This is disgraceful, absolutely no reason, no excuse for this..perhaps reserve Jags need to get involved with VA law & unit member VA claims.
Data: Reservists’ disability claims more likely to be denied
By Rick Maze - rmaze@militarytimes.com Posted : October 06, 2008
Reservists’ disability claims more likely to be denied
National Guard and reserve members are more likely than active-duty Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans to have disability claims denied and more likely to receive the lowest possible disability ratings — even though they are only half as likely to file claims in the first place.
An analysis of benefits claims prepared by Veterans for Common Sense, based on data obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, shows Guard and reserve members who served in Iraq or Afghanistan are twice as likely to have a veterans’ disability claim denied as other veterans of the same operations.
The higher rate of denials and low ratings among reservists do not appear to be the result of filing frivolous claims. Forty-five percent of active-duty veterans of the two ongoing operations filed disability claims, compared with 23 percent of Guard and reserve members who deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, said Paul Sullivan, executive director of the nonprofit veterans’ group.
Sullivan said he is unsure what has caused “such an enormous discrepancy” but thinks Congress and veterans deserve an answer.
“With 300,000 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans filing a claim [with the Veterans Affairs Department] so far, we owe it to our veterans to make sure their claims are adjudicated completely, accurately, quickly and fairly,” Sullivan said.
Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., wants an explanation. “It should not matter whether you have served in a reserve component or have 20 years on active duty,” said Tester, a member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee. “All of these patriotic Americans deserve fair treatment from VA. We need to get to the bottom of why that’s not happening and what VA is doing about it.”
The House and Senate Veterans’ Affairs committees have asked VA to study variances in disability benefits, including disparities in different areas of the country as well as among minorities and nonminorities, urban and rural veterans, military retirees and those who did not serve full careers, and National Guard and reserve members and other veterans. The committees have given VA one year to do the study and recommend what can be done to eliminate the disparities.
VA officials said in a statement that they make “absolutely no distinctions in processing claims from active duty or Guard and reserve personnel. All claims are considered using the same laws and regulations.”
One explanation for the disparities could be length of service, VA officials said.
“The majority of service-related disabilities are chronic diseases or disabilities that develop over time,” the statement says. “Reserve and National Guard personnel are serving on active duty for significantly shorter periods than regular active-duty service members.”
Still, officials said they know reservists need special attention. VA is making “special efforts to reach out to returning Guard and reserve members to ensure they are aware of the VA benefits and services available to them” and that they have help filing claims.
This includes training 54 special transition advisors for the Guard — one for each state and the four territories —to help coordinate VA benefits and services for Guard members and their families.
Peter Duffy, a retired Army colonel with the National Guard Association of the United States, said gaps in personnel and medical records might make it harder for Guard and reserve members to prove they have service-connected disabilities.
They also might not know how to apply for benefits or that free legal assistance is available to them, Duffy said.
The Defense Department and VA have made progress in using electronic medical records, which not only improve treatment but also help in filing disability claims, Duffy said. But electronic records are less helpful to Guard and reserve members, who often don’t have ready access to those records, and their normal medical files often are in the hands of private-sector doctors.
Duffy said reservists returning from deployments do not have the same access as active-duty members to qualified doctors who can evaluate combat-related medical problems such as post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury.
He also said many reservists “are not listing medical issues that might potentially require a medical hold that would keep them from returning home expeditiously.”
A mandatory physical once they return to their home stations might catch problems not reported at demobilization sites, Duffy said, noting that failing to report a medical problem while still on active duty could make it harder for Guard and reserve members to get future disability claims approved.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Reservists’ disability claims more likely to be denied
Jim Strickland -of VA Watchdog Live at SVR Wednesday Night
Subject: Jim Strickland -of VA Watchdog Live at SVR Wednesday Night
My Special Guest for Wednesday Night, October 1st, 2008 at SVR , 6:30 EDT, 5:30 CT, is the very well known veteran’s advocate Jim Strickland. Jim joined Larry Scott two years ago at VA Watchdog, at
http://www.vawatchdog.org/ and this site is certainly one of the most popular veteran’s web sites as it contains, daily, the Nitty Gritty- in numerous columns of updated news on many aspects of the VA - with all sorts of information that every veteran should have.
Jim’s recent Special Series-“Understanding The Claims Process”-should be a ‘must read’ by every veteran and surviving spouse of a veteran who has a VA claim in progress or is getting reading to file one -as well as be read by any Military members who can access this site.
Don’t hesitate to access his new site at http://tinyurl.com/5wxapm for a Wealth of Excellent claims information! This link should be a Tool Bar Icon , Desktop Icon ,and Favorite Place MUST READ for all veterans and advocates dealing with the VA.!!!!
Jim is a Vietnam Era Veteran who served in the US Army, 1967-1970,MOS 91D20 (Operating Room/Surgery Specialist) and was stationed in 98th General Hospital in Neubrucke/Nahe, Germany.
Utilizing the special skills he acquired in the service, Jim’s civilian career involved cardiaovascular surgery technician, cardiac cath lab tech, manager,director,VP and heart health business consultant until he retired in 2003 due to service connected disabilities.
Also Jim, as a Harley owner, rides with the Patriot Guard Riders, as they escort military funerals and fulfill their superb and poignant mission statement at http://www.patriotguard.org/Home/tabid/53/Default.aspx
He is an avid photographer as well and still finds the time to present the electronic veterans community with excellent and very well written columns on important veteran’s issues at VA Watchdog. Check out his Mail bag there too and his archived past columns for exemplary information that we, as VA claimants, or potential claimants, definitely need to have.
Just go to http://www.stardustent.com/svr.htm
And click on Listen Live or join the site and enter the Chat room on line
Call ins are Toll free- at -1-877-213-4329
Berta Simmons
www.hadit.com
Stardust Radio
Lt. Gen. Honoré Joins CNN as Emergency Preparedness Contributor
Lt. Gen. Honoré Joins CNN as Emergency Preparedness Contributor
Retired Lt. Gen. Russel L. Honoré, best known for his service as commander of Joint Task Force Katrina in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina three years ago, has joined CNN as the emergency preparedness contributor to CNN Worldwide, it was announced by Nancy Lane, senior vice president of newsgathering for CNN/U.S. He appeared on CNN most recently amid the network’s coverage of Hurricane Ike.
In this role, Honoré lends his expertise and inside knowledge while assessing government efforts amid crises and recovery efforts. Through his reports and assistance, CNN will continue to keep government officials accountable in those situations.
He also contributes his expertise on disaster preparedness, response and recovery activities to CNN’s leading reports throughout the hurricane season and other potential crisis situations. His reports appear across CNN’s numerous networks and services including CNN/U.S., CNN International, CNN.com, CNN.com Live, CNN Radio and CNN Newsource. They provide viewers with practical tips for preparing for and surviving disasters as well as keep government officials and agencies honest when it comes to dealing with large disasters and crisis’s.
“General Honoré brings to CNN’s global audience an intimate knowledge of managing crises and executing emergency preparedness,” Lane said. “After Katrina, the general was universally viewed as a hero, and our viewers will no doubt trust and connect with him as he contributes to our up-to-the-minute coverage.”
As commander of Joint Task Force Katrina, Honoré led the Department of Defense’s response to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita across Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi, which included the operations of more than 22,000 military personnel, 200 aircraft and 20 ships. Additionally, as vice director for operations for the Joint Staff and as commander of the Standing Joint Force Headquarters-Homeland Security, U.S. Northern Command, Honoré’s focused his work on defense support to civil authorities and homeland defense. For four of the past six hurricane seasons, he supported the Department of Defense’s planning and response for hurricanes on domestic and international soil.
“I’m delighted to be able to join CNN and take advantage of the network’s vast resources and services and be able to address the audience in those areas affected,” Honoré said. “Everyone needs to be prepared for unexpected and uncontrollable events, and CNN is an ideal platform to inform and educate.”
In a previous role as commander of First Army – the command responsible for mobilizing and training National Guard and Reserve troops – Honoré oversaw the training and deployment of more than 500,000 military personnel across all services. This effort comprised the largest military deployment since World War II and focused on the Army’s combat medical capability, as well as the overall medical readiness of all personnel mobilized in support of operations in Afghanistan, Bosnia, Egypt, Guantanamo Bay and Iraq.
After retiring from the Army earlier this year with 37 years of active service, Honoré now speaks and consults nationally about emergency preparedness.
A native of Lakeland, La., Honoré was commissioned as a second lieutenant of infantry after earning his bachelor’s degree in vocational agriculture from Southern University and A&M College. He also holds a master’s degree in human resources from Troy State University and honorary doctorates from Southern University and A&M College and Stillman College.
CNN Worldwide, a division of Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner Company, is the most trusted source for news and information. Its reach extends to nine cable and satellite television networks; one private place-based network; two radio networks; wireless devices around the world; CNN Digital Network, the No. 1 network of news Web sites in the United States; CNN Newsource, the world’s most extensively syndicated news service; and strategic international partnerships within both television and the digital media.
-30-
For more information, visit www.CNNPressroom.com.
CONTACT:
Karen Varga-Sinka Atlanta 404.575.7187 karen.varga-sinka@cnn.com
Bridget Leininger Atlanta 404.827.1612 bridget.leininger@cnn.com
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
That "John Wayne dude" is still serving America, as a disabled veteran I am extremely proud of General Honore's exemplary leadership during the Katrina crisis, he is a true leader.
VA Announces Nine National Sponsors for New Sports Clinic
VA Announces Nine National Sponsors for New Sports Clinic
Peake: New Event Milestone for Disabled Veterans
WASHINGTON (Sept. 29, 2008) - The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
announced today nine sponsors are supporting VA's newest rehabilitative
event for injured veterans, the National Veterans Summer Sports Clinic.
"VA is fortunate to have such gracious sponsors to bring this new event
to our nation's disabled veterans," said Dr. James B. Peake, Secretary
of Veterans Affairs. "For many injured veterans, this sports clinic
will provide their first exposure to recreational sports after being
injured."
The top-level sponsors are Help Hospitalized Veterans, Veterans Canteen
Service, American Optometric Association, Booz Allen Hamilton,
Challenged America, Marchon, TriWest Healthcare Alliance, Cisco,
Invacare and Top End.
The event is open to 100 recently injured veterans who have spinal cord
injuries, traumatic brain injuries, certain neurological conditions,
amputations, other mobility impairments, or post-traumatic stress
disorder.
The National Veterans Summer Sports Clinic began Sept. 28 and runs
through Oct. 3 at several venues in the San Diego area. Events include
sailing, cycling, surfing, kayaking and track and field events.
The sports clinic is the fifth national rehabilitation event offered by
VA to promote the healing of body, mind and spirit. VA's other
rehabilitation events are the National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports
Clinic, the National Veterans Wheelchair Games, the National Veterans
Golden Age Games and the National Veterans Creative Arts Festival.
For more information about the National Veterans Summer Sports Clinic,
visit the event's Web site at www.summersportsclinic.va.gov.
Ad attacks Lunsford firm's care of vets
For background on Valor Healthcare and the many problems with their privatized VA clinics (with backlinks), click here...
http://www.vawatchdog.org/08/nf08/n
fMAY08/nf050708-6.htm
Story here... http://www.kentuck
y.com/329/story/537812.html
Story below:
JOIN THE DEBATE
Comment on this story and interact
with other readers... below...
-------------------------
Ad attacks Lunsford firm's care of vets
By Ryan Alessi and Jack Brammer
ralessi@herald-leader.com , jbrammer@herald-leader.com
In a new line of attack, U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell has begun airing a 60-second ad that accuses a company founded by his Democratic challenger Bruce Lunsford of "mistreating our veterans while Bruce profited."
The commercial quotes veterans, none of whom are Kentucky residents, complaining about care in facilities run by Miami-based Valor Healthcare Inc. Lunsford, according to personal finance documents, is a founding executive of the company and remains on its board of directors, earning $127,500 annually.
Lunsford's campaign had no immediate comment.
This latest twist in Kentucky's U.S. Senate race comes amid a national and global financial crisis that has left incumbent members of Congress vulnerable to the ire of an uneasy and frustrated public.
Congressional leaders, including McConnell, have been debating all week a proposed $700 billion bailout for Wall Street firms.
McConnell's ad, however, attempts to turn the anti-Wall Street sentiment among voters against Lunsford.
"Bruce Lunsford got rich the Wall Street way — taking care of himself, first," the ad's announcer says at the start of the commercial. McConnell also got in front of energy issues by being the first in the race to run an ad about gas prices, putting pressure on Lunsford for his advocacy 28 years ago for a policy that would increase the state's gas tax. So this has become the latest example of McConnell's ability to "take a weakness and turn it into a strength," said Danny Briscoe, a Louisville-based political consultant.
"It's an area of great vulnerability for McConnell because of his connection to the Bush administration and his support for market deregulation," Briscoe said. But he said Lunsford has failed to capitalize on that, as he has not aired aggressive commercials on the subject or hammered McConnell's financial deregulation votes in a statewide tour.
"It's somewhat symbolic of his entire campaign, which has been structure-less and rudderless," Briscoe said.
McConnell's new ad, meanwhile, turns the subject of the race — at least on the airwaves — to Lunsford's business background. Valor Healthcare, which Lunsford helped found as CEO and chairman in September 2005, runs 18 facilities nationwide and has contracts with the Veterans Affairs department in Tennessee, Texas, Arkansas and Washington.
The ad cites a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs review into the quality of care offered at Valor's outpatient clinics in Texas City and Galveston, Texas.
The agency's inquiry began at the request of Texas Democratic U.S. Rep. Nick Lampson, who represents the district that includes the two Valor clinics. Lampson's April 30, 2008, letter to VA Secretary James B. Peake said veterans seeking medical tests at the facilities were turned away "due to cost," according to the Galveston Daily News.
In an Aug. 28 response letter to McConnell's Republican Senate colleague Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas, Peake wrote that VA hospital managers "looked into the veterans' complaints and found them to be valid," according to documents provided by Hutchison's office.
The ad makes references to financial penalties Valor has had to pay as a result. Those penalties appear to be the result of contractual violations not a fine, according to Peake's letter. The agency "has taken aggressive action to correct the deficiencies" and imposed "financial penalties according to the terms of the contract," Peake's letter said.
McConnell's commercial shows several veterans talking about the level of care. One veteran, Lee Standing Bear Moore of Hot Springs, Ark., described his experience as "not the kind of health care that anyone would will upon another person."
Moore, a 62-year-old Vietnam War veteran who was awarded the Silver Star and a Purple Heart, told the Herald-Leader that he was contacted four months ago by an investigator for a public relations firm working for McConnell's campaign. "I don't care about McConnell's campaign or about any Democrat or Republican. I just care about this clinic here," said Moore, who said he received no compensation for appearing in the ad.
Major problems with the Hot Springs clinic are lack of notification to veterans for appointments, staffing and not enough medical equipment, Moore said.
The ad's approach is similar to a devastating commercial that was run against Lunsford, a millionaire businessman, during the 2003 Democratic gubernatorial primary. In that spot, run by Democrat Ben Chandler's campaign, a woman recounted abuse her mother suffered at a nursing home owned by Lunsford's then-company, Vencor.
McConnell, so far, has stayed away from Vencor. His wife, U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Elaine Chao, served on Vencor's board of directors from 1997 until 2001
Ad attacks Lunsford firm's care of vets
Opposes Bailing Out Wall Street While Military and Veteran Families Lose their Homes
Military Spouses for Change (MSC) Opposes Bailing Out Wall Street While Military and Veteran Families Lose their Homes
PLEASE CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVE THIS MORNING (http://www.votesmart.org/search.php?search=76544, then click "current elected officials") and tell them that unsuspecting home buyers, workers, and investors, like yourself and your spouse (who serve this country) deserve as much protection as the financially savvy, multi-billionaire corporations that preyed upon you for short-term financial gain.
Today Congress is going to vote on the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 which IMMEDIATELY use $250 BILLION to buy banks' and other financial institutions' LEAST VALUABLE financial investments (i.e. what no one else would buy). The President will be given an additional $100 BILLION dollars to use at his discretion to bail these companies out. Finally, $250 BILLION is going to be set aside for future bailing out.
WHAT IS MISSING FROM THIS PACKAGE? Assistance for homeowners who were lured into home loans that they would ultimately not be able to afford.
In May, Bloomberg.com published an exclusive report stating that "[i]n the midst of the worst surge in mortgage defaults in seven decades, foreclosures in U.S. towns where soldiers live are increasing at a pace almost four times the national average." Moreover, Paul Sullivan, from the non-profit Veterans for Common Sense told Bloomberg, "`We've never faced a situation like this, not in the Vietnam War, World War II, or the Korean War, where so many military are in danger of losing their homes.''
We don't know about you, but how many of us really know what "subprime" means? Or "adjustable" rate?
Did you know that while veterans comprise eleven percent of Americans, they simultaneously represent TWENTY-FIVE PERCENT of our homeless population?
MSC does not opposed helping Wall Street. We appreciate the need for the government to intervene. But we also believe that the individual tax-payer needs help too and this current plan rewards the predators and punishes the prey.
When Congress tells us they do not have the funds to increase mental health services or family support services, how can we allow this bail out plan to move forward?
We urge you to take a few minutes out of your morning to call just one of your representatives. Tell them who you are, where your spouse serves, and that you have had it with the rhetoric of supporting the troops (and veterans).
Please spread the word. You have a voice. Don't be afraid to use it!
Your ally in change,
Carissa Picard
--
Carissa Picard, Esq.
President
Military Spouses for Change
Saturday, September 27, 2008
EDITORIAL: Toxic exposure
EDITORIAL: Toxic exposure
The Issue: Indiana National Guard soldiers were exposed to a cancer-causing toxin.
Our View: These current and former soldiers deserve the best medical treatment available.
This nation learned a painful lesson through the struggles of Vietnam veterans who suffered Agent Orange exposure and Operation Desert Storm veterans who suffered from Gulf War syndrome — who sometimes fought for years to gain official recognition of and treatment for their maladies.
Sadly, it now appears that some Indiana National Guard soldiers were exposed to a highly toxic chemical in Iraq in 2003 during the early months of the current U.S. invasion and occupation.
A total of 139 soldiers from the 1st Battalion, 152nd Infantry, based in Jasper, Ind., and Tell City, Ind., were stationed in Basra, Iraq, guarding a water treatment plant. A private firm, Kellogg, Brown and Root, was contracted by the Army to operate the facility, post-invasion.
According to a congressional investigation and published reports, the Qarmat Ali treatment plant was strewn with an orange-colored dust. Despite assurances it was only a "mild irritant," the substance turned out to be a highly toxic industrial chemical, sodium dichromate, which is used to remove corrosion from pipes. Amid dust storms, it likely was impossible for Indiana soldiers and KBR employees to avoid breathing in the toxin or getting it on their skin. Sodium dichromate is a known carcinogen that has been linked to cancers of the lungs and respiratory tract.
The extent of the toxic exposure and potential cancer risk to those 139 Hoosier soldiers — among a larger group of 660 soldiers who were in the vicinity — did not become known publicly for five years. The adjutant general of the Indiana National Guard, Maj. Gen. Martin Umbarger, learned of it in June after a phone call from U.S. Sen. Byron Dorgan, a Democrat from North Dakota.
Dorgan's Senate committee had held a hearing into the actions of the private contractor over the toxic exposure of its own employees in Iraq. KBR employees who were sickened by sodium dichromate testified that Indiana soldiers who had been there were exposed, too.
U.S. Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Ind., has raised serious questions about why the Indiana Guard was not notified more promptly. Although the 139 soldiers at Qarmat Ali underwent some medical testing at the end of that deployment, Bayh questioned whether the tests occurred within the four-month window for detecting contamination or if an out-of-date medical standard was used.
Bayh asked the Army to investigate the exposure, and last week Army Secretary Pete Geren agreed, appointing two top assistants to the probe.
Going forward, Bayh introduced a Senate bill to create a registry of the at-risk soldiers, similar to a 1978 registry for veterans exposed to the herbicide Agent Orange, so that they can be guaranteed follow-up medical evaluations and receive priority status at Veterans Administration hospitals.
Bayh's proposal is a good start. Since most of the current or former soldiers exposed are from Southwestern Indiana, we would urge that the VA try to make medical evaluations and any treatments available nearby. (A separate federal investigation found incidents of substandard medical care at the VA hospital in Marion, Ill., where many local veterans must travel.) The VA plans to build a new clinic on the East Side of Evansville in a few years. Medical resources for the exposed veterans logically should start there, although we recognize that more advanced medical care might have to be obtained elsewhere.
Our nation has a duty to the men and women who volunteered to serve in uniform to provide for their service-related medical needs. That is especially true for the Indiana Guardsmen, who through no fault of their own were exposed to a cancer-causing chemical.
