February 27, 2009
The American Legion
1608 K Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20006
(202) 861-2700
www.legion.org
AMVETS (American Veterans)
4647 Forbes Blvd.
Lanham, MD 20706
(301) 459-9600
www.amvets.org
Blinded Veterans Association
477 H Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20001
(202) 371-8880
www.bva.org
Disabled American Veterans
807 Maine Avenue, S.W.
Washington, DC 20024
(202) 554-3501
www.dav.org
Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America
308 Massachusetts Ave NE
Washington, DC 20002
(202) 544-7692
www.iava.org
Jewish War Veterans of the USA
1811 R Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20009
(202) 265-6280
www.jwv.org
Military Officers Association of America
201 N. Washington Street
Alexandria, VA 22314
(703) 549-2311
www.moaa.org
Military Order of the Purple Heart
of the U.S.A., Inc.
5413-B Backlick Road
Springfield, VA 22151
(703) 642-5360
www.purpleheart.org
Paralyzed Veterans of America
801 18th Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20006
(202) 872-1300
www.pva.org
Veterans of Foreign Wars
of the United States
200 Maryland Avenue, N.E.
Washington, DC 20002
(202) 543-2239
www.vfw.org
Vietnam Veterans of America, Inc.
8605 Cameron Street, Suite 400
Silver Spring, MD 20910
(301) 585-4000
www.vva.org
The Honorable Barack Obama
President of the United States
The White House
Washington, DC
Dear President Obama:
On behalf of the millions of veterans represented by the veterans and military service organizations that have joined our effort, we write to express our serious concerns about a policy proposal that has been discussed this week in conjunction with the release of your first budget. We have been told that your Administration may be considering a proposal that would allow the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care system to bill a veteran’s insurance for the care and treatment of a disability or injury that was determined to have been incurred in or the result of the veteran’s honorable military service to our country. Such a consideration is wholly unacceptable and a total abrogation of our government’s moral and legal responsibility to the men and women who have sacrificed so much for our freedoms.
As you know, the mission of the VA is “To care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan.” Similarly, the VA emphasizes that it will “provide veterans the world-class benefits and services they have earned—and to do so by adhering to the highest standards of compassion, commitment, excellence, professionalism, integrity, accountability, and stewardship.” Unfortunately, the proposal to bill veterans for the care of their service-connected disabilities ignores the most important aspect of this vision—that their care has been earned.
This proposal ignores the solemn obligation that this country has to care for those men and women who have served this country with distinction and were left with the wounds and scars of that service. The blood spilled in service for this nation is the premium that service-connected veterans have paid for their earned care.
We understand and accept that the VA bills third-party insurers of veterans who are treated for non-service connected conditions. However, we cannot and would not agree to any proposal that would expand this concept any further. There is simply no logical explanation for billing a veteran’s personal insurance for care that the VA has a responsibility to provide. While we understand the fiscal difficulties this country faces right now, placing the burden of those fiscal problems on the men and women who have already sacrificed a great deal for this country is unconscionable. If in fact your Administration is considering this proposal, we would like to meet with you, as well as VA Secretary Eric Shinseki and Office of Management and Budget(OMB)Director Peter Orzag, to discuss this further.
We strongly urge your Administration to drop consideration of any proposal to bill third-party insurers for veterans’ service-connected conditions. We appreciate your continued emphasis on caring for the men and women who have served in defense of this country, as evidenced by the significant increase provided for VA programs in your FY 2010 budget submission. You can reaffirm this commitment by not allowing such a proposal to be carried forward. We stand ready to work with you, Secretary Shinseki, OMB Director Orzag, and others in your Administration to ensure that appropriate care and benefits are provided to those who have earned and deserve it.
Sincerely,
David K. Rehbein John C. Hapner
National Commander National Commander
The American Legion AMVETS
Thomas Miller Raymond E. Dempsey
Executive Director National Commander
Blinded Veterans Association Disabled American Veterans
Paul Reickhoff Ira Novoselsky
Executive Director National Commander
Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America Jewish War Veterans of the USA
VADM Norb Ryan, USN (Ret.) John P. Leonard
President National Adjutant
Military Officers Association of America Military Order of the Purple Heart of the USA, Inc.
Randy L. Pleva, Sr. Glen M. Gardner, Jr.
National President Commander-in-Chief
Paralyzed Veterans of America Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States
John Rowan
National President
Vietnam Veterans of America
Cc: Eric Shinseki, Secretary, Department of Veterans Affairs
Peter Orzag, Director, Office of Management and Budget
Honorable Harry Reid, Senate Majority Leader
Honorable Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader
Honorable Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House
Honorable Steny Hoyer, House Majority Leader
Honorable John Boehner, House Minority Leader
Honorable Daniel Akaka, Chairman, Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs
Honorable Richard Burr, Ranking Member, Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs
Honorable Bob Filner, Chairman, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs
Honorable Steve Buyer, Ranking Member, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs
Monday, March 2, 2009
Outrage at possible 3rd party billing for service connected medical problems
Stimulus package: Money to the people
Stimulus package: Money to the people
By Gregory Phillips, Staff writer, Published on Thursday, February 26, 2009
Where you can find your stimulus bucks
Banks, automakers and states aren’t the only ones who get a piece of the $787 billion federal stimulus package.
There’s a good chance your family qualifies for tax credits, grants and other help, especially if you’re struggling financially. But don’t expect all the benefits to fall into your lap.
You’ll need to understand what’s available to you, and how to qualify. That means keeping receipts and paperwork if you buy a new car, for instance. If you typically fill out the simple tax form, you may want to pay close attention to deductions next year. And if you’ve lost your job or get laid off this year, there are programs that can help you get back on track.
Where’s my check?
Don’t expect a rebate check in the mail. This package mostly involves the government taking less money from you, rather than giving you more. But retirees, veterans on disability and pensions, Social Security recipients and railroad retirement beneficiaries will get a one-time payment of $250. The Social Security Administration hasn’t decided how the payments will be distributed, but expect by late May to see the money automatically — no action required on your part.
Got a job? Workers will get $400 per person, or $800 per couple, in the form of a tax credit in 2009 and 2010. Your employer will give you the options of pocketing a little more in each paycheck beginning July 1 or claiming the credit on your tax return next year to get a lump sum. Workers who make more than $95,000 (or $180,000 for couples) will get less.
Got kids?
A $1,000 child tax credit for each qualifying child under 17 will be extended to more families who don’t earn enough to pay income taxes. That means if you qualify but don’t owe taxes, you get the credit in a tax refund check. The Earned Income Tax Credit will expand similarly for low-income families with three or more children. In both cases, you should file tax returns in early 2010.
An expanded college tuition tax credit of $2,500 takes effect for 2009 and 2010. The maximum Pell grant for undergraduates, based on need, increases from $4,731 to $5,350 starting July 1. To learn more, go to www.ed.gov/programs/fpg.
Ready to buy a home?
If you’ve never owned a home (or haven’t in at least three years), now might be the time to buy. You’d be eligible for a tax credit equal to 10 percent of the purchase price, up to $8,000, if you buy by Dec. 1. You don’t have to pay it back if you stay in the home at least three years. Last year’s stimulus package provided a smaller credit and required repayment over 15 years. If you already bought a home this year and filed taxes under the old credit, you can file an amendment for the additional amount.
Buying a vehicle?
Buyers of new cars, light trucks, motor homes and motorcycles can deduct state and local sales taxes on the first $49,500 spent. You have to buy this year and earn less than $150,000 ($250,000 if filing jointly). There’s a tax credit of up to $7,500 for buying a plug-in hybrid vehicle or plug-in conversion by 2012.
Still confused?
If you don’t mind paying an accountant, it may be smart to get some professional help with all these credits and deductions next year. But an IRS spokesman said these changes don’t mean you have to, even when it comes to the Alternative Minimum Tax, which is amended to save about 24 million people from paying it. About 70 percent of taxpayers making $56,000 a year or less qualify for free online filing at www.irs.gov. The site will be updated with the new tax code by January. So will most commercially available computer software packages for filing taxes.
On the Web
The federal government has set up the Web site www.recovery.gov to show where the stimulus money is going once it starts flowing. Visit www.irs.gov for updated tax information.
Lost your job?
The law includes $46 billion for North Carolina to create or protect 105,000 jobs. But if you’ve lost yours already, you’ll see your unemployment benefits go up $25 more per week in the next few weeks. Benefits are extended through the end of the year for those eligible. And the first $2,400 in benefits will be exempt from your income tax.
If you lost a job after Sept. 1, 2008, or get laid off this year, the government will pay 65 percent of your health insurance premiums through the federal COBRA program. That’s if you had insurance at your old job and you choose to retain coverage with COBRA. If you already opted to not take COBRA, you have about 60 days to sign up and get the subsidy. According to eHealthInsurance, it’s not clear how the subsidy will be handled. Keep in touch with your former employer for details. If COBRA fees are too high even with the subsidy, go to www.coverageforall.org to review your options.
Money for job training is expanded under the Trade Adjustment Act for workers laid off by companies that move overseas. The new plan provides training for workers who lose jobs with service companies affected by industry moving abroad. This could make farmers or even whole communities eligible for aid if they show a direct impact. Funding for training in North Carolina could more than double to as much as $40 million. The Employment Security Commission oversees the training money. Call your local ESC office to learn more.
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sent to me by Colonel Dan
Veterans' families question cause of deaths
Veterans' families question cause of deaths
By Julie Robinson
Staff writer
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Stan and Shirley White's son Andrew, a Marine reservist, died at home 2 1/2 years after he returned from Iraq. Janette Layne lost her husband, Eric, in similar circumstances after his return from Iraq.
More than a year later, they still don't know if the medication their loved ones were taking for post-traumatic stress disorder contributed to their deaths.
Andrew White and Eric Layne were taking Seroquel, Klonopin and Paxil, along with prescription painkillers.
Three other West Virginia servicemen have died in their sleep while undergoing PTSD treatment after returning from Iraq.
Investigators from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs looked into the deaths. Stan White, who actively researches similar deaths and PTSD-related medications, contacted Sen. Jay Rockefeller, who requested the investigation.
The investigators interviewed the White and Layne families and visited Huntington Veterans Affairs, the Charleston Community Based Outpatient Clinic and the Cincinnati VA residential program, where Layne was treated. They reviewed autopsy and toxicology reports for both patients.
In August, they concluded that White and Layne received care that met "community standards" at the VA facilities, and that the men died from a combination of prescribed and non-prescribed medicines.
"In the presence of PTSD, other mental health conditions, and uncertain use of medications by patients, we are unable to draw conclusions about the relationship between medication regimens and these deaths," the investigators wrote.
That's not good enough for some family members.
"I don't have a direct answer as to why he died," Janette Layne said of her husband. "Nobody has told me what caused his death."
The medical examiner listed "overintoxication of medicines" as the official cause of death for both Layne and White. The amounts of prescribed medications in both men's systems were within acceptable limits, said Janette Layne.
They also had taken some painkillers that hadn't been prescribed for them, according to Stan White and Janette Layne.
Narcotic painkillers are a leading cause of accidental overdose, and those painkillers can be especially dangerous when used in combination with other drugs.
"These drugs need to have a warning that you cannot mix them with painkillers," Stan White said. "At no time, were we ever warned that Andrew should not mix them with painkillers."
Stan White and Dr. Fred Baughman, a California neurologist who questions the use of medications to treat mental disorders except in rare circumstances, plan to visit Washington this month, armed with the stories of nine servicemen whose deaths mirror Andrew White's situation.
The soldiers are from West Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York. Some of their families will go to Washington with White and Baughman and meet with their state representatives.
The prescriptions were given by doctors at VA facilities in Huntington, Charleston and a residential program in Cincinnati where Layne had just completed an eight-week in-patient treatment. White's doctor instructed him to take as much Paxil and Seroquel as needed, Shirley White said.
"They said he had lethal amounts in his system," she said. "So, no, we don't have answers."
A second look
Stan White hopes to convince policy-makers in Washington to take a second look at pharmaceuticals prescribed to PTSD sufferers.
How safe are the combinations? How carefully should they be dosed? Should people with PTSD, which sometimes includes forgetfulness and memory loss, be given prescriptions that require careful monitoring?
Despite last August's report, the Whites are convinced there is a connection to their son's death.
"I think the goal of talking before Congress is that we don't think the VA is approaching treatment in the right way," Shirley White said.
Both White and Baughman urge increased counseling resources for returning veterans, including counselors available after work hours. Working veterans can't repeatedly miss work for ongoing appointments.
"I'm not a doctor. The medicine might be needed at first, but the soldiers need therapy and counseling," Stan White said. "I really think that's the key to this thing."
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Stan and Shirley White's son Andrew, a Marine reservist, died at home 2 1/2 years after he returned from Iraq. Janette Layne lost her husband, Eric, in similar circumstances after his return from Iraq.
More than a year later, they still don't know if the medication their loved ones were taking for post-traumatic stress disorder contributed to their deaths.
Andrew White and Eric Layne were taking Seroquel, Klonopin and Paxil, along with prescription painkillers.
Three other West Virginia servicemen have died in their sleep while undergoing PTSD treatment after returning from Iraq.
Investigators from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs looked into the deaths. Stan White, who actively researches similar deaths and PTSD-related medications, contacted Sen. Jay Rockefeller, who requested the investigation.
The investigators interviewed the White and Layne families and visited Huntington Veterans Affairs, the Charleston Community Based Outpatient Clinic and the Cincinnati VA residential program, where Layne was treated. They reviewed autopsy and toxicology reports for both patients.
In August, they concluded that White and Layne received care that met "community standards" at the VA facilities, and that the men died from a combination of prescribed and non-prescribed medicines.
"In the presence of PTSD, other mental health conditions, and uncertain use of medications by patients, we are unable to draw conclusions about the relationship between medication regimens and these deaths," the investigators wrote.
That's not good enough for some family members.
"I don't have a direct answer as to why he died," Janette Layne said of her husband. "Nobody has told me what caused his death."
The medical examiner listed "overintoxication of medicines" as the official cause of death for both Layne and White. The amounts of prescribed medications in both men's systems were within acceptable limits, said Janette Layne.
They also had taken some painkillers that hadn't been prescribed for them, according to Stan White and Janette Layne.
Narcotic painkillers are a leading cause of accidental overdose, and those painkillers can be especially dangerous when used in combination with other drugs.
"These drugs need to have a warning that you cannot mix them with painkillers," Stan White said. "At no time, were we ever warned that Andrew should not mix them with painkillers."
Stan White and Dr. Fred Baughman, a California neurologist who questions the use of medications to treat mental disorders except in rare circumstances, plan to visit Washington this month, armed with the stories of nine servicemen whose deaths mirror Andrew White's situation.
The soldiers are from West Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York. Some of their families will go to Washington with White and Baughman and meet with their state representatives.
The prescriptions were given by doctors at VA facilities in Huntington, Charleston and a residential program in Cincinnati where Layne had just completed an eight-week in-patient treatment. White's doctor instructed him to take as much Paxil and Seroquel as needed, Shirley White said.
"They said he had lethal amounts in his system," she said. "So, no, we don't have answers."
A second look
Stan White hopes to convince policy-makers in Washington to take a second look at pharmaceuticals prescribed to PTSD sufferers.
How safe are the combinations? How carefully should they be dosed? Should people with PTSD, which sometimes includes forgetfulness and memory loss, be given prescriptions that require careful monitoring?
Despite last August's report, the Whites are convinced there is a connection to their son's death.
"I think the goal of talking before Congress is that we don't think the VA is approaching treatment in the right way," Shirley White said.
Both White and Baughman urge increased counseling resources for returning veterans, including counselors available after work hours. Working veterans can't repeatedly miss work for ongoing appointments.
"I'm not a doctor. The medicine might be needed at first, but the soldiers need therapy and counseling," Stan White said. "I really think that's the key to this thing."
Stan White and Baughman track soldiers and veterans who die in their sleep or slumped at work stations. They contact the families when they hear about such deaths to ask about psychiatric diagnoses and medications. Military casualty officers won't release details.
They found three others from West Virginia. Jeremy Harper, 19, of Dunbar died Jan. 1, 2005, at Walter Reed Army Medical Center while being treated for PTSD. Nicholas Endicott of Logan County, who died at a military hospital in Bethesda, Md., also suffered from PTSD. Derek Johnson, 22, of Hurricane died last year while taking the three drugs.
Baughman notes Seroquel's link to fatal heart arrhythmias and irregularities. He's now researching the death of Chad Oligschlaeger, 21, a Texas Marine who died in May while taking six medications for PTSD, including Seroquel.
"I'm telling you right now, these drugs are unfit for human consumption, across the board," Baughman said. "Their side effects take two to three pages to list."
Faces behind the figures
When Eric Layne died Jan. 26, 2008, Janette Layne was pregnant and was caring for their 1-year-old son, Shamus. She and her husband served together in the National Guard in Iraq. His PTSD symptoms surfaced shortly after their homecoming.
"We had no idea what post-traumatic stress disorder was. We thought it was something old Vietnam veterans on the side of the street had," Janette Layne said. "We were working, we had jobs and were well-fed and clean. We couldn't imagine that would ever be us."
As Eric Layne became increasingly depressed, angry and short-tempered, his wife encouraged him to seek treatment through the VA. He was reluctant, partially because he sensed an underlying message in the military to "just suck it up," she said.
"It's ironic. Eric didn't want to go and he didn't want to take medicine," she said. "They told him just to come and talk. He left with a prescription and the PTSD just got worse."
When Eric Layne lost his job in the fall of 2007, he entered an eight-week residential care program in Cincinnati where his medications were strictly monitored. He came home on the weekends, and his wife scarcely recognized the detached, exhausted man he had become.
The night he completed the program and came home for good, the Laynes agreed Eric would see a doctor about the side effects of the medicine.
He died that night.
"I'll never forget that day. I picked up Shamus from day care and a woman asked me if the baby was going to be a boy or girl. When I said she was a girl, the woman said, 'All you need is a dog and you'll have the perfect family,'" Janette Layne said. "That night Eric passed away."
She was overwhelmed with single-parent responsibilities when she delivered their daughter, Jubilee, in May.
The Whites and several other members of a veterans' family support group stepped up. They scheduled times to visit with her and watched the children so she could run errands or take classes.
"If not for them, I don't think I could do it," Janette Layne said.
The Whites spend Thursday evenings with the children, and Shirley White often calls on the weekends to see if she can come over.
"It's been good for both of us," Shirley White said. "Some days, just getting up is such an ordeal. Then I remember that we have Thursday to look forward to. Janette and her children have pretty much got us through this year."
Just 21 months apart, Shamus, 2, and Jubilee require constant attention. The children squeal with delight when they see the Whites. Shamus asks Stan White if they can have chicken nuggets, a treat he often picks up at McDonald's. In warmer weather, they visit the playground down the road.
"It's not just they help with the kids. I truly love Shirley and Stan," Janette Layne said. "They're the parents I never had."
Stan White, who teaches ski lessons at Canaan Valley during the week, said he thought Shamus was ready to learn. The Whites' involvement with her children comforts Janette Layne, who worries about their future without a father.
"I just want there to be more awareness in the military. There are so many broken homes and children without fathers," she said. "Families are suffering and sometimes they don't even know what it's from. When you get home [from military duty] is when the real work begins."
Reach Julie Robinson at jul...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-1230.
Stan White and Baughman track soldiers and veterans who die in their sleep or slumped at work stations. They contact the families when they hear about such deaths to ask about psychiatric diagnoses and medications. Military casualty officers won't release details.
They found three others from West Virginia. Jeremy Harper, 19, of Dunbar died Jan. 1, 2005, at Walter Reed Army Medical Center while being treated for PTSD. Nicholas Endicott of Logan County, who died at a military hospital in Bethesda, Md., also suffered from PTSD. Derek Johnson, 22, of Hurricane died last year while taking the three drugs.
Baughman notes Seroquel's link to fatal heart arrhythmias and irregularities. He's now researching the death of Chad Oligschlaeger, 21, a Texas Marine who died in May while taking six medications for PTSD, including Seroquel.
"I'm telling you right now, these drugs are unfit for human consumption, across the board," Baughman said. "Their side effects take two to three pages to list."
Faces behind the figures
When Eric Layne died Jan. 26, 2008, Janette Layne was pregnant and was caring for their 1-year-old son, Shamus. She and her husband served together in the National Guard in Iraq. His PTSD symptoms surfaced shortly after their homecoming.
"We had no idea what post-traumatic stress disorder was. We thought it was something old Vietnam veterans on the side of the street had," Janette Layne said. "We were working, we had jobs and were well-fed and clean. We couldn't imagine that would ever be us."
As Eric Layne became increasingly depressed, angry and short-tempered, his wife encouraged him to seek treatment through the VA. He was reluctant, partially because he sensed an underlying message in the military to "just suck it up," she said.
"It's ironic. Eric didn't want to go and he didn't want to take medicine," she said. "They told him just to come and talk. He left with a prescription and the PTSD just got worse."
When Eric Layne lost his job in the fall of 2007, he entered an eight-week residential care program in Cincinnati where his medications were strictly monitored. He came home on the weekends, and his wife scarcely recognized the detached, exhausted man he had become.
The night he completed the program and came home for good, the Laynes agreed Eric would see a doctor about the side effects of the medicine.
He died that night.
"I'll never forget that day. I picked up Shamus from day care and a woman asked me if the baby was going to be a boy or girl. When I said she was a girl, the woman said, 'All you need is a dog and you'll have the perfect family,'" Janette Layne said. "That night Eric passed away."
She was overwhelmed with single-parent responsibilities when she delivered their daughter, Jubilee, in May.
The Whites and several other members of a veterans' family support group stepped up. They scheduled times to visit with her and watched the children so she could run errands or take classes.
"If not for them, I don't think I could do it," Janette Layne said.
The Whites spend Thursday evenings with the children, and Shirley White often calls on the weekends to see if she can come over.
"It's been good for both of us," Shirley White said. "Some days, just getting up is such an ordeal. Then I remember that we have Thursday to look forward to. Janette and her children have pretty much got us through this year."
Just 21 months apart, Shamus, 2, and Jubilee require constant attention. The children squeal with delight when they see the Whites. Shamus asks Stan White if they can have chicken nuggets, a treat he often picks up at McDonald's. In warmer weather, they visit the playground down the road.
"It's not just they help with the kids. I truly love Shirley and Stan," Janette Layne said. "They're the parents I never had."
Stan White, who teaches ski lessons at Canaan Valley during the week, said he thought Shamus was ready to learn. The Whites' involvement with her children comforts Janette Layne, who worries about their future without a father.
"I just want there to be more awareness in the military. There are so many broken homes and children without fathers," she said. "Families are suffering and sometimes they don't even know what it's from. When you get home [from military duty] is when the real work begins."
Reach Julie Robinson at jul...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-1230
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Back in June 2003 I ended up being hospitalized from a reaction to the drugs mentioned in this article, I was delirious and was talking about things from 20 years previously. The VA put me in a lockdown ward and they took me off the seroqul and put me on another type medicine and the problems stopped. I know feel like I was a lucky man.
The VA Needs a House Cleaning NOW!
The VA Needs a House Cleaning NOW!
Examples of why a House Cleaning of the VA is URGENT
by Bob Hanafin, Staff Writer
A few days ago, I posted the latest Veterans Benefits Committee Report to come out of Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) calling for a house cleaning of VA upper and middle management as written by Chair, Jerry Klein.
It's only natural that one would expect VVA (and I) to take heat for such a call to clean house, but I never expected anyone to attack Brother Klein as a scumbag or manure bag (though that wasn't the polite term used) nor that kind of overreaction the call received.
However, it is just the sort of reaction that only serves to reinforce what Jerry Klein at VVA has said, and stresses the URGENCY by which upper and middle management at the VA must be investigated and dismissed for setting the anti-veteran tone of leadership, or view that most Vets are out to scam us taxpayers. The U.S. taxpayer gets more fiscal scams out of the Pentagon than we ever will from America's veterans.
Stolen Valor was written essentially of partisan spin and to advocate such a tone and view of our nation's Veterans as those who claim below that we are not paint the picture that we are exactly that - welfare cases or in the words sent to VVA by a VA Claims examiner who preferred to remain Name Withheld, "We are not welfare they are located in a different office, and I'm sure they are willing to help those who refuse to help themselves."
Frankly, I take issue with the VVA Veteran publishing anything someone is afraid to put their name on as if they have something to hide. Guess I can say that because I put my real name on everything I write or say come what may including death. At the end of this article we provide an inside look at Stolen Valor and why this book written about an old war needs to concern 21st century veterans and military families. Click on the photo for an Amazon listing of the book's table of contents and closely scrutinize what is listed below the first chapter on Fake Veterans, and we rest our case that this IS NOT a scholarly work of art.
I made an intelligent decision not to delete the response of the guy who called Brother Klein and I both scumbags and manure bags for a reason - to reinforce what Vietnam Veteran Klein had to say. Sort of SEE this is exactly what we mean by the Stolen Valor mentality and attitude that is essentially anti-veteran.
Keep in mind that the criticism of Stolen Valor comes solely from Major Hanafin not Brother Klein or VVA, there are just too many stolen valor advocates in VVA membership for our organization to take the book or what's in it on, although in addition to being anti-PTSD and anti-Agent orange Stolen Valor was and those with that mentality remain anti-VVA. Note also that I am NOT a VVA spokesman. Regardless, it is this view and those who advocate it that spin the VA and Veterans into a welfare system and welfare cases. More on that below.
In order to highlight points, I'm going to mix the highlights of Brother Klein's call for house cleaning with feedback on such from an opposite view and do it as respectfully and dignified as possible. No, I'm not going to call Stolen Valor fanatics scumbag or what have you. In fact, I seriously thank them for serving the nation and U.S. Constitution that allows me to be a scumbag if I so desire, as long as I know both Brother Klein and I are RIGHT.
Robert L. Hanafin
Major, U.S. Air Force-Retired
Life Member, Disabled American Veterans.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Negative feedback shows that a House Cleaning at VA is essential and Urgent.
As stated in my original post, when forward thinking VSO's talk about beefing up the VA staff. I believe that means as well said by VVA Veterans Benefits Committee Chair Jerry Klein (not Kelly, my bust and apologies Brother Klein) CLEANING HOUSE at VA upper and middle management to hold responsible both political appointees and career VA bureaucrats who followed a partisan political strategy that was anti-Veteran and spread the false impression that ALL America's Veterans were out to screw the American Tax payer.
Despite feedback to the contrary Brother Klein and I are calling for a House Cleaning at upper and middle management NOT every VA employee, doctor, nurse, and so on. In fact, if the focus were on a gutting of the VA, I would never have invited former or current VA employees with access or proof that claims were shredded or sabotaged in their departments or offices to step forward. We know there are ethical and dignified employees at the VA. We are not saying the VA system is a cesspool it is just has been led, well by politicians who never seriously had the interests of fellow veterans at heart EVEN if they were Veterans themselves (once again see Stolen Valor). If one wants to call them scumbags have at it we will not. Why?
Because the problems with the VA, and there are many, have root cause in an attitude and are systemic not individual employee motivated. When I worked at VA hardly an employee at lower level where I worked gave a rat’s butt about politics or the politicians temporarily running the VA. However attitude was everything. VA employees could either ignore it in the best interest of Vets or advocate the veteran as enemy cost sayings emphasis.
Here’s what I’m talking about. VVA published this feedback from someone with an opposite view; since the person is anonymous there is no telling he/she was even a veteran, but I’m not into Fake Veterans, especially if they talk nonsense.
That said, who cares, it’s the attitude reflected by this so-called Veteran and military retiree that matters. Name withheld or anonymous writes that the VA is not a Welfare system yet the entire articulation (point) paints those who make use of the benefit as welfare cases. I’m not going to fat finger the entire comment only the fine points. The person claims to be a retired military member, disabled veteran, and VA employee (I assume that means current employee for NOW).
They take offense at VVA’s continuous lawsuits against the VA that hit at the heart of both the Stolen Valor attitude and anti-veteran atmosphere at the VA that treats all Veterans as the enemy.
THE VA NOT WELFARE (page 45 of the VVA Letters section, Jan/Feb 2009)
“Let me give you a great example of what we see every day. A veteran comes into the office, his (what about her? Anyway) application is a third of the way completed, he or she has no DD-214, no service medical records, and claims twelve disabilities. First, we have to request the records from NPRC. This process takes about 60 to 90 days. How come you aren’t suing NPRC for this delay?”
What this VA claim adjudicator fails to mention to VVA is that he is but one of 13,000 VA employees, where does he/she fit in the organizational chart at left? Could it be the 50% of VA personnel dedicated to Step 4 the rating team that makes decisions on claims, and notifies Vets of decisions? Maybe not since he is whining about an abundance of incomplete claims then he/she must work in either step 2, the Triage Team that processes incoming applications’, or step 3, the predetermination team that develops evidence and prepares administrative decisions. From the tone of the feedback it sounds like whining about Step 3 the Predetermination Team.
Well take more employees out of the Rating Team and place them on the team that’s whining about incomplete claims or simply refuse to accept incomplete claims. Put the onus on us Veterans to prove we are who we are and have what we have related to military service either directly or indirectly. The deciding factor at VA adjudications has always been on relationship to military service NOT combat service, and it’s been that way since WWII.
I also get the hint these unfounded complaints are directed at older Vets who file claims in their later years NOT younger vets who are more accustomed to filling out forms given relatively recent military service where form filling out is an art. One can see where such a negative attitude is discriminatory to our older vets and families who are less inclined to even want to fill out any government forms.
Well not speaking for VVA, but as a former VA employee with general understanding of the claims process. Exactly how many cases as described by this VA claims examiner actually fit this description? If too many, that also needs to be looked at as part of any house cleaning. This may be true to a limited degree with Vietnam War Vets who are finally filing claims when they realize they really need the VA, but I refuse to believe this is true about any younger Veterans who left service or retired after 1994 (the Gulf War Era). Why?
Surprisingly I’m going to say something good about both the DoD and the VA for that matter. Both went out of their way to provide us younger Vets, especially military retirees, transition assistance briefings that detailed what was required to file a VA claim. Everyone in those briefings were told by VA briefers, heck they even held our hands to ensure that every and any ailment, combat or combat support wounds or illness under the sun must be reported. In the DC area in fact, VA representatives actually strongly encouraged Vets and Retirees to dry run their claims through the VA Regional Office in DC for quality check.
However, this was during the Clinton administration (1994) when the VA was more proactive in ensuring Veterans knew how to file claims. I have nothing but high praise for a joint DoD/VA effort and relationship that went downhill since the Bush administration came in with the Stolen Valor strategy for cost savings on the backs of all America’s vets by spinning an insignificant few as fakes and welfare cases. Blaming the older Vets and family members by whining about them not being able to properly fill out a VA claim form, yet who now need the VA more than ever, is not the answer.
In fact, no wonder the claims examiner wants his/her name withheld, they would be the first I would recommend have their claims denial quota and adjudication actions closely investigated and Name Withheld considered for dismissal if documentation proves sabotage of even one claim. This attitude and feedback alone should be grounds for dismissal if he/she is upper, middle management or just some clerk adjudicating claims at the GS-5 level. (Major Hanafin) Oh, there’s more:
“Then the same veteran is claiming hearing loss, knee pain, back pain, and individual unemployability. Ever stop to think this might have to do with age and what type of work he has done since his discharge?”
Again, I believe this has more to do with the attitude of most veterans are out to scam both the VA system and American tax payer, look the page number up in Stolen Valor. I also strongly believe this VA claims examiner is painting a piss poor picture of most Vietnam Vets not younger Veterans from the Gulf War, Iraq and Afghanistan War, because this overblown stereotype just doesn’t stick to a well computer literate generation.
One way to remedy this piss poor attitude and spin is a proactive Veterans Preference in hiring that gets younger Veterans into the claims processing system to replace the dismiss folks like this VA claims examiner with the stolen valor attitude. That hiring process should include screening to ensure future adjudicators do not have the same attitude that all veterans are out to scam the system. Such paranoia must be stopped and stopped NOW. (Major Hanafin) Oh, it gets even worse:
“Then we have thousands of claims that include the statement, “without my benefits I will lose my house, my car, can’t pay my bills, etc.” How did Mr. Veteran (note the tone used by a cough VA Claims examiner in referring to any Vet filing a claim as Mr.) pay these bills before he filed for benefits?”
I have both a legal and bureaucratic response to this that places the burden on the VA Claims examiner to prove the above statement before being dismissed. If Name Withheld cannot provide VA/IG investigators with documented proof that he has access to one hundred, let alone thousands of, claims that include the above statement, he should be immediately fired with no VA Federal Union protections what so ever.
On the other hand, if he can provide proof, especially in the thousands, that so many claim applications include that caveat by all means that too needs to be reported to Secretary Shinseki’s VA/IG, however even IF the statement were true, highly doubtful, a Veterans financial status nor plight should never be the determining factor in any adjudication decision, so what’s the point?
Simply put that too is something that any house cleaning needs to closely scrutinize. (Major Hanafin) Now, he is going to remind us that we did not earn compensation it is a welfare check as he tries to convince us the VA is not a welfare system even as he describes it as such. Which is it, and that’s where the stolen valor attitude really get confusing?
“Please keep in mind that the monthly compensation check is a benefit, not something all veterans “deserve” just because they joined the military.”
Now, imagine if he had placed the word “earned” where “deserve” is, then think about the fact that most veteran, including those working for the VA, already know and understand compensation may or may not be deserved but every Veteran earned the right to apply for it as highlighted in the photo at left. All this VA Claims examiner has done thus far is discourage and shame any vet who files a claim period. (Major Hanafin) That is the root of the problem this stolen valor mentality.
“We are not welfare they are located in a different office, and I’m sure they are willing to help those who refuse to help themselves.”
Frankly this is exactly the attitude that led to VA upper and middle management following advice such as, “Given that we are having more and more compensation seeking veterans, I’d like to suggest that you refrain from giving a diagnosis of PTSD straight out. Consider a diagnosis of Adjustment Disorder, R/O, PTSD. Additionally, we really don’t or have little time to do the extensive testing that should be done to determine PTSD. Also, there have been some (note that even this crook means SOME not ALL Vets) incidence where the veteran has a Compensation and Pension, is not given a diagnosis of PTSD, then the veteran comes here and we give the diagnosis, and the veteran appeals his case based on or assessment (this senior VA official really meant reassessment).
Question is what part did Name Withheld play in implementing such suggestions given his/her stolen valor attitude? Again grounds for dismissal. This is also the reason why former or current VA employees who have personally witnessed this disgraceful behavior must step forward or you are potentially guilty of withholding information of wrong doing just to protect your job or worse yet went along with it.
Bottom line: this feedback to VVA only serves to reinforce Brother Klein’s (VVA’s) call for a House Cleaning at VA Regional Offices (neither he nor VVA is calling for a House Cleaning at Hospitals YET). You see I can say things not being in the VVA leadership that few with the exception of Jerry Klein have had the courage to say in order to keep peace in house and of course retain or expand membership.
Thus, once again not speaking for VVA, this VA Claims Examiner starts off with a great example of veterans (exact number unknown or undocumented but supposedly in the thousands) coming into his office with incomplete VA Claim forms and no DD-214, spins the tale without providing proof that thousands of claim submissions have a statement whining because thousands (mind you of his fellow vets) will lose their livelihood without benefits. Does he show a little compassion although losing their livelihood should not even be a consideration of claim adjudication, NO!
Wo, any Vet who files a claim is rarely going to get 100% service-connection that easily and if those statements are a fact financial need is one that VA adjudicators need not and should not take into consideration unless the application is for a VA Pension that has traditionally been need based. I believe that the number of veterans seeking let alone qualifying for a needs based pension is far fewer than those seeking service-connected disability compensation, and critics emphasizing the social welfare aspects of the VA Pension do ALL veterans a disservice. Why?
Frankly, I passionately doubt Name Withheld can provide evidence that what he claims is true, and if he can’t he/she has earned and deserves dismissal or forced retirement if that be the case.
Closer to home here on Veterans Today, I got this feedback from a reader calling Brother Klein a scumbag and shitbag for calling for a House Cleaning at VA that focused on only upper and middle management NOT the every VA employee.
“The VA has the best medical care in the United States, Their employees are the most caring, both medical and office personnel of any health care establishment that I have ever received care in. You do no good by trashing the people that work for the VA.”
First off, neither Brother Klein nor I mentioned anything about upper or middle managers in the medical care side of the house, but now that you brought it up. HUM?
You need to comprehend what you read. Nothing in his report, or my commentary, mentioned anything about ALL VA EMPLOYEES, that’s your spin on it. In fact, nothing is mentioned about “any VA health care establishment only adjudication at Regional Offices,” and if you don’t know the difference between what regional offices do and what a medical facility does, come back when you’ve done your homework. They are two separate functions that may collaborate in sabotaging claims, but I personally believe that VA doctors and nurses are less inclined to have stolen valor views unless they are influenced by them from up above or from VA administration.
VVA’s focus is on corruption and mine is on the stolen valor attitude (my words not VVA’s) of some upper and mid-level managers (MANAGERS– there is a vast difference between political appointees, entrenched bureaucrats, and rank and file at both Regional Offices and Medical Centers just like there is a leadership difference between officers, NCOs, and lower enlisted folks.)
“Now for the veterans, most veterans that I come in contact with are good people, the veterans that receive compensation, myself included are grateful to our nation for providing for us in our time of need. Some veterans, no matter what the VA provides them with will never be satisfied.”
Once again you are spinning and stereotyping without links, facts or figures to back up your opinions. What exactly do you mean by some veterans, no matter what the VA provides them with, will never be satisfied? Without clarity you too are painting the VA as a Welfare system, in your own words, “providing for us in our time of need” Exactly what does that mean, did the Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, Marines, or our government ask you or me how much money we made or did they use a cost analysis or needs base approach in hiring or drafting US?
Our government did not care how much money we did or did not make when it sent us in harm’s way, when we joined or were drafted into the service of our country, why should they or you care NOW? Once again I’m passionate about this because: NOW MORE THAN EVER AMERICA’S VETERANS DO A JOB THAT MOST AMERICAN WON’T DO!!!
“To use that scumbag from the VVA to trash the people that work for a living in the Veterans Administration is sinful and to suggest that they should be replaced is disgusting. I think that shitbag; Kline (it’s spelled Klein) should be replaced at the VVA. You trash the traditional Veterans organizations as stolen valor organizations, but the VVA has only about 40 thousand members out of 8 million eligible and most of them were never in Vietnam, or in some cases not even in the military.”
This last comment does more to reinforce what both Brother Klein and I are saying, he speaking for VVA, and I for MYSELF. Thank God the Veteran calling us scumbags and shitbags is not a VA Claims Examiner, but it is those who are with his attitude that must be dismissed. He and they will call their fellow Veterans scumbag and shitbag just because we collectively see through the ignorance of the stolen valor mentality and the sinful and disgraceful attitude it promotes in spinning ALL VETERANS to be welfare cases, and the enemy of the VA. What proof can he point our readers that “VVA has only about 40 thousand members out of 8 million eligible and most of them were never in Vietnam, or in some cases not even in the military?” Regardless that has nothing to do with the issues at hand and is off topic.
This response is nothing but partisan political rhetoric and that is what Stolen Valor was really designed for and still used for if such Vets can get away with it. The Stolen Valor Act was passed, oh yes, and that too was nothing but a bipartisan political side show to placate those who want to feel good about ourselves as the rest of the nation, and the politicians using and exploiting US get away with it – DAH!
My apologies to other readers, I usually don’t take to task anyone to responds to me either in agreement or disagreement, but if you can’t do it respectfully nothing you say will be taken serious, and you’ll only be made fun of, but I refuse to do so by-name. Names don’t matter only attitudes matter.
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Sunday, March 1, 2009
How many more years will congress & Vet Orgs take being ignored by VA
Read article & Post your response
http://www.health.mil/Press/Release.aspx?ID=554
How many more years will congress & Vet Orgs take being ignored by VA
bureaucrats
-----Original Message-----
From: Thomas Bandzul [mailto:thomas221@yahoo.com]
Sent: Sunday, March 01, 2009 2:04 PM
To: 'Robert P. Walsh'; 'Colonel Dan'
Subject: RE: Dan Cedusky has submitted a comment on Health.mil and would
like you to know about it
Counselor,
You're comments are spot on. If you tried to devise a scheme with the
intent of denying claims, hiding the truth, discouraging applications,
covering up facts used to help promote the truth and flat out lied to the
public, this would be an accurate depiction of the VA today. Yet this is
not a system because even the worst designed structure for benefits
adjudication has a balance of rules. Old adage has something to do with "if
it's not in balance, it will fall". Some may argue the VA has rules but I
would offer, they are not being followed.
The VA is a failure in meeting the needs of veterans. If allowed to
continue on the present course, the failure will be a catastrophe. In the
last eight years the damage done by the VA to the American public, city
governments, and state agencies, as well as veterans, is horrific and in
many instance, criminal. Why local governments haven't voice their
collective, angry opposition defies explanation. The same question needs to
be asked of the 45 charter VSO's and the 22 non-charter with congressional
recognition. The largest of the VSO's are more worried about their dues
paying population than the people they are charter to help, which is much
the way the VA is structured.
Had it not been for the small and underfunded efforts of groups like VCS,
Veterans and Military Families for Progress, NOVA, NVLSP, IAVA, One Freedom,
VVA and is some small measure, the DAV, the appalling nature of the
treatment veterans would be worse. Some may think it couldn't get much
shoddier but I believe it could and might, if a constant vigil isn't
maintained over this congress. The pledges of the past administration never
came to fruition and the promises of this administration, while magnanimous,
have yet to be delivered on.
Regards,
Thomas
Thomas E. Bandzul
General Counsel, Empowering Veterans
6316 Blackburn Ford Drive
Fairfax Station, VA. 22039
Office - 703-503-7969
Cell - 703-474-4264
Fax - 703-825-1157
-----Original Message-----
From: Robert P. Walsh [mailto:rpwalsh@sbcglobal.net]
Sent: Sunday, March 01, 2009 1:33 PM
To: Colonel Dan
Cc: Bandzul, Thomas
Subject: FW: Dan Cedusky has submitted a comment on Health.mil and would
like you to know about it
Dan:
What we encounter with "Project Salute" as we travel the country and
interact with veterans and their families is just what you would expect.
Homeless vets and others who have "dropped out". Their efforts to obtain VA
compensation benefits and health care were wrongfully denied on the first
few attempts, and they are unable or unwilling to navigate the horrific VA
system. Or they accepted as correct the VA decision denying them benefits.
Why can an attorney win a VA benefits case in 6 months for a WW II combat
vet who has been denied repeatedly for 60 years? Because the VSO's have
failed miserably to meet their obligations to these families. And they have
tolerated the delay and incompetence by the VBA. We are all to blame, as we
tolerate this insult to our veterans.
The old VA benefits system was designed so that the initial medical
examination for vets applying for benefits was the same as the exam given
when they were accepted into service. The conditions identified by the VA
doctor were then rated. How far we have strayed from this honest approach.
The modern system, in place since Vietnam, is to play "hide the ball" and
place the burden upon the back of the disabled veteran to make a claim for
each condition. What garbage. It is this practice that has resulted in
most of the wrongfully denied claims, or the long delay in getting all of
the service related conditions claimed and rated. What Ken Carpenter calls
the "gotcha" claims processing system of the VA.
The general medical examination protocol in the VA C & P system is never
used. At least I have never found an example of it being used in any of the
files I have reviewed. Only the narrow and specific exams are ever ordered
to be given by the VARO.
Of course, any veteran who does offer specific medical information about his
condition is admonished and told that he or she is a lay person. A
professional medical opinion is required, that he or she is not competent to
comment on this medical matter.
The opinion of the treating physician of the veteran is also given no
deference, unlike the Social Security Administration, which has a treating
physician rule. Why does the VA refuse to adopt this evidentiary standard?
Because they have a system in which registered nurses and general
practitioners with minimal contact with the patient are allowed to provide
opinions to overrule those of board certified specialists provided by
veterans.
It is truly a shameful and incompetent system, if it can be called a system.
Maybe "scheme" is a better word, as the obvious intent of the VBA process is
to deny veterans and their families their benefits.
Robert P. Walsh
Two West Michigan Avenue
Suite 301
Battle Creek, Michigan 49017
Telephone (269) 962-9693
Telecopier (269) 962-9592
E-mail: rpwalsh@sbcglobal.net
-----Original Message-----
From: NoReply@health.mil [mailto:NoReply@health.mil]
Sent: Sunday, March 01, 2009 12:18 PM
To: colonel-dan@sbcglobal.net; rpwalsh@sbcglobal.net
Cc: comments@whitehouse.gov
Subject: Dan Cedusky has submitted a comment on Health.mil and would like
you to know about it
---------------------------------------------------
The following comment was submitted on Health.mil. It may take up to 1
business day for the comment to be reviewed and posted. To view the related
article go to:
http://www.health.mil/Press/Release.aspx?ID=554
---------------------------------------------------
Why even 100 days? You have the patient in front of you. Too many people in
the decision process?
Far too many veterans with PTSD in Jail today, that fell thru the cracks,
general discharges, personality disorders, etc.. almost criminal they way
many have been treated..or NOT treated. How many claims does the VA have
that are 10 years+ old...absolutely criminal. How many homeless veterans
have claims pending? for how long?
Defense, VA Reform Evaluation System for Seriously Injured Vets
Defense, VA Reform Evaluation System for Seriously Injured Vets
By Army Staff Sgt. Michael J. Carden
American Forces Press Service
Two years is much too long to determine service disabilities, especially when the injuries obviously qualify a service member for full benefits and compensation, a senior Defense Department official said Feb. 23.
Until recently, that’s how long it took all military members to reach 100-percent-disabled status in terms of their disability compensation and medical benefits through the departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs. Regardless of the severity of the injuries, all went through multiple medical evaluations and screenings first with the military, only to go through the same process again with VA, Air Force Maj. Gen. Keith W. Meurlin, acting director of the Defense Department’s transition policy and care coordination office, explained.
Often, it can take up to two years to complete the evaluations and another nine months to start receiving benefits, Meurlin added.
“Why put [seriously injured combat veterans] through a two-year process when you basically know the outcome -- that they’re going to be 100-percent disabled?” Meurlin said. “And why wait two years to get their VA benefits to them?”
Now, veterans seriously wounded in combat and identified as “catastrophically wounded” go through an expedited disability evaluation process that lasts about 100 days to begin receiving benefits. If veterans are recognized as fitting into that category, they will forego the redundancy of separate Defense and VA medical evaluations and go through the VA process only, the general said.
“We’ve taken a two-year process and reduced it to three months,” he said. “We think it’s a lot better for the individual and their family to make it shorter when you understand what the conclusion to the process is anyway.”
The expedited process applies to service members whose conditions are designated catastrophic and whose injuries were incurred in the line of duty as a direct result of armed conflict, Meurlin explained. A catastrophic injury or illness is a permanent, severely disabling injury, disorder, or disease to such a degree that a service member or veteran requires personal or mechanical assistance to leave home or bed, or requires constant supervision to avoid physical harm to themselves or others.
“We are talking about somebody who has been so badly injured that they cannot take care of [themselves] in daily life operations,” he said. “The injury has to be combat-related, and it is a condition that makes the activities of daily life almost impossible for him.”
Eventually, all service members transitioning to veteran status may benefit from the changes the expedited disability evaluation system offers. The current system may be completely reformed to a one-year process by cutting out the military evaluation altogether, much like the expedient version. The pilot program for such a process is under way, but no decisions have been made yet, Meurlin said.
“The whole disability system is going through a number of reviews right now,” he said. “Within our ability, we’re taking the disability system, shrinking it down and making it more efficient.”
Today’s disability system is really a product of World War II, the Korean War and Vietnam War, and is well overdue for an update, Meurlin said. The current system doesn’t fit well with the injuries military members suffer and the high survival rate they’ve endured during today’s wars, he added.
“I think we’re recognizing in this war, with the body armor and the improved vehicles, that we’re having a whole different kind of injury,” Meurlin said, noting the significance post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injuries are having on troops. “We’re getting a new type of injury and survival rate. We’re bringing a lot of people home today that before we would’ve lost on the battlefield [in earlier wars].
“It’s important to get them the right set of benefits as early as we can and deliver them expeditiously and as fairly as we can,” he added.
More Than 150 Amputees To Converge On Capitol Hill
More Than 150 Amputees To Converge On Capitol Hill
On March 10, the Amputee Coalition of America will have more than 150 amputees from across the country in Washington, D.C., urging Congress members to support fair insurance coverage for artificial arms and legs.
"Insurance companies are unrealistically limiting reimbursement of prosthetic arms and legs or summarily electing not to cover them at all," said Kendra Calhoun, Amputee Coalition President and CEO. "We intend to turn this tide, and our Lobby Day is a great example of the grassroots support we have from across the country to do so. Arms and legs are not luxury items. Mobility is a serious issue for amputees who want to keep their jobs, take care of their families, and live healthy, active lives."
Amputees and their families are making the trip to Washington, D.C., to tell lawmakers that they need their own "bailout." While the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Defense, Workers' Compensation insurance, Medicare, Medicaid, the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), and even Congress' health insurance plan cover prosthetic and orthotic devices, a growing number of group and private insurance companies cap the benefit so low that the average working family can't afford adequate prosthetic care.
"Although an average adult amputee needs a replacement prosthesis every five years and children even more frequently," Calhoun said, "some insurance companies are providing coverage for only one prosthesis per lifetime or eliminating coverage completely."
Such practices pose especially grave challenges for families of children with limb loss. Take Evan Light, for example. At 8, he is already on his fifth pair of prosthetic legs, and the last pair alone cost more than $20,000. Until the legislature in his home state of Indiana took action, his prosthetics benefit under the family's insurance plan was only $4,000.
"Families like Evan's are essentially penalized $20,000 or more because their child has grown and their arm or leg no longer fits," said Calhoun. "Even for older adults, it is absurd to expect them to use only one prosthesis in their lifetime. No one would expect a person to wear a single pair of shoes their entire life, and prosthetic devices should be no different."
"The legislation we are seeking support for would ensure that children like Evan have access to arms and legs that keep them active and productive at home and at school," says Evan's father, Randy, who plans to attend Lobby Day with his son to support the legislation.
Senators Olympia Snowe (R-ME) and Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Representatives Robert Andrews (D-NJ) and George Miller (D-CA) are key sponsors of the bill, called the Prosthetic and Orthotic Parity Act. This bill would require employer-paid health plans to provide coverage for prosthetic and custom-fabricated orthotic devices on par with the coverage offered for medical and surgical services.
"People pay their monthly health insurance premiums and expect their coverage to take care of catastrophic situations like losing a limb," said Calhoun. "This is the very reason people purchase health insurance. No American deserves to be forced to continue using a device that no longer fits or is broken."
Statistics compiled by the Amputee Coalition indicate that passing legislation that ensures fair coverage for prosthetic devices will return people to work and ensure that there is no cost-shifting to government programs for coverage. Data also indicates that the proposed legislation would cost less than 60 cents per member per month in insurance premiums.
Currently, 11 states - Colorado, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, California, Oregon, New Jersey, Indiana, Vermont and Louisiana - have passed laws that ensure fair coverage for prosthetics, and more than 30 states have legislation in various stages in their state capitols.
"These state laws have helped many people, but they are not enough," said Morgan Sheets, the Amputee Coalition's national advocacy director, who is leading the Lobby Day activities. "Without a federal law, there will always be amputees who fall through the cracks."
Lorenzo Smith, whose right leg was amputated when he was 12, did just that. His mother, Albertha Jackson-Smith, vividly recalls the tragic day she had to explain to her young son that he couldn't have an artificial leg because the family's insurance wouldn't cover it.
"We are fighting for people like Lorenzo Smith, Evan Light, and even for those people who are not aware of their lack of coverage, but it's a difficult battle," said Sheets. "Insurance companies have a powerful voice. The Amputee Coalition and its citizen lobbyists are like David taking on Goliath. However, we trust that our congressional representatives will see the logic in our claims and do what is right. This year, they will have a wonderful opportunity to help us achieve a great victory for American families."
About the Amputee Coalition of America
The Amputee Coalition, based in Knoxville, Tennessee, is a national nonprofit organization that empowers people who have experienced amputation or are born with limb differences, through education, support and advocacy. For more information about limb loss, please visit the Amputee Coalition Web site at http://www.amputee-coalition.org.
Amputee Coalition of America
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As a disabled veteran whom has to use a power wheel chair, I fully understand what these families are saying, and I feel they are right, all Americans should have access to replacement limbs as they grow (especially the children) or thru age the limbs become broken and brittle, damaged etc, as a disabled veteran all I have to do is call the VA and they send a repairman to my house to fix my chair, all Americans should have that kind of care. I support what these families want and I can't imagine a veteran that would not. I would even be willing to donate to a national fund to help those that can't afford, but then again it is time for a national health care plan that covers all Americans.
