The post #VAFail: South Carolina VA facility did not provide quality care, potentially leading to veteran’s suicide appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>Veterans and their families — who already have sacrificed for this country — deserve better.
An inspector general’s report released in May 2023 shows they are not getting quality care from the Department of Veterans Affairs. That report examined the circumstances that led to the death of a veteran in South Carolina.
According to the Office of the Inspector General (OIG), in fall 2021, a veteran in their 60s committed suicide at the Aiken Community Based Outpatient Clinic in South Carolina.
Clinicians at the facility knew about the patient’s mental health struggles.
At a visit to Aiken in spring 2021, a primary care physician reported screenings for alcohol use and depression were both positive. The OIG report said the veteran also self-reported “suicidal ideation, including thoughts of wishing they were dead, wishing they could go to sleep and not wake up, and thoughts of suicide.” The primary care physician also noted the patient was suffering from several physical ailments, including chronic neck and back pain.
The patient returned to VA facilities several times throughout the spring, summer, and fall.
Cracks in the VA system emerged right away.
At a second visit in spring 2021, for example, a different primary care physician failed to follow up on the reported alcohol use and suicidal ideation. According to the OIG report, that doctor “did not discuss” the positive alcohol and depression screens with the patient at all even though VA guidelines “require follow-up” on these matters.
The patient died by self-inflicted gunshot wound in the parking lot of Aiken months later.
The OIG began looking into this case after an anonymous source alleged the VA failed to “provide services,” delayed care for the patient, and then “covered up” the suicide.
The inspector general could not substantiate the claim that the suicide was covered up, but it did find the patient received “deficient clinical care.” During its review, the OIG also identified concerns related to Veterans Crisis Line (VCL) referrals and emergency department communication, suicide prevention documentation, and quality management reviews.
Specifically, the OIG identified these deficiencies:
On its own, the failure to provide timely help with pain management could have contributed to the veteran’s suicidal ideation.
According to Healthline, chronic pain can be “debilitating on a physical and mental level” and is “known to intensify suicidal ideation.” Healthline cited a study of 123,000 people who died by suicide between 2003 and 2014 that found 9% were dealing with chronic pain at the time of their suicide.
During a call to the VCL in summer 2021, the veteran reported suffering from “severe chronic pain and suicidal thoughts but denied a plan to complete suicide.” Despite the veteran’s obvious past struggles, “the VCL responder assessed the patient as ‘moderate to low risk,’ for suicide,” but did tell the veteran to go to the ER.
The veteran complied, but, according to the OIG, Aiken “facility suicide prevention staff failed to contact the patient” after the visit “and did not provide follow-up per VHA requirements.”
While the OIG concluded Aiken’s staff did not cover up the suicide, the facility still made mistakes. The OIG said staff “did not initiate a timely investigation into the factors that led to the patient’s death” and “once the investigation was initiated, it did not align with VHA policy.”
Mental health care is life and death. With the United States’ daily wave of veteran suicides, and suicides at VA facilities no less, the goal should be to get veterans the treatment they need as quickly as possible, whether that is at the VA or out in the community.
Veterans cannot afford to wait. Read more about how we can reform the VA.
If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health issues, learn more about suicide prevention resources from our sister organization, Concerned Veterans for America Foundation.
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]]>The post #VAFail: An epidemic of suicide at VA facilities appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>A new study just found the most staggeringly high suicide numbers are amongst post-9/11 veterans. Four times more veterans of the post-9/11 wars have died by suicide than were killed in action.
The constant churn of deployments and difficulty transitioning out of service have been major contributors to the rash of suicides among veterans in the last several decades. But the lack of access to timely care can’t be overlooked.
The Department of Veterans Affairs could be doing much more to address these startling figures.
Instead, VA officials are being blamed for it.
Former Army Staff Sergeant Brieux Dash was committed to the VA Medical Center in West Palm Beach, Fla. in March 2019. His wife, Emma, wanted him to get treatment for depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, which had worsened recently and had led to a suicide attempt at home.
Three days later the husband and father of three was dead. He had hanged himself behind a door in the Palm Beach facility.
Emma says staff in the mental health unit, who are required to check on patients every 15 minutes, did not find Brieux for two hours — meaning they had missed at least eight checks.
Emma told The Washington Post that she had worked at the Palm Beach facility. She thought Brieux would be safe there.
She now blames the VA facility staff for her husband’s death.
And she’s not the only one.
According to The Washington Post report, a VA investigation after Brieux’s death “found shortcomings at the facility, including inconsistent safety checks and problems with surveillance cameras to monitor at-risk patients.”
The cameras, which, according to the center’s own policy, are required to be in place, had not been operational for at least three years, the investigation found. Had those cameras been functioning, staff potentially could have saved Brieux’s life.
According to The Palm Beach Post, the investigation also found “more than half of the employees working at the facility had not completed required training.”
“Finding out all of these things was very shocking and disappointing,” Emma Dash said. She alleges the government’s failures in Brieux’s final days were not the only mistakes it had made.
Brieux’s mental state had started to collapse after back-to-back deployments in Iraq.
Brieux joined the Army in January 2006. His first tour in Iraq was 15 months, from March 2007 to June 2008. The second was nearly two years, from November 2009 to September 2011. Emma told The Post the deployments were “tough” on her husband.
“Once Brieux Dash left the Army, he suffered from depression and post-traumatic stress,” The Post explained. “Based on those diagnoses, he was given a 30 percent VA disability rating in 2016, court records state. His disability rating was raised to 50 percent in 2018 after another evaluation of his depression and PTSD.”
Another event related to his service also contributed to Brieux’s downward spiral. In March 2019, the VA sent the family a notice that alleged Brieux had been overpaid (by the government) nearly $20,000 in separation pay. He was told that until he could repay that amount, he would not receive his monthly VA disability compensation.
A wrongful-death lawsuit filed by the Dash family said that notice sent Brieux “into a downward spiral of depression, anxiety, emotional distress, and fragility.”
This summer, the U.S. government awarded Emma and her three children a $5.75 million settlement in a wrongful-death suit.
Tragically, Brieux and Emma’s story is not the only one like it. In fact, there appears to be an epidemic of veteran suicides at VA facilities.
A 2019 Washington Post story reported, “Veterans are taking their own lives on VA hospital campuses, a desperate form of protest against a system that they feel hasn’t helped them.”
A federal investigation into one such death found a VA facility in Minnesota “made multiple errors” that likely contributed to the suicide. In that case, the VA failed to schedule follow-up appointments, did not communicate with the veteran’s family about treatment plans, and had not adequately assessed the veteran’s access to firearms.
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) examined the VA’s efforts to track cases of suicides at departmental facilities. According to Military Times, that report concluded the VA’s efforts were so “riddled with errors that a living veteran was counted as dead.” The GAO also found “four missing cases that should’ve been counted.”
Mental health care means life or death. With the daily wave of veteran suicides, and suicides at VAs no less, the goal should be to get veterans the treatment they need as quickly as possible, whether that is at the VA or out in the community.
No veteran struggling with their mental health should be left to read these stories, wondering what their treatment at the VA will be like, hoping for a better option to come along.
Veterans can’t afford to wait for a better standard of care.
Read more about much-needed VA reforms.
If you or someone you know is struggling with PTSD or mental health issues, the Veterans Crisis Line is available by dialing 988 (then press 1) or texting 838255. The Vet Center is also available and staffed by combat veterans and military families ready to talk about military experiences and any other issues veterans are facing. That number is 877-WAR-VETS (927-8387).
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]]>The post Veterans health care solutions left out of first primary debate appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>CVA staff on the ground in Milwaukee and around the country hoped to hear anything about these candidates’ plans to improve veterans’ health care.
Through our #VeteransVoicesCount campaign on Twitter, we tried to build momentum for the candidates to address staggering wait times at the Department of Veterans Affairs, shocking veteran suicide numbers, and continuing lack of access to community care for veterans using their VA health care benefits.
On location at the #RNCDebateMKE. Veterans want to hear more SOLUTIONS, not pandering, on how to combat Veteran suicide and increase access to care. #VeteransVoicesCount pic.twitter.com/ASeiaHJNLK
— David Huston (@DHustonFL) August 23, 2023
Unfortunately, nobody on stage at this debate had anything helpful to say about veterans or the issues that matter most to them, just lip service to win veterans’ approval.
“When I arrived in Milwaukee for the GOP debate, I was hoping to hear real solutions for the rising suicide rate among our veterans and the general lack of health care options,” Army veteran Brian Fay said. “Instead, all I got was rhetoric, shouting matches and questions about UFO’s! The only thing unidentifiable I saw was their plan to do better by our veterans.”
Here’s a recap of CVA’s debate coverage and what veterans thought about the lack of health care solutions from the candidates.
CVA Deputy Director John Byrnes had some blunt feedback about the candidates handling of veterans and their issues
Too bad the few mentions of veterans @GopDebate tonight were self serving and not about fixing health care for veterans. Veterans deserve better #VeteranVoicesCount! #Disappointed! pic.twitter.com/cv7lt9MRMB
— John Byrnes (@JohnByrnes13) August 24, 2023
Air Force veteran Ian Robinson watched the debate from South Carolina, where he was hoping to hear about how the candidates would address continuing failure at the VA.
Still waiting to hear about some veterans healthcare solutions! #VeteransVoicesCount pic.twitter.com/bf5AolPJnB
— Concerned Veterans for America (@ConcernedVets) August 24, 2023
Army veteran Jimmie Smith shared a disconcerting fact about candidates talking about community care access for veterans.
Polls showed Veterans Affairs is the number 4 issue to Americans.
Below is a picture of those candidates who addressed the Department of Veterans Affairs denying access, discouraging use of Community Care for mental health or the possible undercounting of veterans suicide. pic.twitter.com/OhhOhv2xiO
— Jimmie T. Smith (@JimmieTSmith) August 24, 2023
Marine Corps veteran Tim Taylor with a sad but true catch.
So far black rifle coffee has more veteran content in the commercials than the debate…#VeteransVoicesCount
— Tim Taylor (@taylor_usmc72) August 24, 2023
Veterans’ issues are America’s issues. We have a responsibility to ensure veterans voices are heard and their issues are taken seriously, including giving them better access to health care options.
Throughout the primaries and into the general election, we will continue to call for better health care access for veterans. They deserve nothing less.
Read more about what we want to hear about veterans health care from presidential candidates.
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]]>The post #VAFail: VA staff ‘routinely missed’ opioid use disorder diagnoses appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>But at the Department of Veterans Affairs, doctors often ignore this information. Veterans may be dying as a result.
As Military Times reported, a VA Office of Inspector General (IG) report published in June found VA officials “routinely missed — or struggled to check — prior opioid use disorder (OUD) diagnoses when developing treatment plans for troops leaving the service.”
IG investigators looked at two separate groups of VA patients who were discharged from the military with an opioid use disorder (OUD) diagnosis marked in their Department of Defense (DoD) medical files. As the IG report noted, the VA “expects providers” to check this history during intake evaluations. When OUD is identified, providers must “document this information in an encounter note, a progress note, and the problem list.”
The IG found VA providers neglected these important steps. According to the Military Times:
“Investigators discovered that only 19% of the 1,362 OUD-afflicted veterans from Group 1 had opioid dependence flagged during their initial screening with the Veterans Health Administration. Just over half of the 45 patients in Group 2 had OUD listed on the VA ‘problem list,’ an electronic database used to identify pressing health concerns.”
“Failure to identify a diagnosis of OUD could pose a risk to patients, including the danger of reintroducing opioids to a high-risk population,” the IG said.
Indeed, in some instances, that is exactly what happened. In fact, VA providers prescribed at least 3% of these patients opioids even though they had a documented history of OUD.
The VA’s neglect is compounding already-tragic circumstances.
Veterans are “especially vulnerable to opiate dependence or addiction and its most dangerous effects,” Military Times noted, and are twice as likely to die from an accidental overdose as nonveterans. Drug overdose mortality among veterans increased 53% between 2010 and 2019.
Prescribing medication with opioids to patients who have an OUD will increase these numbers.
Neglecting to check OUD history also can interfere with future treatment. “The failure to identify and document a patient’s OUD history or diagnosis in encounters, progress notes, and problem lists could decrease the likelihood of providers using this medically relevant information in future clinical decision-making, placing patients at risk for adverse outcomes, such as overdose,” the IG report said.
In some instances, that documentation could have saved a life.
Naloxone is a medication often administered to patients who are suspected of having an opioid overdose. The IG found just 35% of the patients in its study who died from an opioid-related overdose were offered or provided this potentially life-saving drug.
“A lack of provider knowledge of an established OUD diagnosis may have contributed to naloxone not being provided to some patients,” the IG concluded.
In 2018, the VA, the DoD, and the Department of Homeland Security launched a “joint action plan” designed to improve care for members of the military transitioning out of service. The plan included special initiatives for veterans prone to suicidal tendencies, including those suffering from substance abuse.
As the IG report makes clear, the VA has failed to do better.
The investigators said VA health care providers’ failures “stemmed from unclear expectations and faulty databases,” Military Times said.
More than half of the VA providers surveyed told IG investigators they did not think they were supposed to check DoD records before accepting former service members for treatment.
Nearly half of VA providers, 45%, said they had never received training regarding how to navigate an electronic health record (EHR) database linking DoD and VA medical records. Incredibly, 56% said they could not even find the DoD information in the EHR system. (The VA has experienced problems with EHR systems in the past. As we noted in June, at least four veterans died because of a botched rollout of a new records system.)
The IG offered five recommendations and warned, “The challenges associated with leaving active duty and the risk of suicide for veterans within the first year after discharge from DoD highlight the importance of identifying and documenting OUD.”
Veterans need access to substance use and mental health care that works for them and puts them on a path to healing. If the VA cannot provide that, veterans need the option to seek care at facilities that can.
Learn more about community care options.
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]]>The post #VAFail: Houston VA medical center accused of mistreatment after veteran’s health declines appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>Constance Williams, David’s wife, shared his story with Houston’s KPRC 2 in May.
On March 4, the 74-year-old veteran was admitted for a kidney transplant. As of the time of the report, he had remained there for more than 64 days.
“David came in with other patients that had the kidney transplant. All of them left on the seventh day. We were the only ones left,” Mrs. Williams told KPRC 2, voicing her distress.
David’s weight plummeted to under 100 pounds, and she acknowledged fearing the worst-case scenario. “Somedays I’m scared to even go in the room because I think I’m going to find him deceased.”
Mrs. Williams told KPRC 2 her husband wasn’t the only one in the facility desperate for care. She shared that she heard the pleas of other veterans firsthand. “When I walk to the nurse station, I hear other veterans say, ‘help me, please somebody come change me bring me some water.’”
After his procedure, David began experiencing additional issues during recovery including severe stomach pain, pneumonia, trouble swallowing and digesting, and bedsores resulting from leaving David sitting in his own waste.
Mrs. Williams tried to get an idea from the nursing staff what was going on in his recovery, but she claims the nursing staff said they didn’t know.
Mrs. Williams also said the staff placed a feeding tube the incorrect way in her husband’s mouth. The day after that incident, Mrs. Williams shared that the hospital staff nearly operated on her husband by accident, mistaking him for another patient with the same last name. “The nurse came in and said, ‘you have the wrong Mr. Williams,’” she told KPRC 2.
A VA spokesperson called the circumstances “unacceptable” and pledged systemic review. But Mrs. Williams brushed off their apology. “I told them ‘You’re not sorry, [you’re sorry] you got caught,’” she said.
After Mrs. Williams voiced her concerns publicly, the hospital assigned a personal nurse to him. Despite these changes, David was still in the hospital at the time of the report battling blood clots in his legs and over his heart.
Shockingly, Mrs. Williams said the hospital denied the family’s request to move David to a different hospital because they performed the kidney transplant.
As if that is a legitimate reason to keep David in a facility that he is not happy or well in.
No veteran should be stuck with this level of care. And it shouldn’t take a patient’s family going public with their displeasure for the VA to take corrective action.
Veterans need to have greater choice in where they seek their medical care.
Learn more about the options veterans have to seek care in the community.
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]]>The post Here’s what veterans want to hear from candidates about their health care at the first GOP presidential debate appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>The debate will feature a full roster of the candidates for the GOP ticket who have qualified according to their fundraising and polling numbers. The candidates will use this first debate as a chance to plant a flag for who they might be as president, and we hope to hear some of their thoughts on how they’d approach veterans issues, specifically veterans health care.
We asked veterans what they’re hoping to hear candidates talk about during the debate.
I want to hear from the candidates about how they will bridge the partisan divide to hold the VA accountable for how it delivers care to veterans. To really make a difference for veterans, we need the parties to come together to empower veterans with choice over our health care and to hold the often-harmful VA health care accountable in ensuring it meets its mission to our veterans.
Ryan Gerchman, Nevada
Marine Corps veteran
I’d like to see unanimous support from all candidates on giving veterans true choice over their health care delivery. As a former VA employee myself, I know veterans deserve better than being stuck in a bureaucratic system that doesn’t always put our needs first.
Jessica Villarreal, Texas
Army veteran
The VA hasn’t told me when I was eligible for community care or telehealth appointments; I had to ask for those options. Luckily, I knew to ask, but so many veterans I know have never heard of these choices. What are the candidates ideas for making sure the VA educates veterans on all their options, not just the VA as an option?
Leo Garcia, Nevada
Air Force veteran
As a Coast Guard veteran that chose to serve, and risked my life to save others, including in Iraq, I want to know why the VA is preventing me from having a choice over which doctor I see.
Frank Bullock, South Carolina
Coast Guard veteran
I’ve struggled a lot with VA health care. I thought the MISSION Act would help, but so many veterans like me still are stuck with the red tape and bureaucracy. I want to hear how candidates plan to reform the VA and give veterans choice once and for all.
Adam Miller, Ohio
Marine Corps veteran
I hear veterans in my home state of Texas and around the country talking about losing their brothers and sisters to suicide. Allowing veterans who use the VA to access community care more easily would help immensely. I want to know what the candidates plan to do to end this tragic epidemic.
Russ Duerstine, Texas
Air Force veteran
As a retiree from the Army, I have health benefits that I can take to a doctor of my choice. If I don’t like that doctor, I simply find a better one. Why don’t my fellow veterans who left the military before retirement get the same choice options with their VA care benefits? How will the candidates fix the disparities in this care?
Jimmie T. Smith, Florida
Army veteran
I’m able to use TRICARE as a medically retired veteran, and it has been a great experience. Choosing doctors and hospitals that fit my unique situation rather than only going through the VA provides me so much relief. Do the candidates see a way to provide that same choice to veterans who use the VA for their care?
Amanda Tallman, Arizona
Army veteran
Learn about our ideas for reforming veterans health care.
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]]>The post #VAFail: Report finds the VA is actively working against veterans accessing community care for substance use treatment appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>But that’s what is happening at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
According to Military Times, veterans are waiting weeks or even months to receive substance abuse treatment. The VA also is ignoring a federal law and it’s own policy that says when the VA itself cannot provide timely care for alcohol and drug dependency, it must offer veterans access to other providers, including non-government community care providers.
A recent example came from an investigation into residential treatment programs in Texas.
After receiving complaints from veterans in north Texas, the VA Office of the Inspector General (OIG) investigated how long veterans in that region were forced to wait for help with their drug or alcohol dependency.
The OIG’s results are alarming.
The OIG found that staff at the VA North Texas office placed patients on waitlists for two to three months and “failed to offer community residential care referrals during most of fiscal years 2020 and 2021.”
What’s more, the OIG report stated VA staff “misinterpreted” community care guidance and “provided patients with misinformation and inappropriately denied requests for community residential care.”
Delaying care makes it more difficult for individuals suffering from substance use disorders to overcome their dependencies.
A report from the Office of the U.S. Surgeon General concludes, “Research shows that the most effective way to help someone with a substance use problem who may be at risk for developing a substance use disorder is to intervene early, before the condition can progress.”
The VA delays and misinformation about community care could potentially affect thousands of people. 550,000 veterans, or 8.5% of the total population served by the VA, are dealing with alcohol and drug abuse issues.
Wounded Warrior Project Chief Program Officer Jen Silva told Military Times, “Many veterans are trying to access care, but instead [are] receiving delays…Not finding appropriate care in a timely manner not only fails to capitalize on veterans’ desire to change their life circumstances, but in some cases causes further damage to their mental and physical health.”
VA policy states VA must provide veterans with “alternative” substance abuse treatment if they cannot find an inpatient bed within 30 days for this specific type of care. These options can include VA programs in different cities or states, or referral into community care.
The VA OIG found those rules are often applied inconsistently, leaving veterans to wait weeks or months in line for care at their local VA facility. Veterans in north Texas even have alleged that officials at their local VA office actively denied their request for community care.
Lawmakers on the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee said that they are hearing an increasing number of complaints from veterans forced to wait for care in the VA system instead of being given options for community care facilities.
Organizations that advocate for veterans also are getting “numerous calls from frustrated individuals who don’t understand what options are available to them, leading to waits of weeks or months for help,” Military Times reported.
Concerned Veterans for America Foundation has sought to better inform veterans of the community care options by recreating the VA MISSION Act website, a website the VA took down from its own website in 2021.
Federal lawmakers are now considering whether to write legislation that would mandate more outside care referrals if VA administrators cannot find ways to streamline the current process. Current legislation already being considered by Congress, namely the Veterans’ HEALTH Act in the the Senate and Veteran Care Improvement Act in the House, would require better outreach by VA on community care options.
Some veterans advocates want lawmakers to go further. They want Congress to get rid of the current 30-day requirement, cutting it to a week or less.
Despite Congress passing reforms that expand veterans’ access to more timely care, the VA has stood in the way of community care as an option, determined to keep veterans in the VA system, despite what it means for their physical or mental health.
The VA has a responsibility to ensure veterans get the care they need when they need it, whether that is at the VA or not. As the country’s substance use, alcohol use, and mental health crisis continue to fester, access to quality, timely care is all the more important.
Learn more about the options veterans have to seek care in the community.
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]]>The post Veterans grapple with unbearable wait times for mental health care appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>The VA has done a poor job of providing veterans with timely mental health care or giving them the option to seek community care. In a time when veteran suicides are shockingly high, that isn’t acceptable.
The suicide epidemic hit close to home for North Carolina Concerned Veterans for America Strategic Director Jose Ramos , who recently lost his friend of 17 years to suicide. Ramos’ friend served in the United States Army for 23 years and joined the police force after retirement.
Ramos laid out what veterans are faced with when they return to civilian life in the Fayetteville Observer.
Suicide is a tragic reality in the veteran community. Decades of continuous war, multiple deployments, difficulty transitioning out of service, and lack of easy access to resources all add up to a crisis.
On average, nearly 17 veterans take their lives each day. Four times more post-9/11 war veterans have died by suicide than were killed in war operations.
Each of those veterans had a family, friends, and battle buddies who mourn their loss. The call I received that I had lost my friend was not the first I’ve gotten, but I’m determined it will be my last.
At the Fayetteville, North Carolina VA health facility near Fort Liberty, wait times to receive mental health services put veterans at a major disadvantage to get care they need and deserve.
As of PTSD Awareness Day on June 27, the wait time for a new patient to receive mental health care at the Fayetteville VA was 106 days. The wait for substance use disorder care was 44 days. For PTSD-specific care, veterans would need to visit the Cumberland County VA where there are currently no new appointments.
The call for VA health care reform gets louder and louder with every unfortunate circumstance that happens. The VA hears the pleas for change but chooses to do nothing about them. This is why giving veterans the power of choice in their health care matters.
Read the rest of Jose Ramos’ piece in the Fayetteville Observer.
If you or someone you know is struggling with PTSD or mental health issues, the Veterans Crisis Line is available by dialing 988 (then press 1) or texting 838255. The Vet Center is also available and staffed by combat veterans and military families ready to talk about military experiences and any other issues veterans are facing. That number is 877-WAR-VETS (927-8387).
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]]>The post Watch: Rep. Mike Bost shares his perspective on VA reform and accountability appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>“The VA was not built for the VA; the VA was built for the veteran.”
That’s the message Rep. Mike Bost wanted to make sure veterans understood in a new episode of Congress Convos with Concerned Veterans for America.
CVA Executive Director Russ Duerstine joined House VA Committee Chairman Bost in his home district in southern Illinois to discuss their veterans’ perspectives on VA health care, principles of VA reform, and what the House VA Committee is focused on.
That unique perspective is why Bost, with a deep family history of service in the Marine Corps, has supported health care choice legislation in the past. It’s also why he is holding the VA accountable for upholding choice going forward.
“When we passed the MISSION Act, which was an improvement of the Choice Act, it was to hopefully get the VA to understand that this isn’t a suggestion. It’s a law.” Bost told Duerstine. “I’m supportive of making sure it’s up to the veteran on what care they receive, because that’s the agreement.”
The VA MISSION Act expanded access to community care for veterans who receive health care benefits through the VA. But the VA has stood in the way of the law’s success since it was passed and implemented. Bost shared that part of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee’s job is to oversee the VA’s implementation of the law and hold the VA accountable when it fails to follow the law.
Veterans should be in charge of where they seek their health care. That’s the bottom line.
The House Veterans’ Affairs Committee is focused on an array of veterans’ issues, including greater choice in care, implementation of the PACT Act, and accountability for continued failures and missteps at the VA.
“We still have the electronic health records issue that’s going on,” Bost shared. “We put the freeze on it for right now with some guarantee that [the VA will] get it right before we ever kick it back in so nobody’s in danger.”
Rep. Bost and his committee have a lot of work on their hands, but we at CVA are excited about the chairman’s commitment to ensuring the VA works for the veteran, not for itself.
Want more Congress Convos? Check out our conversation with Sen. Marsha Blackburn on her Veterans Health Care Freedom Act.
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]]>The post ‘We are making the VA work for you’: Rep. Mike Bost speaks at a town hall with CVA appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>At a recent town hall meeting hosted by CVA, Rep. Mike Bost shared his perspective on ensuring veterans have access to timely, quality care, whether that’s at the VA or in community care.
“We want to make sure that our services that we provide to veterans are provided at the level they need to be provided and were promised” said the House VA Committee chairman and Marine Corps veteran.
Rep. Bost joined CVA Executive Director Russ Duerstine and Senior Advisor Jason Beardsley on the panel to discuss the VA MISSION Act and ways the VA has stood in the way of implementing the law.
“[The MISSION Act] was there as a relief valve for veterans who couldn’t get service when they needed it.,” said Beardsley, who served as senior advisor to then-VA Secretary Robert Wilkie. But when the VA stands in the way of veterans using the VA MISSION Act and community care, like it did during the COVID-19 pandemic, veterans face long wait time for needed care. “And now we’re seeing the consequences of that with mental health, substance abuse, where a veteran has difficulty accessing critical care when he needs it.”
The panel discussed ways in which the VA can be held accountable and community care options can be enhanced, including multiple pieces of legislation backed by the chairman.
The bottom line of the conversation can be summed up in one statement from Rep. Bost. “The VA was created for the veteran, the VA was not created for the VA,” Rep. Bost told the crowd. “We are making the VA work for you…the VA is for you, it’s not for the employees, it’s not for the bureaucrats,”
Watch the full town hall event here.
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]]>The post #VAFail: Are veterans seen as just numbers by the VA? appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>“My whole goal is to work with veterans. It’s my population of choice and my passion. I think no one can help a veteran better than their own kind. It helps to be a veteran to help another veteran out,” she said on a recent episode of the American Potential podcast.
During her three-year stint as a social worker at the VA, Jessica experienced a hostile work environment where health care delivery became a numbers game rather than meeting veterans’ actual needs.
“The VA is a numbers game. It’s like an assembly line. We’re just a number going through a system. It’s sad because veterans don’t get the care they need. My life is more valuable than just a number.”
Jessica was told she could only see patients for 15 minutes. She knew this wasn’t the right way to serve veterans or make them feel heard.
“That makes no sense to me. My job as a case manager is to see a patient to make sure that all their issues are addressed,” she said about the quick appointment times. “I was pretty good about not turning away a patient. I had a hard time saying no. I just wanted to help everybody.”
Villarreal faced resistance from VA doctors who would question her decisions about getting veterans the care they needed. They often challenged her recommendations for specific procedures or services for veterans, claiming they had in-house resources and regularly refusing to complete necessary paperwork.
“I’m having to fight and justify for the patient by doing chart reviews. This is their choice. They have the right to choose. We’re not meeting the criteria that they need. According to the VA MISSION Act, there’s six different ways you could [do] that.”
According to the VA MISSION Act, when the VA can’t meet certain wait time, drive time, or care delivery criteria, veterans have the right to take their benefits into the community.
But as Jessica saw, there are barriers at the VA that keep veterans trapped in the system and away from the care they need.
It was these barriers that drove Jessica to leave her job at the VA and start working with CVA. If she couldn’t fix the problems veterans were facing on the inside, she would attack the problems at a policy level from the outside.
Currently, Jessica is serving as the grassroots engagement director for Concerned Veterans for America in the Rio Grande Valley, Texas. Her role primarily involves advocating for veterans, educating, and empowering the community, and bringing awareness to local veteran issues.
She is focused on teaching veterans how to navigate the MISSION Act and community care, given the VA’s known challenges with implementing them correctly. Her work involves a lot of community engagement, aiming to make CVA a household name in her area.
Through her struggles and experiences, Jessica has become a louder voice for her fellow veterans. Although her dream job morphed into a bureaucratic debacle, she remains an unwavering advocate, making sure that veterans’ health care needs are not just heard, but are adequately met.
Listen to the rest of the conversation on American Potential.
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]]>The post #VAFail: VA mistakenly marks Nevada veteran dead, shutting off access to benefits and bank account appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>But Department of Veterans Affairs left Tom Hayden behind, recently marking him dead in their system even though he is alive.
Tom Hayden is a hero. As 8 News Now in Las Vegas reported, Hayden enlisted in the Navy and served for nearly 30 years, retiring as a Force Master Chief Petty Officer, which is one of the highest ranks an enlisted soldier can attain. A machine gunner in Vietnam and a spy who won valuable information from the Russian KGB, Hayden received numerous military awards. President Ronald Reagan even wrote him a letter.
But when Hayden’s wife passed away this spring, the VA marked him dead in their files instead of her. When Hayden notified the VA of its mistake, staff did nothing to solve the problem.
Four months later, Hayden was still dealing with the fallout. The VA’s mistake kept him from receiving VA benefits, affected his ability to receive Social Security, and resulted in the cancellation of his life insurance.
At one point, Hayden could not withdraw money from personal accounts because the VA told Hayden’s bank he was dead. Even Hayden’s former wife thought he had passed away.
Hayden was devastated. The mistake was more than a paperwork snafu; it’s compounded the pain from his wife’s recent death.
Wendy Hayden died from cancer in March 2023 after an eight-month battle. Just a few weeks after Wendy died, a letter came to the Hayden doorstep from the VA saying Tom’s benefits had been cancelled due to his death.
Hayden told 8 News Now he collected documents and kept notes from his conversations to get his benefits restored and prove the mistakes that had been made. He visited the North Las Vegas VA one time and the Henderson Social Security office four times. “[T]he agencies were dismissive of the veteran,” 8 News Now reported. The issue was resolved only after 8 News Now investigators reached out to the VA, Social Security Administration, and Defense Finance and Accounting Service.
While his VA benefits were restored as of July 1, 2023, Hayden is still reeling. “I’m disappointed, really disappointed,” he said.
Visit #CompleteTheMission to read about more #VAFails.
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]]>The post #VAFail: What happens when the VA doesn’t tell veterans about health care options? appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>On a recent episode of the American Potential podcast, Jeff Crank spoke with veteran Chris Enget, who shared his challenging experience with the VA and his advocacy for community care.
Chris, who was injured by an RPG in Afghanistan, faced difficulties in receiving the necessary treatment for his injuries. Despite the passage of the VA MISSION Act, which authorized community care for veterans, Chris was never informed about this option by the VA.
You would think the VA would help veterans access the best care, regardless of who delivers it. Unfortunately, that’s often not the case, and it’s a serious problem. “You just believe that they’re going to take care of you,” Enget said reflecting on his battles to get care.
Upon returning home as a Purple Heart recipient, Chris qualified for the Veterans Choice Program but was never informed about its benefits.
He received a card in the mail without any explanation, and the lack of guidance from his provider added to the frustration of not knowing the options available to him for better health care. “So, I just took it at face value that they were trying to do what was best for me,” he said.
Things didn’t improve with the introduction of community care in place of the Veterans Choice Program.
Chris shared how his declining physical health, and a lack of effective treatment, led to a decline in his mental well-being too. “The VA just wants to try to put a band aid on a bullet hole. We see it all across the country where veterans like me go in for something. Instead of [getting] to the root of the problem, they like to put you on different prescriptions to try to mask the symptoms and get rid of the symptoms of the problem.”
The option to use community care is crucial for veterans like Chris, who is open about his mental health struggles and suicide attempts. “It absolutely would’ve prevented those [attempts] if I had that little spark of hope that maybe it could get better.”
Sadly, Chris is not the only veteran out there that has struggled mentally because the VA fails to do its job.
The story has a happy ending for Chris as he has become an advocate for change at the VA, but for many others, the struggle continues. Veterans in the same situations as Chris Enget need to know about all the help and resources available to them, and the VA needs to do a better job at making sure veterans’ health comes first.
Listen to the full interview on American Potential.
If you or someone you know is struggling with PTSD or mental health issues, the Veterans Crisis Line is available by dialing 988 (then press 1) or texting 838255. The Vet Center is also available and staffed by combat veterans and military families ready to talk about military experiences and any other issues veterans are facing. That number is 877-WAR-VETS (927-8387).
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]]>The post #VAFail: Silencing those who question quality of VA care appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>But in many instances, the Department of Veterans Affairs tries to silence VA staff who speak up about wrongdoing at the department. The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that, from 2018 to 2022, two-thirds of VA whistleblowers reported allegations of retaliation.
As Military.com reporter Patricia Kime noted, the problems at the VA are not new. In 2019, the VA fired a clinical psychologist the day before she was set to testify before Congress about the department’s treatment of whistleblowers.
Additionally:
Issues such as these lead to passage of the VA Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act, meant to give VA more ability to fire bad actors and protect those who raise flags about wrongdoing.
But leaders at the VA have publicly stated “VA has demonstrated the ability to hold employees accountability without having to use [the 2017 accountability authorities].”
Not only is the VA not holding its employees accountable, but it’s also seemingly punishing those employees that alert the public to problems at the VA.
While problems for VA whistleblowers have risen over the last five years, the culture has improved at other federal agencies.
“Overall, allegations of retaliation against all federal whistleblowers declined from 2018 to 2022, but cases at the VA involving retaliation rose during the time frame,” Kime reported.
Kime said VA officials acknowledged during a hearing in 2022 that turmoil at the VA Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection “has eroded the trust that it is supposed to engender in employees who report wrongdoing.” But Maryanne Donaghy, assistant secretary for accountability and whistleblower protection, said the department has reformed the office with a goal to ensure that whistleblowers are heard and protected.
“Simply put, the OAWP of 2019 is not the same office as the OAWP of 2022. And driven by a dedicated staff, OAWP will continue to improve,” Donaghy told Kime.
But is that true?
The VA is known for its often hostile work environment, and accountability measures are not working.
These instances show VA officials are more interested in burying their own shortcomings than in making reforms that help veterans get the care they need. No veteran should be stuck in this system that puts their needs below the needs of the bureaucracy.
Read more about our solutions for reforming veterans’ health care.
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]]>The post CVA sister organization provides information on the VA MISSION Act, filling a gap left by the VA appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>In the case of the VA MISSION Act and community care, the VA has failed in both those responsibilities.
That’s why Concerned Veterans for America Foundation had to step in.
The VA MISSION Act expanded veterans’ access to community care through their VA benefits if the VA can’t deliver the care when and where it’s needed. Veterans have long supported having more choice over their health care and were excited about the prospect of shorter wait times or drive times to medical appointments.
But the internal battle at the VA to shut down those community care options started as soon as the options became available.
In 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic was raging, the VA paused access to the community care program. It also canceled, delayed, or moved nearly 20 million medical appointments, leaving millions of veterans without access to the care they needed, either inside or outside the VA.
In 2021, The VA removed its website that gave veterans information on their options through the VA MISSION Act. The missionact.va.gov URL redirects to a site entitled “Choose VA”.
There is no subtly here, folks.
Without this resource, veterans have had a harder time finding the information they need about community care. And if they don’t already know they have options, they’re left at the mercy of VA staff to tell them about those options.
Documents received through a FOIA lawsuit show that the VA makes a concerted effort to dissuade veterans from using community care, if they even offer it at all.
And in 2022, VA Secretary Denis McDonough said during a congressional hearing that community care was growing so much that “my hunch is that we should change the access standards.”
Amid these efforts to shut down access to community care while concealing information about the program, CVA Foundation has stepped in to fill the gap.
CVA Foundation, sister organization to CVA, recently launched a recreation of the VA MISSION Act website that the VA shut down.
The new website provides access to information, including:
CVA Foundation Executive Director Russ Duerstine said this about the launch of the new website:
“The VA isn’t upholding the law and educating veterans on their rights, so we took matters into our own hands. As the VA continues to take steps backward by undermining the progress made with the MISSION Act, we will do everything we can to educate veterans on their rights and empower them to make the best decisions for their own health care needs.”
If the VA isn’t going to uphold its mission to care for veterans and responsibility to properly educate veterans on their option, veterans will step up and fight for our brothers and sisters ourselves.
We hope this website will give veterans who use VA benefits for their medical care all the information they need to access the care they earned.
Visit vamissionact.com to learn more about your health care options.
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]]>The post #VAFail: One-third of mental health calls to Atlanta VA are unanswered appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>The addiction and mental health crises for veterans are real and dangerous. They need access to all the resources available to help them.
But veterans who turn to the VA are often left waiting.
In April, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported 7,200 out of 22,000 mental health calls (nearly 33%) received by the Atlanta VA from January 2022 to January 2023 went unanswered. The claim came from a whistleblower complaint to the VA’s Office of the Inspector General.
The whistleblower alleged the Atlanta VA had fallen behind on hiring helpline personnel.
One Atlanta-area veteran told the Journal-Constitution she called the VA at least 10 times in three months. She estimated someone picked up about half the time.
“I don’t know how many veterans would have been able to go through that rejection as many times as I did,” said the veteran who had a PTSD diagnosis, anxiety and depression from serving in combat, and experienced sexual assault during her deployment.
The Atlanta VA said it is investigating the situation.
According to the VA’s website, several Atlanta-area VA facilities have not been taking appointments in recent weeks for mental health care. Wait times at other facilities range anyway from same day to well over 100 days.
Local experts say that even veterans who can get an appointment are often not helped.
Jim Lindenmayer, founder of the Cherokee County Homeless Veterans Program, told the Journal-Constitution there is a shortage of VA therapists who can treat military veterans. He also said staff frequently turns over so even if a veteran gets one appointment, care likely will be inconsistent.
“Calls are canceled or no one’s there,” said Lindenmayer. “These veterans have [mental health conditions] that are triggering them already, and the VA is not responsive.”
Lindenmayer said he knows veterans who have had therapists fail to show up for an appointment. The veteran who called the Atlanta VA 10 times said, “Calling the VA is extremely stressful, because you often get the runaround.”
The Journal-Constitution also noted:
“In the past, the AJC and other media have reported the Atlanta VA has been plagued with problems around its mental health services for veterans. For example, in 2013, a rash of veteran suicides at the center were blamed on mismanagement within its mental health unit. In 2014, the center was on the hot seat after the murder-suicide of Marine veteran. Two years later, the Atlanta VA completed the installation of an anti-climbing fence to prevent veterans from attempting to kill themselves.”
In 2020, an average of 26 veterans per 100,000 living in Georgia died by suicide.
Journal-Constitution reporter Katherine Landergan noted the whistleblower report came as “the federal government is doling out money towards suicide prevention, and Georgia lawmakers recently passed a bill that would improve mental health access for veterans in far-flung areas of the state.”
But lavishing new funding on a broken system without changing the way it works is not the solution. Even as the total veteran population shrinks, annual VA spending has risen more than five-fold in the past two decades.
And still the system is overwhelmed, and veterans are dissatisfied with their care.
The solution to both those problems is allowing veterans access to mental health care, and all health care, when and where they need it. Veterans should not have to rely on no-show therapists and phantom helplines when the law requires they are given access to community care, where they can use their benefits outside VHA facilities. Veterans’ military health care benefits should be portable, and they should be able to seek care that is right for them — at the moment they need it.
Read more about a former VA employee who was bullied and harassed for trying to help her patients get the mental health treatment they needed.
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]]>The post #VAFail: Veterans’ brain injuries misdiagnosed, leaving them without needed care and benefits appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>It’s all the more important that they have access to quality care at home to properly treat brain injuries and receive their earned benefits for those injuries.
But a slew of misdiagnoses has prevented veterans in Wisconsin from accessing either.
Former Black Hawk helicopter pilot Abby Siakpere has sustained multiple head injuries, one during a training accident while serving, and another as a veteran working a civilian job at Fort McCoy Army Airfield.
When she started to develop concerning symptoms — delayed speech, tremors, issues with her cognitive function — she sought care from a neurologist who deemed her case “complex”.
Abby turned to the Tomah VA facility to get a “military perspective” on her injuries and look into the best treatment options.
But what she got from the Tomah VA was essentially an accusation that she was faking or exaggerating her symptoms.
“It is often challenging to determine what the secondary gain is,” Dr. Mary Jo Lanska noted after reviewing Abby’s records without an examination. “Common underlying agendas include avoidance of work, monetary gain, psychological benefit from increased care/concern of family/friends/caregivers, and often combinations of multiple motivations.”
In other words, without so much as actually examining Abby, Dr. Lanska seems to outline what ulterior motives Abby may have had in seeking care for a brain injury.
Abby says she was later denied disability benefits because of that note in her file.
“It messes with your self-worth,” Abby told KARE11 through tears. “When you work so hard over and over to prove yourself, just to be denied by an organization you went to for help.”
Dr. Lanska makes an appearance in more stories like Abby’s.
Calvin Cottone has been living with multiple sclerosis for years, with symptoms dating back at least two decades. His wife Janice, a nursing assistant at the Tomah VA for nearly four decades, kept track of all his medical records from the VA that reference his care and MS being connected to his Marine and Army service.
In recent years, Calvin’s condition has worsened, and his private doctor suggested being reevaluated by the VA. Calvin had a 30% disability rating that gave him some financial benefits, but an increased rating due to declining condition could help keep food on the table as his mobility and resulting ability to work diminishes.
Calvin reported that when Dr. Lanska met with him, it was for only about 30 minutes before she concluded “the veteran’s condition that is currently labeled ‘MS’ has been diagnosed in error.”
Calvin’s private doctor wrote to the VA, confirming that he had been treating Calvin for MS for more than two decades, but that wasn’t enough.
In 2017, Calvin received a letter from the VA stating his MS was no longer considered service-connected “due to incorrect diagnoses”.
He lost his financial benefits for MS, along with VA coverage of his medications for the illness.
Calvin had to endure painful diagnostic testing to prove he had MS. The doctor who did the testing wrote “there is no question about this” of Calvin’s MS diagnosis.
The pattern of short exams and dismissive behavior continued with a vet struggling with his mental health.
“I was blown up four different times in Iraq by improvised explosive devices,” Marine Corps veteran Brandon Winneskiek told WKBT News in La Crosse.
After surviving the troop surge in 2007 and coming home to multiple symptoms of brain injuries, Brandon knew something wasn’t right. He thought he could have sustained a traumatic brain injury and went to the Minneapolis VA for help.
The doctors there told him nothing was wrong.
It turns out Brandon was one of 300 veterans in Minneapolis misdiagnosed for TBI, so he was sent for another exam in Tomah.
Brandon reported that Dr. Lanska felt 30 minutes was enough to make a diagnosis, and she told Brandon he was fine. “There was no MRI, there was no CT scan,” Brandon said. “So once again it’s like, why is nobody listening…Why doesn’t anyone believe me?”
The stress of proving his injuries and coping with the untreated symptoms took a toll on Brandon’s mental health. “I was struggling to not kill myself,” he told KARE11.
Brandon took his case outside the VA, where someone finally believed him.
“I had four different doctors…all agree that I had multiple traumatic brain injuries and permanent brain damage.”
The VA has a history of misdiagnosing traumatic brain injuries, which is all the more terrible considering how prevalent those injuries are among post-9/11 war veterans.
In 2015, KARE11 uncovered more than 300 cases in Minneapolis of veterans examined for TBIs by doctors that weren’t qualified to make TBI diagnoses, leading to potential misdiagnoses and inadequate treatment and benefits.
That investigation led to the VA alerting nearly 25,000 veterans around the country that they could seek a new TBI exam because they may have been misdiagnosed.
Misdiagnoses can result in veterans not receiving the correct disability ratings and compensation, or the correct treatment for their conditions.
TBI symptoms are wide ranging, from physical symptoms including headaches, trouble speaking, or blurred vision to cognitive and mental symptoms including memory loss, mood changes, depression and anxiety, and sleep disruption.
A TBI that isn’t properly treated makes adjusting to civilian life, working, and even interacting with others difficult for a veteran returning from service.
When a service member sustains a TBI or some other form of neurological damage, they should have access to the right care for those injuries.
The story doesn’t end with completely bad news.
Calvin Cattone is now getting the benefits and treatment he needs, and his disability rating has been restored and increased.
Brandon Winneskiek was able to use his private insurance to get a second opinion on his TBI diagnosis.
Calvin, Brandon, and Abby all had the benefit of private doctors on their side to help them fight the VA for the care and recognition they needed.
And because of veterans willing to share their stories, Congress got involved, demanding investigation and answers from the VA.
The VA is now alerting veteran patients at the Tomah VA Medical Center that they may qualify for a re-examination “where appropriate” if they received a Neurology Compensation and Pension exam from Dr. Lanska.
Additionally, the VA press secretary said Dr. Lanska is not currently seeing patients or conducting C&P exams anymore.
But who knows what other Calvins, Brandons, or Abbys are out there, receiving denial letters in the mail, not understanding why the VA isn’t listening to them, and wondering if they have any actual alternative to the VA care they are getting.
Read more #VAFails directly from veterans on My VA Story.
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]]>The post The VA bureaucracy struggle: Blackburn proposes Veterans Health Care Freedom Act appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>Recently, Concerned Veterans of America Executive Director Russ Duerstine spoke with Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn about the Veterans Health Care Freedom Act, the VA MISSION Act, and reforming the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Sens. Blackburn and Mike Rounds introduced the Veterans Health Care Freedom Act.
Through the VA MISSION Act, access to urgent care works well, but other parts of community care need improvement. The Veterans Health Care Freedom Act aims to give veterans more choice in their health care, which is especially important for newer veterans dealing with issues such as burn pit exposure.
Instead of waiting for VA approval to seek community care, the bill would allow veterans to choose their care directly.
“Delayed care is denied care. That really impacts the quality of life and the longevity of life that is there for our veterans,” Blackburn said. “So, let’s take it out of the process, and let’s make this available for the veteran to choose where they want to go and how they want to get that care. Putting veterans rather than the VA bureaucracy at the center of our conversations about veteran health care is so important.”
With over 453,000 veterans and multiple active-duty military bases, Tennessee has a robust veteran community. Sen. Blackburn sees the presence of active-duty members and veterans as a significant part of Tennessee’s identity.
Her Tennessee state offices are also staffed with veterans, which helps veteran constituents with having their voices heard.
“We have case workers that will gladly take up their case and work with the VA to make certain that the promises made to them the day that they signed on the line to serve our nation, that those promises are going to be kept” Blackburn shared.
But her commitment to veterans isn’t confined to Tennessee.
Even before introducing the Veterans Health Care Freedom Act, Blackburn’s commitment to bettering veteran care can be traced back to her strong support for the VA MISSION Act. Blackburn praised the law for its role in advancing choice in the VA health care system and helping address some issues in the system.
When Congress passed the law under President Donald Trump, she was excited that veterans could get community care where they lived. “That is so much better than having to seek out a VA [hospital] that can provide whatever it is that you [need], get on a wait list and wait for [care]. That is no way to treat our veterans,” she said.
She lamented that the VA often doesn’t want to give veterans community care options. “[VA leaders] don’t want community care. They want everything right there, at their convenience. The bureaucracy is more important. It’s all for the bureaucracy. It is not for the good of the veteran.”
Blackburn recommended that the VA should be removed from the approval process for community care, and the process should be automated. Bringing it online would make it easier for veterans to fill out forms and schedule primary care appointments.
The VA still has a massive problem on its hands with disability claims.
A disability claim is backlogged when it’s pending for more than 125 days, and the amount of those at the VA is outrageous. There were 260,000 cases reported in 2021. As of May 2023, that number is around 200,000, but amid a poorly managed rollout of new benefits for veterans exposed to burn pits, the claims backlog could grow to 400,000 over the next year.
This issue also spills into VA wait times, which Blackburn isn’t happy about.
In Tennessee, veterans are facing long wait times for primary care appointments, which significantly affects their health care. The same is true for veterans in every state around the country.
Blackburn said the Biden administration has been spending irresponsibly, increasing the national debt by, and spreading misinformation about funding for veterans’ programs rather than tackling the problem of access to care.
“Veterans really don’t appreciate being used as pawns and [Biden] made us feel that way,” Duerstine added.
The real solution for ensuring veterans have the care they need is creating more access and eliminating barriers. Sen. Blackburn’s Veterans Health Care Freedom Act would do just that.
Watch the full interview with Sen. Marsha Blackburn and learn more about the Veterans Health Care Freedom Act.
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]]>The post VA MISSION Act: A necessary response to the 2014 Phoenix VA hospital scandal appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>While Department of Veterans Affairs hospitals across the country have a mission to take care of veterans and provide them with needed medical care, not all of them do it well.
The 2014 Phoenix VA hospital scandal made that all too clear.
The VA maintained different lists of veterans waiting for medical care – one with correct wait times and another with manipulated wait times to make it look like the VA was meeting its metrics for seeing patients on time. As a result, veterans weren’t getting the care they needed on time, and some even died while waiting for care.
Now years later, legislation has passed to expand veterans access to care in their own communities through their VA benefits, namely through the VA MISSION Act. But the VA is still working behind the scenes to manipulate wait times to keep veterans out of the community and in the VA system.
Concerned Veterans for America has highlighted findings from a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit filed by Americans for Prosperity Foundation aimed at discovering whether VA facilities are following provision in the VA MISSION Act.
They filed 14 FOIA requests around the country at some of the major VA medical centers in West Virginia, Arizona, Florida, and Montana.
One alarming discovery they made was VA staff being coached and trained to discourage veterans from using community care.
“They found a document that was a training slide deck that was teaching customer service representatives to refer people away from community care, essentially training to convince them not to use community care,” Ford said. “One of the ways they did that was to use this special date that they came up with.”
It is evidence of a concerted effort to put the VA above the veterans the department is meant to serve.
Ford emphasizes the importance of taking care of veterans and providing them with quality health care. They were promised that care when they swore an oath to serve the country, and we as a nation must make good on that promise. The VA MISSION Act was a significant step forward, but more work needs to be done to ensure that veterans receive the care they need and deserve.
Listen to the rest of Herb Ford’s conversation with Crank on American Potential.
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]]>The post #VAFail: Veterans’ deaths connected to botched electronic health records system rollout appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>There have been more than 150 cases of veterans harmed by glitches in the new system, six instances of catastrophic harm to veteran patients (death or permanent loss of function) including failure to “deliver more than 11,000 orders for specialty care, lab work and other services, all without alerting health care providers the orders had been lost.”
Of those six instances, four veterans died – one in the Spokane, Washington VA health facility and three in the Columbus, Ohio VA health facility.
Rep. Cathy McMorris-Rodgers, whose district includes Spokane, believes the electronic health records project is a complete failure.
“It has caused serious harm to patients, devastated morale amongst employees and providers, and created a crisis of confidence for veterans,” she said.
The VA has since delayed the rollout of the new electronic health records system to more facilities. Meanwhile veterans’ health care issues continue to pile up.
The new records system has been in planning and execution for years and is an attempt to modernize records management. The biggest gap the new system hopes to solve is communication between the Department of Defense and VA.
Both maintain separate medical records systems, causing unnecessary difficulty for veterans as they transition out of the military and into civilian life. The transition of their medical records is vital to ensure they receive the right treatment and disability coverage for injuries or conditions sustained in service.
But while the project itself is worthy and necessary, the execution has been disastrous.
Senate VA Committee Ranking Member Sen. Jerry Moran reiterated the VA’s goal to create a unified health records system for active-duty service members and veterans while also voicing frustration about the project turmoil.
“The five medical centers that are using this system are struggling with delays, disruptions, and rising costs.” he said recently. “The system has been a factor in the loss of veterans’ lives,” he said.
VA Health Secretary Dr. Shareef Elnahal testified before the Senate Appropriations Committee last year that the new system caused high stress for staffers at the Columbus VA facility and some staffers quit because the workflows were too difficult to use.
Users have complained of many problems with the new system, including the part of the system that manages medicine. These problems pose risks for patients, like getting the wrong medicine or having to wait longer for the medicine they need.
Military Times noted that Dr. Neil Evans, the project’s acting program executive director, acknowledged the failure in fixing the health records system “For the past few years, we’ve tried to fix this plane while flying it, and that hasn’t delivered the results that veterans or our staff deserve,” he said.
The next steps for the project remain unclear, though the VA has extended its contract with Oracle Cerner for an additional five years to get the new system up and running.
Should we be surprised that the VA is failing veterans in this way?
The VA’s history of giving veterans the care they need has been lackluster, and management of a new records system hasn’t gone much smoother. Whether it’s deliberately turning veterans away from community care, being embroiled in scandal after scandal, or this latest issue, the VA isn’t instilling confidence in its veteran patients.
Read more #VAFails and learn about ways to reform the VA.
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]]>The post Vets on the Hill 2023: Who we met with, and who is a champion for veterans appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>This year, we brought nearly 50 staff members and volunteers from all over the country to lobby on Capitol Hill. For three days, these veterans and military family members met with members of Congress to share their stories — from the battlefield to the transition out of military life to accessing needed medical care at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Here are a few of the biggest things that happened:
Take a look at more highlights from Vets on the Hill, who we met with, and who signed on to legislation that puts veterans at the center of their health care.
The most important thing we do at Vets on the Hill is share personal stories, specifically our experiences with VA health care and benefits.
Jessica Villarreal, a combat veteran and former social worker at the VA, had the opportunity to share what she witnessed at the VA with Sen. Ted Cruz. A long-time advocate of reforms at the VA, Sen. Cruz listened to Jessica’s experiences at a VA facility in their home state of Texas.
Members of Congress need to hear what is really going on at the VA, so we’re grateful Sen. Cruz took the time to really listen to Jessica and her concerns.
One of the biggest highlights from Vets on the Hill was getting to hear from Rep. Greg Steube, who has consistently been a champion on veterans’ issues.
An Army veteran himself, Rep. Steube has introduced legislation to expand access to medical care for veterans by allowing them to choose to enroll in certain TRICARE plans instead of the VA system. He joined CVA for a reception at the Capitol and spoke about his plans to continue being a strong advocate for his fellow veterans.
We had the great opportunity this year to not only bring our staff, but our volunteers as well. CVA Strategic Director Frank Bullock brought four volunteers from his veteran community back home in South Carolina, and they met with Sen. Deb Fischer of Nebraska.
Frank’s volunteers shared their personal experiences with accessing needed medical care for their unique health challenges.
Frank, who was at Vets on the Hill for the first time, said:
“Getting to meet the men and women representing us through our government is something amazing and truly American. It connected me with the founding fathers’ desire to have a system of government, whereby people could petition representatives and senators to have whatever issues they needed addressed, be addressed. And it’s always a blessing to be in the presence of other veterans, to hear their stories of service, and to make sure those stories are heard in Washington.”
Rep. Matt Rosendale has been a champion for veterans during his time in the House. He took the time to talk with CVA Strategic Director Chris Enget, who is also a constituent.
Chris talked through the bills CVA is working to get passed, and the team is excited for opportunities to work with Rep. Rosendale to get those bills signed into law.
The team met with Rep. Derrick Van Orden, a new member of Congress and former Navy SEAL.
Rep. Van Orden has come out strong as a leader on VA issues from his seat on the House Veterans Affairs Committee. He shares his experiences as a veteran himself, and we’re excited to find ways to work with him in the future.
Rep. Maria Salazar proved to be one of Vets on the Hill’s biggest champions.
After our team met with Rep. Salazar’s staff to discuss issues with the VA and our solutions, the representative signed on as a cosponsor on the Veterans True Choice Act and the Veterans Health Care Freedom Act.
We weren’t able to snag a picture with her when she stopped by in between meetings and votes, but we’re so grateful to her for visiting with us for a few moments and her staff for taking the time to meet!
The team from Arizona and Virginia stopped by Sen. Markwayne Mullin’s office, where we got an impromptu visit from the senator. He spent time asking each person in the room about their personal stories and finding common ground to connect with everyone.
Arizona Strategic Director Amanda Tallman, also a Vets on the Hill first-timer, said this after the meeting:
Coming to Vets on the Hill was scary for me because I didn’t know if people would actually listen to my story. But meeting with Sen. Mullin was a great experience. I’m not a constituent of his, but we share that we are both adoptive parents. He took the time to hear my story of service and raising a family as I’ve transitioned out of the military. I am so grateful I was able to attend and advocate not only for myself, but veterans in Arizona and around the country.
Want to join us in bringing veterans health care and foreign policy reform to Washington? Visit our action center to send your lawmaker a letter!
The post Vets on the Hill 2023: Who we met with, and who is a champion for veterans appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>The post Watch: Memorial Day is a reminder of the cost of freedom and ‘responsibility to steward that freedom well’ appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>Russ Duerstine, a veteran himself and father to a combat veteran, spends Memorial Day reflecting on what it costs to keep our nation safe.
“Memorial Day is a reminder of what the oath to serve means, the cost of freedom, and the responsibility to steward that freedom well,” Russ says in his Memorial Day message.
You can watch the full video here:
This Memorial Day, we honor and remember those who’ve lost their lives in service to this country. May we live every day stewarding our freedom well.
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]]>The post Stop using veterans as political pawns and take actual health care reform steps appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>In a recent piece in the Daily Caller, CVA Deputy Director John Byrnes calls out the White House and certain members of Congress for spreading misinformation about the recently passed Limit, Save, Grow Act.
House Republicans passed the Limit, Save, Grow Act in an attempt to lay down a marker and manage the conversation on the upcoming debt ceiling negotiations. The House bill has no chance of passing the Senate or being signed into law. Nonetheless, the White House itself published outrageous and untrue claims about how the bill would affect veterans’ health care at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
While many in Washington and in the media have perpetuated these claims, there are actual solutions on the table that ensure veterans have timely access to quality care.
What veterans need is reform at the VA and options for care outside of it, not lip service and blatant lies about the budget and services.
…
We’re continuing the fight to build off that success by supporting Sens. Jerry Moran and Kyrsten Sinema’s Veterans’ HEALTH Act, Sen. Marsha Blackburn and Rep. Andy Biggs’ Veterans Health Care Freedom Act, and Rep. Greg Steube’s Veterans True Choice Act, all of which would expand access to care, hold the VA accountable for providing care, and ensure the promise to care for veterans is kept.
Read the rest of John Byrnes’ piece in the Daily Caller.
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]]>The post 20 years after ‘Mission Accomplished’, our leaders can finally end the wars in Iraq appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>Twenty years ago, President George W. Bush gave his infamous “Mission Accomplished” speech in which he celebrated “victory” in the war and announced “major combat operations in Iraq have ended” all in front of a massive “Mission Accomplished” banner.
No part of that scene aged well.
Looking back now, we know operations in Iraq had just started in May 2003, and that the most difficult parts of the war were still to come.
CVA’s Policy Director Tyler Koteskey recently reflected on how the war took a worse turn and will be felt for decades to come.
At the time of the president’s speech, Americans had yet to pay the main costs of the Iraq War. The years immediately following “Mission Accomplished” were the deadliest in the conflict, which has left 4,500 U.S. troops killed and over 32,000 wounded. American taxpayers can expect to pay nearly $3 trillion for the Iraq War through 2050 when factoring the costs of veterans’ care, war-related defense spending increases, and additional interest on the national debt.
The legacy of the War in Iraq is one of poor foreign policy decisions and unnecessary harm to U.S. troops. And while our leaders can’t undo the decisions of the past, they can right the ship with better foreign policy going forward. Koteskey continued:
How can we turn the page on this failed legacy? First and foremost, it is past time for U.S. forces to exit Iraq. We have long-since defeated ISIS’ territorial caliphate, leaving no clearly achievable mission left for U.S. forces. Further, the ability of the U.S. and its allies to launch strikes against ISIS leaders is well-proven. Remaining in Iraq only makes U.S. forces subject to ongoing attack from Iranian-backed militias, which have documented ties to the very Iraqi security forces our troops are training and equipping. If the president is unwilling to remove U.S. troops from Iraq, Congress should consider ending funding for our continued presence there, the same method it used to help finally bring the Vietnam War to a close.
Secondly, Americans must demand that Congress take seriously its constitutional obligation to decide questions of war and peace to avoid foolishly sending our men and women in uniform rushing headlong into conflict, or, worse, keeping them in harm’s way for decades with no clear objectives. The 2002 Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) Against Iraq, which provided the legal basis for Operation Iraqi Freedom, was introduced and sent to the White House in just over a week, despite the sweeping consequences of the war.
Read the rest of Tyler Koteskey’s piece on the legacy of the Iraq War in Responsible Statecraft.
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]]>The post #VAFail: Colorado veteran tells his story about the VA blocking his needed surgery appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>United States Navy veteran Nate Banks sat down with Jeff Crank for another episode of the American Potential podcast and spoke in depth about his tense battles with the VA as he seeks community care for himself and other veterans.
In 2018, Congress passed the VA MISSION Act and signed it into law, giving veterans who meet certain criteria access to community care through their VA benefits. But too often, the VA stands in the way.
Banks made it very clear that veterans should make their health care decisions, not the VA.
“I don’t want my care done [at the VA]. I will do anything that I can to liberate any care that I have, any services that I need from that monolithic, top-down bureaucratic system,” Banks said about veterans’ choice on their health care.” “And you wanna be able to be the one making that decision, not them. I can’t think of a single bureaucrat on this planet that can make health care decisions better for me than I can.”
Banks’ problems at the VA started when he developed abdominal pain and went to an urgent care center. The doctor there suspected that it was either diverticulitis or appendicitis, and he needed to get testing done to verify what was going on.
He went to a trusted, non-VA hospital close to him, which was about a 40-minute drive from his home. There, he was diagnosed with diverticulitis, but the doctors also found a mass on his left kidney.
The hospital immediately scheduled him with a urologist who tried to get an authorization from the VA for surgery. However, the VA refused to allow the surgery to happen at the hospital where his support system was in Durango, Colorado.
They wanted him to drive four hours away to the VA hospital in Albuquerque, New Mexico so the VA could do the procedure.
“The assurance of, ‘oh, well you need to come here because we can do it here.’ Yeah. That wasn’t good enough for me,” Banks said.
Crank said to Banks’ point that it wasn’t that the VA cared about him or the care he got, they wanted to preserve their system. “Preserve the VA system and keep veterans locked into that system for job security,” Crank added.
Banks had trouble getting authorization for his surgery from the VA and called his member of Congress’ office for help. The congressman’s liaison spoke to the VA and the authorization was granted within a few days.
But it shouldn’t have taken that much intervention to get Banks the comfortable care he needed.
This story highlights the need for better access to health care for veterans. After all, when servicemen and women take off the uniform, they should not have to worry about fighting a battle to get the care they need.
Fighting for this kidney surgery was just the beginning of Nate Banks’ problems at the VA. Listen to the rest of his conversation with Jeff Crank on American Potential.
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]]>The post Reintroduced Veterans Health Care Freedom Act would expand health care choice and remove barriers to care at the VA appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>Thanks to a newly re-introduced bill, expanded access to care could soon be a reality for millions of veterans who use the Department of Veterans Affairs for their health care delivery and benefits.
The Veterans Health Care Freedom Act, introduced in the Senate by Sen. Marsha Blackburn and in the House by Rep. Andy Biggs, would break down many of the barriers that currently stand in the way of veterans accessing community care through their VA benefits.
Specifically, the bill would create a pilot program to offer full health care choice to veterans, transforming the way VA care delivered. Full choice eliminates the requirements that a veteran patient receives a pre-authorization from the VA before seeking care in the community. After four years, the pilot program would expand to all veterans who use the VA for their care.
CVA’s Executive Director Russ Duerstine had this to say about the bill:
The Veterans Health Care Freedom Act would ensure veterans have choice by holding the VA accountable to help them access care rather than act as a bureaucratic barrier. It’s simple – our nation’s heroes should have the option to choose the health care provider that best meets their needs, even when that means taking their benefits outside of the VA to get that care. It needs to be up to them. This bill would make health care choice a reality for veterans, rather than an exception.
The VA MISSION Act was signed into law to expand access to community care so that veterans wouldn’t be stuck in a bureaucratic system that doesn’t prioritize their needs. Passing the Veterans Health Care Freedom Act is a necessary next step to ensure MISSION Act provisions are protected and built on in the future.
Tell your lawmaker to sign on in support of the Veterans Health Care Freedom Act.
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]]>The post Demanding accountability: How Congress can protect health care choice for veterans appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>Recently, The Hill published a compelling op-ed by Darin Selnick, a senior advisor for Concerned Veterans for America and an Air Force veteran, in which he argues that the VA is failing to provide veterans with the choice and flexibility they desperately need in their health care.
According to the VA’s FY 2024 budget submission, overall satisfaction with Community Care was at 83 percent in 2022. Conversely, the overall rating for VA hospitals was only 69 percent.
The percentage of those surveyed who trust the VA is dropping and is well below the VA’s targets. At the same time, VA enrollment is declining, with a projected drop of more than 100,000 veterans from 2021 to 2025.
The VA has a clear message from veterans about what they want in care: flexibility and choice. But leadership has instead chosen to limit access to community care despite long wait and drive times and to weaponize the budget against the Community Care Program.
As Selnick highlights, this isn’t just about numbers or dollars; it’s about veterans’ lives. Tragic consequences arise when the VA delays care, as demonstrated by a who recently died after the VA delayed a surgery referral for 205 days.
Selnick discusses two primary solutions for these problems at the VA.
Congress should pass legislation, such as the Veterans True Choice Act, that puts veterans in charge of their care. Legislation should empower veterans with greater access to timely, quality care and close loopholes that have allowed the VA to skirt the VA MISSION Act.
Beyond legislation, Congress should hold VA leadership accountable for their blatant disregard of veterans’ wellbeing and the law. Congress has the power to punish VA leadership until the VA MISSION Act is followed as intended. It should do so by cutting general administration budgets, freezing management bonuses, and launching further investigations into how VA trains its staff and manages community care.
The VA has a solemn responsibility to care for veterans. Accountability for leadership and full health care choice for veterans are the only way the VA will be able to make good on that promise in the future. Since VA won’t take its duty seriously, Congress must step in.
Read the rest of Selnick’s piece in The Hill.
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]]>The post #VAFail: The VA can fire its poorly performing staff. So why isn’t it? appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>But when it comes to the Department of Veterans Affairs, you’d be wrong.
The VA Loma Linda Healthcare System has been in a three-year-long battle over a supervisor who’s known to be abusive to staff and regularly late to work, among other bad behavior. But even with all the evidence of misconduct, the employee still works for the VA.
The VA has accountability measures at its disposal, so what is the hold up?
In 2017, the VA Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act was signed into law, giving the VA greater authority to discipline and fire employees when evidence shows misconduct or generally poor performance.
This legislation was driven by numerous employee scandals at the VA. In one case, poor performers were sent to work in different facilities around the country rather than being fired. In another, two VA employees orchestrated role changes for themselves that got them less responsibility at the same pay; when the VA tried to fire them, they appealed and were given their jobs back.
When the VA Accountability and Whistleblower Protect Act was made law, it represented a win for veterans who use the VA and for the department itself. After all, VA leadership needs the authority to manage its workforce if it’s going to fulfill its promise to care for veterans.
But authority doesn’t mean much if the VA won’t use it.
Recently, the VA has been public about not using its authority under the 2017 accountability law. The chief of the VA’s Human Capital Office said in congressional testimony that “VA has demonstrated the ability to hold employees accountable without having to use [the 2017 accountability authorities].”
VA Secretary Denis McDonough doubled down on that sentiment, saying the 2017 law wasn’t doing much to help VA hold staff accountable, and that they wouldn’t be using those authorities anymore as they were just “getting us in front of federal judges and other administrative bodies.”
Seems like something the VA should go to Congress to get help for, maybe?
In the Loma Linda case, it’s not clear why this employee hasn’t been fired. Even members of Congress are scratching their heads over how this employee still has a job at the VA.
In a letter sent to the VA secretary, House Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Mike Bost and Rep. Jay Obernolte, who represents Loma Linda, questioned why the employee hasn’t been fired despite multiple investigations and 36 witnesses confirming the employee’s misconduct.
“Despite the investigations’ consistent evidence and recommendations, and the massive amount of time, money, and energy spent investigating the supervisory employee over nearly three years, the supervisor remains employed,” the letter says, despite “repeatedly creating an environment that you claim VA does not tolerate. Consequently, employees are forced to either work in a hostile environment or leave VA.”
Bost and Obernolte argued in their letter to McDonough that this is exactly why the 2017 accountability law was enacted in the first place.
Unfortunately, VA has elected to pause the use of that authority beginning April 3, 2023. The painful three-year history of this case vividly demonstrates why this authority is necessary. Failing to quickly discipline employees in situations like this one is a disservice to both their peers and the veterans they serve. Creating a better work environment and a better VA for veterans must begin with more accountability, not less.
CVA Senior Advisor Darin Selnick told Military Times this is a case of the VA “not acting in good faith to solve its accountability problems.” He continued: “[The VA] could have come to Congress to fix the issues. … They didn’t seem to want to win.”
The department has a responsibility to serve veterans by holding staff accountable for misconduct and malfeasance. But as is typical of the VA, its leaders would rather maintain the status quo and skirt the law.
Read a story from a former VA employee who was bullied and harassed by bad VA employees for simply doing her job well.
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]]>The post CVA’s Russ Duerstine joins American Potential podcast to discuss VA reforms appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>Russ spoke in depth about the rampant appointment wait time manipulation happening at the VA as the department attempts to keep veterans going to the VA rather than using their VA benefits to see their own doctors.
Russ attributes this mishandling of appointments to the VA wanting to maintain its control over veterans’ health care.
“There’s one entity that’s allowed to have a monopoly, and that’s the government,” Russ told host Jeff Crank. “The government for some reason thinks that they’re allowed to monopolize veterans’ health care.”
Keeping veterans stuck in the VA’s system rather than letting them seek timely, quality care on their own terms is typical of the massive, government-run health care system. Russ continued “this exists in any bureaucracy – the bureaucracy comes before the need of the person they’re supposed to be serving”.
The solution is supporting and implementing legislation that truly puts veterans at the center of their health care. The VA should be a strong option for veterans who want to use it for care. And for those who want more choices, the VA should step out of the way.
Russ concludes that even if the VA is the best option in certain situations, that doesn’t matter much when wait times are misrepresented and veterans cannot get the care they need soon enough. “Excellence without choice still ends up in tragedy and despair for too many veterans”
Listen to the rest of Russ’ conversation with Jeff Crank on American Potential.
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]]>The post #VAFail: Veteran takes his own life after being denied treatment for chronic pain. Rep. Greg Steube and CVA speak out. appeared first on Concerned Veterans for America.
]]>The pain for too much for Rayford to bear, so a few weeks after he was denied the treatment he sought, he planned his own funeral and took his own life.
Rep. Greg Steube and CVA Grassroots Engagement Director David Huston reacted to this story in a recent piece in the Sarasota Herald-Times:
We were disturbed to hear of how Rayford was treated by the VA and immensely saddened to hear of the result. Unfortunately, Rayford is not the only veteran we know of who has taken his own life due to a seemingly hopeless path. We both utilize the VA ourselves and have seen the dysfunction and lack of choice with our own eyes.
…
As advocates for veterans and reforms at the VA, we fight for more health care options so veterans aren’t stuck in the VA’s system. Having more options may have saved Rayford’s life.
No veteran should be left believing there is no hope for them at the VA, the very department meant to serve them. And no veteran should be reading this column in fear of what they might hear at their VA appointments.
Those reforms include Congress protecting and expanding legislation that gives veterans greater choice over where they use their VA health benefits and providing more oversight of VA’s management of veteran’s care.
Rep Steube has taken a further step by introducing legislation that would allow veterans with service-connected injuries to continue using TRICARE Select health coverage.
The Veterans True Choice Act would allow veterans under certain criteria – such as service-connected disabilities, discharge due to disability or eligibility for disability compensation – to receive health care coverage under TRICARE Select. This would both give veterans an option to use a trusted and known entity for their benefits, while alleviating pressure on the VA so it can see veterans in a timely manner.
We hope members from both parties will sign on to this legislation and help get it across the finish line into law.
No veteran should ever feel the VA is so hopeless they have no other options. Vets need access to quality, timely care.
Read the rest of Rep. Steube and David’s piece in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.
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