental health problems were referred through the military’s screening program, those investigators found. […]