Today I took my significant other to the VA in Anchorage. Uncle Ted Stevens Pork Baby.  After going thru their orientation and filling out the form to make me his advocate we were there to try and get a hearing aid for John. After years of paying for private insurance that will not cover his hearing loss due to a misplaced handgrenade, we turned to the VA. The one where everyone is wearing "not business as usual" pins.  I registered to use the VA as well. I am a veteran as well.  I might need third world level medical care at some point in desparation.

      I got hung up for a moment and John was called in for his appointment. I went to the desk and ask to join him. The gentleman at the desk called back to the nurse and I was told no. That wouldn't have been too bad if the the idiot, Dr. Crowe that saw John had some semblence of knowledge or caring for dealing with the hearing impaired. She immediately made John close down. She told him that she thought he didn't need 3 out of 4 his scripts and the one she did write the VA doesn't carry. I immediately went upstairs to the directors office to lodge a complaint against the doctor. 

 You are right Ms. Johnson. More recruits equals more fodder for this war and the longer it takes to end it. It also means more men like your husband and my partner. Abused by their own government after dedicated service. The best thing you can do as a citizen today is talk a kid out of enlisting.

by Robin Boerner (2 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 19 comments) on Tuesday, Jan 8, 2008 at 1:18:10 AM

  (0+)

Robin,

My husband began receiving treatment at our local VA back in 1986 and I can honestly say our VA had to be the worst in the country back then.

I wrote so many letters complaining about the care that if our house caught on fire, it would probably burn for months due to the sheer number of copies of letters I have. 

I wrote to everyone at our local VA, I wrote to everyone in charge of our local VA and I even wrote to doctors that wrote books on how to treat patients.

I wrote to the different people in Congress that represented our district, I wrote to the service organizations and I wrote to anyone and everyone I could find to write to in Washington DC that had anything to do with Veterans Affairs. 

Each and every time I went to the VA and would become involved in a conversation with a patient, I encouraged them to write a letter of complaint.  I wrote so many letters that at one point in time, my husband was asked if he would please ask me to stop writing letters to Congress that they didn’t have time to provide care to patients because they were spending all their time on congressional inquiries.

Eventually the care changed (it took years and years) and our local VA became a place veterans wanted to go for treatment because they were treated with respect and the medical treatment they received was good.

And then along came George W Bush and changes.  At first the changes were subtle, but have become more pronounced over the years and the quality of care has once again deteriorated, in part due to the influx of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans into the system, in part due to various cuts.

My husband also wears hearing aids in both ears due to running his track over a mine, but it’s not time for a follow-up appointment so I’m not up to snuff on what changes have taken place with respect to hearing aids.

He did go in for a follow-up eye exam last month and, although his glasses should be arriving soon, there was a note on the wall indicating veterans would still be eligible for a free eye exam, but unless they were service connected for an eye condition, they would only be provided with an RX to take to an outside source where they could have glasses made, at their own expense.  There may have been some other exceptions, but offhand I cannot recall exactly who was now eligible for the free glasses.

I was shocked at the change and when I talked to the doctor in charge of the eye clinic, you could tell he was heartbroken over the fact one more door was being slammed in the face of our veterans.

The horror stories I could tell about VA care could fill a book.

It would be so easy if we could talk the kids out of enlisting, but all too many times they enlist because there’s nothing else for them.  What do you do when you’re a young man or woman out of school and can’t find a job?

Big business can’t even compete with the bonuses the Army is providing to these youngsters.

Thank you for your comment, thank you both for your service to our country and good luck to both of you in obtaining treatment at the VA.

Pat Johnson

by Patricia L Johnson (24 articles, 0 quicklinks, 4 diaries, 32 comments) on Tuesday, Jan 8, 2008 at 8:37:54 AM

  (0+)

Robin,

My husband began receiving treatment at our local VA back in 1986 and I can honestly say our VA had to be the worst in the country back then.

I wrote so many letters complaining about the care that if our house caught on fire, it would probably burn for months due to the sheer number of copies of letters I have. 

I wrote to everyone at our local VA, I wrote to everyone in charge of our local VA and I even wrote to doctors that wrote books on how to treat patients.

I wrote to the different people in Congress that represented our district, I wrote to the service organizations and I wrote to anyone and everyone I could find to write to in Washington DC that had anything to do with Veterans Affairs. 

Each and every time I went to the VA and would become involved in a conversation with a patient, I encouraged them to write a letter of complaint.  I wrote so many letters that at one point in time, my husband was asked if he would please ask me to stop writing letters to Congress that they didn’t have time to provide care to patients because they were spending all their time on congressional inquiries.

Eventually the care changed (it took years and years) and our local VA became a place veterans wanted to go for treatment because they were treated with respect and the medical treatment they received was good.

And then along came George W Bush and changes.  At first the changes were subtle, but have become more pronounced over the years and the quality of care has once again deteriorated, in part due to the influx of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans into the system, in part due to various cuts.

My husband also wears hearing aids in both ears due to running his track over a mine, but it’s not time for a follow-up appointment so I’m not up to snuff on what changes have taken place with respect to hearing aids.

He did go in for a follow-up eye exam last month and, although his glasses should be arriving soon, there was a note on the wall indicating veterans would still be eligible for a free eye exam, but unless they were service connected for an eye condition, they would only be provided with an RX to take to an outside source where they could have glasses made, at their own expense.  There may have been some other exceptions, but offhand I cannot recall exactly who was now eligible for the free glasses.

I was shocked at the change and when I talked to the doctor in charge of the eye clinic, you could tell he was heartbroken over the fact one more door was being slammed in the face of our veterans.

The horror stories I could tell about VA care could fill a book.

It would be so easy if we could talk the kids out of enlisting, but all too many times they enlist because there’s nothing else for them.  What do you do when you’re a young man or woman out of school and can’t find a job?

Big business can’t even compete with the bonuses the Army is providing to these youngsters.

Thank you for your comment, thank you both for your service to our country and good luck to both of you in obtaining treatment at the VA.

Pat Johnson

by Patricia L Johnson (24 articles, 0 quicklinks, 4 diaries, 32 comments) on Tuesday, Jan 8, 2008 at 8:38:50 AM

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THE PEOPLE IN POWER, AND I DON'T MEAN OUR GORVENMENT, WILL CALL THEM THE ESTABISHMENT, OR GLOBALIST. ARE OUT TO BANKRUT THIS COUNTRY AND IF ANYONE CAN'T SEE THIS.THESE WARS WHERE STARTED JUST FOR PROFIT ONLY. AND OUR WOUNDED ARE CUTTING IN THEIR PROFIT. BUSH AND CHENEY HAVE THEIR BACK UP PLANS BUSH HAS 100,000 ARCERS IN PRIEAGUY, AND CHENEY IS BUILDING A HOME IN DUBLI, AND THEY HAVE GOTTEN QUIT RICH FOR THEIR LOYIALTY TO THESE GLOBALIST. THIS IS SAD IN A SHORT FEW YEARS THERE WILL BE NO MONEY LEFT, AND THIS IS WHERE IT GETS BAD, WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN WHEN THERE ARE NO CHECK IN THE MAIL, NO MEDICNE, AND NO MONEY TO BUY FOOD. OF COURSE WE WILL BE UNDER MARSLIAL LAW BY THEN, AND MOST OF THE CHURCHS DOORS WILL BE LOCKED, BECAUSE THEY WILL NOT BE ABLE TO HELP. THIS IS A GRIM PICTURE BUT WHERE ARE WE HEADING, THIS EMPIRE IS GOING TO DEFAULD. AND WHEN IS THE UNKNOWN.

by RICHARD SHADE (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 460 comments) on Tuesday, Jan 8, 2008 at 3:45:10 AM

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Richard,

This administration has always operated for profit only and what is sad is the fact it took people this long to finally wake up and see what is happening.

The future does look very grim for everyone in this country, but let us hope and pray that it’s not too late to turn it around.

Thank you for your comment.

Pat Johnson

by Patricia L Johnson (24 articles, 0 quicklinks, 4 diaries, 32 comments) on Tuesday, Jan 8, 2008 at 8:46:47 AM

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Time for Mitt and Hucks kids to step up.   They look fit.  Hucks boy had a bit of anger trouble, to do with dogs and ropes and, well, so what that he forgot and tried to take his loaded gun on a plane.   Same as it ever was, same as it ever was.

by davy (1 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 240 comments) on Wednesday, Jan 9, 2008 at 1:07:55 AM

  (0+)