A new report from the American Psychological Association says that the military is falling short of providing needed counseling and support for soldiers and veterans of the Iraq and Afghan wars who have mental-health problems, MSNBC reported Feb. 25.

The report found that 40 percent of the Army and Navy's active-duty psychologist positions are currently vacant, and that less than half of soldiers with mental disorders sought help -- either because they were unwilling or unable to find services. The authors cited the lack of a "well-coordinated or well-disseminated approach to providing behavioral health care to service members and their families."

The vacancies among military psychologists contributed to high burnout rates among those remaining, the report said.

The task force that produced the report was led by an active-duty military psychologist and included other psychologists working for the military or the Veterans Administration (VA).

Without seeing the report, a spokesperson for the Pentagon, Cynthis Smith, noted, "For the past four years, [the Defense Department] has been aggressively reaching out to support our military personnel before and after deployments. This is unprecedented. We have assessed the health, including the mental health of more than 1 million service members before and after deployments. We have worked with their families and others to address mental health concerns associated with deployments and with war."

Antoinette Zeiss, deputy chief consultant of the VA's office of mental health services, said the report "misses the mark by quite a way."

"We have the strongest mental-health system in the country and we are making it stronger," she said.

The report also cited problems with treating soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) saying that only 10-20 percent of military mental-health personnel are trained to treat PTSD. "I know guys that are waiting for appointments," said Russell Terry, CEO of the Iraq War Veterans Organization. "I know guys who are dealing with doctors who have no concept of PTSD."

"The system as it exists today ignores the readjustment needs specific to Iraq and Afghanistan service members," added Veterans for America President Bobby Muller. "We have to stop throwing money at a problem that requires a complete overhaul. The system is broken."