On Thursday, U.S. officials publicly apologized to about 600 veterans that were mistakenly told by letter that they had been diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease, which is an incurable neurodegenerative disorder.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs sent out letters to 1,800 former soldiers that informed them that they had been found to be suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, according to its website.
“Unfortunately, VA made a coding error and a number of Veterans who should not have received this letter did,” the statement on the website said.
“VA employees are calling veterans and survivors to ensure that they understand the purpose of the letter, explain why they mistakenly received the letter, and express VA’s sincere apologies for the distress caused by this unfortunate and regrettable error.”
ALS is a progressive motor neuron illness that eventually leads to paralysis, speech and swallowing difficulties and problems with breathing.
Usually someone that is diagnosed with the disease dies within three to five years. British scientist Stephen Hawking is one of the more famous sufferers of the disease.
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