Key Findings Of This Investigation An investigation by NPR and ProPublica has found that the ANAM testing program used by the military to identify soldiers with traumatic brain injuries has failed to deliver on its promise, offering soldiers the appearance of help, but not the reality. For the next 20 minutes they would sit at rows of laptop computers clicking through the automated neural psychological assessment metrics computer program known as ANAM.  Military's Brain-Testing Program A Debacle 
 
 The U.S. military has spent more than $42 million to test every service member's brain to find out who suffered a traumatic brain injury, or TBI, during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. When such injuries are left undetected, it can delay healing and put soldiers at risk for further mental damage. Based on corporate and government records, confidential documents, scores of interviews and emails obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, our investigation found: 
 
 The people who invented ANAM and stood to make money from it were involved in the military's decision to use it, prompting questions about the impartiality of the selection process. No other tests received serious consideration. A report by the Army's top neuropsychologist circulated last year to key members of Congress labeled the selection process "nepotistic." The Pentagon's civilian leadership has ignored years of warnings, public and private, that there was insufficient scientific evidence the ANAM can screen for or diagnose traumatic brain injury. The military's highest-ranking medical official said the test was "fraught with problems." * Compounding flaws in the ANAM's design, the military has not administered the test as recommended and has rarely used its results. But Lt. Gen. Eric Schoomaker, who runs the Army's medical system, issued a written order in November 2008 that said Army troops who score low on the ANAM test "will not" be referred for a follow-up medical evaluation. Top Pentagon officials have misrepresented the cost of the test, indicating that because the Army invented the ANAM, the military could use it for free. In fact, because the military licensed its invention to outside contractors, it has paid millions of dollars to use its own technology. There is no computerized test that, on its own, allows doctors to diagnose TBI. "We have failed soldiers," says retired Col. Mary Lopez, who used to manage the Army's testing program. "It is incredibly frustrating because I can see first-hand the soldiers that we've missed, the soldiers that have not been treated, not been identified, [or] misdiagnosed. And then they struggle." A Test to Identify Invisible Wounds 
 
 On a crisp morning in early September, about 40 uniformed soldiers mill around outside a squat rectangular building on the Fort Lewis-McChord military base near Tacoma, Wash. There will be 20 minutes of questions covering basic math, memory and reaction time. "One of the best ways to tell if something's affecting you is to know how you were before it happened. You'll take ANAM, and it's going to be your baseline," says Felix Rios, a contractor with the Office of the Surgeon General who helps administer the test. "I felt more reassured," says Benjamin Louis Westman, another soldier taking the test. It was good, "knowing that the Army is taking steps to ensure people are taken care of." The military's foray into cognitive testing reflects the types of wounds troops have sustained fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. "The scientific advisory panel did not to the best of my recollection at any one time say the ANAM is the choice, is the instrument that should be used," says Morgan Sammons, dean of psychology at Alliant University in California, who was one of those advisers. "It at least gives me a feeling that if ... there is something wrong with me, that they'll be able to know about it," he says. Hockey League May Have Better Solution 
 
 
 
 Another problem with the program is that top military officials did not choose a very good test, according to the Pentagon's own medical advisers. It chose the ImPact, a 20-minute computerized test that requires the athlete to remember and then reconstruct a series of designs and patterns. By the beginning of 2007, every player had taken a baseline test. Several NFL teams also use the ImPact, as does Army Special Forces, which said it based its decision on a review of scientific literature. "If they had said, would you like to use something else, I probably would have said, yes, I'd like to use something else," he said. But the military has tested only a tiny fraction of the troops since they've come home. Sources also said that Schoomaker and other commanders worry that if troops who score low on ANAM are referred for medical evaluations, it could postpone their deployments. "I think we reached an agreement on it that half a loaf was better than none, and we would watch this test closely to see how it could be improved," he says. In a written statement, Schoomaker told NPR and ProPublica, "Of course, if the Soldier has any symptoms or problems with their health, they are encouraged to document this and discuss it" with a health care provider. The Navy and Marines, unlike the Army, refer troops for further attention if they score poorly on their pre-deployment ANAM. Information Paper: ANAM Program Use 
 
 Jack Tsao, a Navy commander and neurologist who runs the traumatic brain injury programs for the Navy and Marines, says the answer for those services is easy: "Yes, if there's an abnormality we need to follow it up." Flaws in Implementation 
 
 Despite the many concerns with the ANAM, many experts say the test could have helped detect brain injuries in soldiers if it had been used properly. "Free" Test Costs a Bundle 
 
 When the military chose the ANAM, one of its selling points -- at least, in the eyes of some involved in the decision -- was that it was free. But even though the ANAM was developed by military researchers, the Defense Department no longer owned the test by the time it went looking for a screening tool. The Defense Department also pays the university $1 million a year for making improvements to the test, Russell said. 'This Is Not What We Paid For' 
 
 Since Congress ordered the Pentagon to test all the troops almost four years ago, the military has done half of what Congress asked — it has given the ANAM to 1 million people before they deploy. Rep. Bill Pascrell, D-N.J., one of the key legislators who persuaded Congress to pass the law that ordered the Pentagon to test the troops, says this is not what Congress asked for. "This is not adequate," said Pascrell in an interview with ProPublica and NPR. You're doing harm to these veterans and these wonderful warriors and their families, and we're not going to put up with it," Pascrell says. This is not what we paid for." As Problems Emerge, Little Action 
 
 Military officials openly acknowledged problems with the TBI testing program at two congressional hearings last year. In the field, Russell said, the test had failed at "a basic level." A recent report from the Government Accountability Office said the Defense Department doesn't expect the results until 2015 -- two years after the last troops are scheduled to leave Afghanistan.
– A military brain-injury testing program has cost $42 million thus far—but hardly any soldiers have benefited from the plan, according to a joint investigation by NPR and ProPublica. Their reports suggest the program has a been a huge waste of money that has fallen way short of its primary mission—diagnosing brain injuries among the troops. “We have failed soldiers,” says a retired colonel who used to run the program. “I can see firsthand the soldiers that we've missed, the soldiers that have not been treated, not been identified, misdiagnosed. And then they struggle.” Congress in 2007 called on the military to test troops’ brain function before and after deployment to help fight the rising number of traumatic brain injuries. One big problem: The test ultimately chosen isn’t the best one available for the job, insiders say. What's more, the people who invented the Automated Neuropsychological Assessment Metric and stood to gain financially from its use were involved in the military's decision to employ it. The Army thinks it's essentially useless at this point, even though soldiers continue to be tested with it. Read ProPublica's full piece here.