Aa
VA
Guess Obama is too busy raising $ for the DNC.
http://www.nationalreview.com/campaign-spot/378322/obama-2007-time-end-deplorable-conditions-some-va-hospitals-jim-geraghty
Then-Senator Barack Obama, November 12, 2007: “After seven years of an Administration that has stretched our military to the breaking point, ignored deplorable conditions at some VA hospitals, and neglected the planning and preparation necessary to care for our returning heroes, America’s veterans deserve a President who will fight for them not just when it’s easy or convenient, but every hour of every day for the next four years.”
By 2012, Obama continued to compare the performance of the VA during his administration favorably to his predecessor, declaring, “For the first time ever, we’ve made military families and veterans a top priority not just at DOD, not just at the VA, but across the government.”
Now we know the report of at least 40 U.S. veterans dying waiting for appointments at the Phoenix Veterans Affairs Health Care system is only the tip of the iceberg.
Today:
When Shinseki took office, he vowed that every disability claim would be processed within 125 days with 98 percent accuracy. But the backlogs only got worse.
It took about four months for VA to process a claim for disability compensation claim when Shinseki was sworn in. By 2012, the average wait time was about nine months.
In February 2013, the Examiner published a five-part series, “Making America’s Heroes Wait,” showing more than 1.1 million veterans with disability claims and appeals were trapped in bureaucratic limbo at VA.
About 70 percent of the 900,000 claims for initial benefits were considered backlogged, meaning they were older than 125 days.
The Examiner series also showed how agency statistics were manipulated to hide mistakes that doomed veterans into appeals that could drag on for years.
There were some early signs then that VA’s failures in delivering medical care were having deadly consequences.
An outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease was reported in Pittsburgh in November 2012. Subsequent investigations by the inspector general and area media eventually linked a half-dozen patient deaths from the disease to faulty maintenance and poor management.
Reports of other deaths followed.
Four patients under VA’s care in Atlanta died of a drug overdose or suicides.
In Columbia, S.C., at least six patient deaths from colorectal cancers were linked to delays in receiving colonoscopies at veterans’ medical facilities.
VA eventually acknowledged that delays in providing care was linked to the deaths of 23 patients who died of gastrointestinal cancers at veterans’ health facilities. Deaths from other conditions were not disclosed.
http://www.nationalreview.com/campaign-spot/378322/obama-2007-time-end-deplorable-conditions-some-va-hospitals-jim-geraghty
Then-Senator Barack Obama, November 12, 2007: “After seven years of an Administration that has stretched our military to the breaking point, ignored deplorable conditions at some VA hospitals, and neglected the planning and preparation necessary to care for our returning heroes, America’s veterans deserve a President who will fight for them not just when it’s easy or convenient, but every hour of every day for the next four years.”
By 2012, Obama continued to compare the performance of the VA during his administration favorably to his predecessor, declaring, “For the first time ever, we’ve made military families and veterans a top priority not just at DOD, not just at the VA, but across the government.”
Now we know the report of at least 40 U.S. veterans dying waiting for appointments at the Phoenix Veterans Affairs Health Care system is only the tip of the iceberg.
Today:
When Shinseki took office, he vowed that every disability claim would be processed within 125 days with 98 percent accuracy. But the backlogs only got worse.
It took about four months for VA to process a claim for disability compensation claim when Shinseki was sworn in. By 2012, the average wait time was about nine months.
In February 2013, the Examiner published a five-part series, “Making America’s Heroes Wait,” showing more than 1.1 million veterans with disability claims and appeals were trapped in bureaucratic limbo at VA.
About 70 percent of the 900,000 claims for initial benefits were considered backlogged, meaning they were older than 125 days.
The Examiner series also showed how agency statistics were manipulated to hide mistakes that doomed veterans into appeals that could drag on for years.
There were some early signs then that VA’s failures in delivering medical care were having deadly consequences.
An outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease was reported in Pittsburgh in November 2012. Subsequent investigations by the inspector general and area media eventually linked a half-dozen patient deaths from the disease to faulty maintenance and poor management.
Reports of other deaths followed.
Four patients under VA’s care in Atlanta died of a drug overdose or suicides.
In Columbia, S.C., at least six patient deaths from colorectal cancers were linked to delays in receiving colonoscopies at veterans’ medical facilities.
VA eventually acknowledged that delays in providing care was linked to the deaths of 23 patients who died of gastrointestinal cancers at veterans’ health facilities. Deaths from other conditions were not disclosed.
Pitiful....
As a wife of a Vet I can tell you the Vets administration has been a mess for years, this is not something Obama created but yes, he should help fix it.
The VA is woefully underfunded largely because tens of thousands of our young men are returning from a phony war that **** Cheney conjured up to make billionaires out of his buddies at Halliburton. Have the profiteers who got rich off America's fears fund the VA.
Likewise we lack the money to fund our healthcare system because hundreds of thousands of Americans are being sickened by the Koch Bros. industrial operations. Let the ones who profit off creating industrial waste and cancer be the ones to pay the bill.
Likewise we lack the money to fund our healthcare system because hundreds of thousands of Americans are being sickened by the Koch Bros. industrial operations. Let the ones who profit off creating industrial waste and cancer be the ones to pay the bill.
Not saying Obama created this, but he railed against Bush and now this is even worse under him.
desrt how many tin foil hats do you have?
desrt how many tin foil hats do you have?
One for each Right-Wing, hate media lie I hear regurgitated on here. What don't you believe? That the primary result of the Iraqi war was to kill and injure many brave Americans so that a lot of cowardly profiteers could get rich? Or that the Koch brothers spend an obscene amount of money fighting environmental regulations, with the result that Americans are getting sick and dying?
I was talking about the Iraq war in my response, don't know enough about Koch to really comment.
Tell me what is right wing hate media?
The primary result of the Iraq war was giving freedom to millions of people.
Tell me what is right wing hate media?
The primary result of the Iraq war was giving freedom to millions of people.
Well, tin hats aside (I wear one like every 7 weeks in a process to hi light my hair by the way) . . .
I don't believe the Iraq war was intended to kill brave Americans so that a lot of cowardly profiteers could get rich.
That's a little over the top.
I don't believe the Iraq war was intended to kill brave Americans so that a lot of cowardly profiteers could get rich.
That's a little over the top.
Seems like everyone agrees that more could be done with the VA. Agreeing is good.
I guess what you are saying Vance is that Obama criticized Bush a great deal on this subject and didn't do anything to fix it himself?
I guess what you are saying Vance is that Obama criticized Bush a great deal on this subject and didn't do anything to fix it himself?
I think there are millions of Sunnis who might disagree with you. Saddam tortured and murdered his own people (just like some of our current allies of convenience) and should have been deposed. That took a matter of weeks - months at the most.
But in the years since 'Mission Accomplished' we've done little to use the opportunity to make the Middle East a more stable place. We've run a lot of HumVees over IEDs, brought our servicemen home with irreparable brain damage and PTSD - and for what? So Iraq can be a well-paved superhighway to funnel arms and soldiers from Iran to Syria? We've moved taxpayer money out of our pockets and into the coffers of those who happened to be the cronies of those who initiated the war.
Show me the WMDs. Show me the link between Saddam and Al-Qaida that was used as a justification to spend all those lives and all that treasure.
But in the years since 'Mission Accomplished' we've done little to use the opportunity to make the Middle East a more stable place. We've run a lot of HumVees over IEDs, brought our servicemen home with irreparable brain damage and PTSD - and for what? So Iraq can be a well-paved superhighway to funnel arms and soldiers from Iran to Syria? We've moved taxpayer money out of our pockets and into the coffers of those who happened to be the cronies of those who initiated the war.
Show me the WMDs. Show me the link between Saddam and Al-Qaida that was used as a justification to spend all those lives and all that treasure.
dsrt, it wasn't two people that agreed to go to war. In hindsight, the Iraq War was a mistake but many people voted to go and were supportive at the time. I can't imagine anyone doesn't regret it. But at the time, I believe people acted on the intelligence they had--- ALL people including the ones some here absolutely loathe. And once there, it was a miserable mistake that we then couldn't just leave. That region was unstable before and more so today and it is a shame that so many have lost their lives, their loved ones or been hurt by the war (with the financial hurt being minimal compared to that). I'm sure most if not all wish they could go back in time but then I think it would still be just as out of control over there.
Was your point that Obama was so critical of Bush on the subject of the VA and yet, it doesn't seem to be any better under his tenure? (which is a different topic than the right or wrong of the Iraq war).
If it was a miserable, regrettable mistake, perhaps we should have waited until we had better intelligence about the true situation before mobilizing. To me it feels as though people's fears were exploited to jump into this. Which comes back to Vance's question about "hate media".
The way I use the phrase is: any form of print, video, or audio communication that uses fear, prejudice, or ignorance to manipulate people.
The way I use the phrase is: any form of print, video, or audio communication that uses fear, prejudice, or ignorance to manipulate people.
But the people who made the final decision to go to war (some Democrats included) used the same intelligence to make the decision (and not hate media).
I personally hate all hate media--- anything extremely political with a clear agenda is something I avoid. Going in either direction. So, I agree that I am not a fan of that but like ALL things, people use media to make their case (Obama being no different. He personally asked actors and entertainers to talk up his healthcare plan on twitter and things like that for him to make his case and present the information from his side . . . among many other things that are just like that. I trust very few politicians these days from either party.).
Whether the War on Iraq was right or wrong, the VA is a mess and it stayed that way after Obama criticized the former president on it. I guess whomever runs next can criticize Bush AND Obama.
I personally hate all hate media--- anything extremely political with a clear agenda is something I avoid. Going in either direction. So, I agree that I am not a fan of that but like ALL things, people use media to make their case (Obama being no different. He personally asked actors and entertainers to talk up his healthcare plan on twitter and things like that for him to make his case and present the information from his side . . . among many other things that are just like that. I trust very few politicians these days from either party.).
Whether the War on Iraq was right or wrong, the VA is a mess and it stayed that way after Obama criticized the former president on it. I guess whomever runs next can criticize Bush AND Obama.
".... the VA is a mess and it stayed that way after Obama criticized the former president on it"
That was kind of the meat of the original subject. Then, as it normally does around here, people started blaming people about the wars and other things.....
If I had to hazard a guess, I'd bet this thread resembles DC and all of the BS that happens there. Pick a side, throw BS around, blame someone else... if you are doing all of that, you don't have any time to address the issue at hand.
The VA still $ucks. That is still an issue and it was one that we were told that would be addressed. It hasn't, until maybe now. (The President said he was getting on it.) He can still save some face IF he does something about this. But...
That was kind of the meat of the original subject. Then, as it normally does around here, people started blaming people about the wars and other things.....
If I had to hazard a guess, I'd bet this thread resembles DC and all of the BS that happens there. Pick a side, throw BS around, blame someone else... if you are doing all of that, you don't have any time to address the issue at hand.
The VA still $ucks. That is still an issue and it was one that we were told that would be addressed. It hasn't, until maybe now. (The President said he was getting on it.) He can still save some face IF he does something about this. But...
The issue at hand would seem to be the fact that the VA is (among other things) underfunded. Discussing the reasons why there are more clients than there are funds wouldn't seem to be a terrible digression.
The VA $ucks. Your "among other things" have as much to do with the situation as does funding. The thing is completely mismanaged from the top to the bottom.
The funding is a simple issue. American politicians feel they are far more important than our fighting men and women, that's why they cut funding to the VA and write themselves in for raises and proudly accept health care benefits that are second to none. "Serve their country"... BS. Readjust the pay scale, redistribute some of their salaries right off the top and you'll see some of the funding issues get cleared up. Secondly, clean house amongst the health care providers at the VA. Pay attention to fraud and get rid of it. The VA should only be concerned with the health of our veterans and it should NOT be a political tool, ever!
"The issue at hand would seem to be the fact that the VA is (among other things) underfunded." This was a high priority issue when it was discussed back in 07... so much of a high priority issue that we are just now getting around to it.... yeah, lets sit and discuss this, shall we?
The funding is a simple issue. American politicians feel they are far more important than our fighting men and women, that's why they cut funding to the VA and write themselves in for raises and proudly accept health care benefits that are second to none. "Serve their country"... BS. Readjust the pay scale, redistribute some of their salaries right off the top and you'll see some of the funding issues get cleared up. Secondly, clean house amongst the health care providers at the VA. Pay attention to fraud and get rid of it. The VA should only be concerned with the health of our veterans and it should NOT be a political tool, ever!
"The issue at hand would seem to be the fact that the VA is (among other things) underfunded." This was a high priority issue when it was discussed back in 07... so much of a high priority issue that we are just now getting around to it.... yeah, lets sit and discuss this, shall we?
I'd be the first to agree that most of our gov't is top heavy with paper shufflers, administrators, and administrative assistants. The problem is, that after you clean house and you have the money you need, where do you find the people to come in and do the actual work that needs doing? We expect people to acquire massive student debt to become doctors, nurses, and physical therapists. Any suggestion of providing a free education to those who want it would invoke hand wringing and cries of 'creeping socialism'. And we've reached a point of diminishing returns in expecting people from other countries to come and empty our bedpans, start IVs, and diagnose our illnesses. My neurologist back in Texas is originally from South Asia, has practiced here for many years, and is topnotch. My current neuro' is a more recent immigrant and not nearly the same caliber. We seem to be scraping the bottom of the barrel there. It's the same problem that I see us running into in universal healthcare for the rest of the country. Too many people, not enough resources.
This is why I choose to look at the VA problem from the 'supply side' of the issue. Quit putting our people in harm's way unless absolutely necessary. And certainly not just so Boeing or Halliburton can show a profit to their stockholders.
This is why I choose to look at the VA problem from the 'supply side' of the issue. Quit putting our people in harm's way unless absolutely necessary. And certainly not just so Boeing or Halliburton can show a profit to their stockholders.
The last time I was in a VA was 19 years ago. We'd gone to visit my wife's twin uncles who had both served in WWII. Both were in the VA because of advanced dementia (one also was dying of cancer). The cleanliness of the place was horrible. The quality of care was reprehensible. The amount of staff was non-existent.
How you get quality help in places like VAs? I've got a theory on that too, and it lies somewhere near addressing the fraud, have veterans take care of veterans, blah..blah..blah. The problem won't be properly addressed.
How you get quality help in places like VAs? I've got a theory on that too, and it lies somewhere near addressing the fraud, have veterans take care of veterans, blah..blah..blah. The problem won't be properly addressed.
In fact, if you wanted to solve all of the problems with the VA, make all of the senators in this country get their health care there.... I bet that **** would be a well oiled machine in just a couple of years.
There have been problems with the VA for years and years. Its ridiculous and always has been. I hope heads (many heads) roll, from those falsified records, dirty facilities, as well as the funding (or lack of). There is lotsa blame to go around, so l say, we the people need to demand change. In unison, but we know that aint gonna happen now is it? More politics blame game will go on and eventually the story will fade away like the others.
good post!
"More politics blame game will go on and eventually the story will fade away like the others." Does the phrase "mid term elections" ring any bells?
I never really thought about Mid-Term Elections, but it makes since. This has been going on long before Obama took office. Both Republican and Democratic Presidents have ignored it. So other than another example of “Change” being BS, there is really nothing to blame on Obama. He is just like the rest of them.
About where to find people to run the VA? I don't think it would take too long to find administrators out there who are completely capable of running the VA. I think there are people out there who are compassionate enough to step up in nearly any of the vacant slots.
Blame? No way did Obama create this. I totally agree with that. He did say that fixing this was going to be a priority back in 07.... The President is just like anyone else that has filled those shoes. Go ahead and say any old thing to get elected, and then get to the priorities in, oh, 6-7 years.
Blame? No way did Obama create this. I totally agree with that. He did say that fixing this was going to be a priority back in 07.... The President is just like anyone else that has filled those shoes. Go ahead and say any old thing to get elected, and then get to the priorities in, oh, 6-7 years.
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