mnealtx 0 #26 February 20, 2007 QuoteQuoteQuoteQuoteQuoteRe: [Gawain] Quote -- better than anywhere else. Re: [LouDiamond] QuoteI know for a fact that the best Dr.s and treatment is available there I'm not disputing your statements, but I'm curious ...how do you know this? I've been a patient (wounded) and recovering there for nearly a year. Maybe George Bush doesn't give speeches in Building 18. I bet Bubba Jeff never did either...but he "felt their pain", I'm sure... Whoosh. Let me explain: GWB DOES give speeches in the showcase part of Walter Reed. Apparently his itinerary doesn't include Bldg. 18. Thanks, I NEVER would have figured that out without your pointing it out to me... I'll still stand by what I said - I'm sure it wasn't a priority with WJC, either, unless it was a line item on a bill to cut defense spending.Mike I love you, Shannon and Jim. POPS 9708 , SCR 14706 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warpedskydiver 0 #27 February 20, 2007 What! politics should take precedent over service members welfare? I hope that isn't what your'e implying. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kallend 2,150 #28 February 20, 2007 QuoteJohn I know for a fact that Max KNOWS what he is talking about, I want pictures to prove the story's veracity and then in turn to shame our politicians from both sides of the aisle with this. . What makes you think that politicians from both sides will pay no attention to MSNBC but will pay attention to you?... The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warpedskydiver 0 #29 February 20, 2007 I did not say that they would, only that I would make the effort. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jenfly00 0 #30 February 21, 2007 QuoteQuoteAs I said, I'm glad you are getting good treatment. That doesn't explain the basis for your comparative statements. Here's one basis, http://www.itv.com/news/wounded_51a899b7b687f160bac57d92bcdfbc81.html. Also, I've greeted, spoken to, and/or seen visitors who come to WRAMC to see how to improve their own facilities. These visitors have come from emerging to well developed nations, including UK, ROK, Russia, Pakistan to name a few. Plus, WRAMC sends its staff (mostly GS employees) to other countries to provide care or treatment that isn't available otherwise. One recent example is my prosthetist went to Germany to make equipment for amputee NATO soldiers injured in Afghanistan (soldiers from Romania, and one other eastern European country I can't recall). The US is the only country with a dedicated Veterans arm in the government, with dedicated Veterans treatment facilities. The article in the OP points out some problems that I will say do exist, and need improvement. Does that mean WRAMC is not living up to its promise? No. Thanks for the response. I had interpreted your first response as comparing VA medical care to US civilian hospitals. In Miami, the VAH is staffed primarily by interns (from Jackson Memorial Hospital, across the street) attempting to learn the basics of medical care. Bright and motivated, they just don't know much about medicine.----------------------- "O brave new world that has such people in it". Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zipp0 1 #31 February 21, 2007 QuoteSadly some of the major cuts during the Clinton years came from the Military Medical System. But the quote from Kallend is Ironic as it seams to be better a system, but not by much and obviously some of the funds went into the "dog and pony show" and not the care of the soldiers. Matt Uhhh... Bush's latest budget cuts Vet benefits, including medical. We owe more to wounded soldiers than to just about anyone else. I'm sure even the conservatives can get behind a tax increase that benefits wounded vets. -------------------------- Chuck Norris doesn't do push-ups, he pushes the Earth down. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gawain 0 #32 February 21, 2007 QuoteQuoteSadly some of the major cuts during the Clinton years came from the Military Medical System. But the quote from Kallend is Ironic as it seams to be better a system, but not by much and obviously some of the funds went into the "dog and pony show" and not the care of the soldiers. Matt Uhhh... Bush's latest budget cuts Vet benefits, including medical. We owe more to wounded soldiers than to just about anyone else. I'm sure even the conservatives can get behind a tax increase that benefits wounded vets. If you look at the President's budget, the VA's budget is roughly $5B more than last year. The VA reps have not outlined any specific cut to me. Why don't you tell me specifically where the vets are getting cuts in their benefits?So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright 'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life Make light! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gawain 0 #33 February 21, 2007 I would like to point out that the other facilities where outpatients (and their families -- family members don't stay in bldg 18) stay are fully functional and clean. The Malogne House Hotel had new mattresses last year, plenty of towels, pillows and blankets. The Fisher House (fisherhouse.org) is outstanding, mostly new facilities. The WashPost article was inevitable, however. While everyone is looking at the pictures, the other part that the article touched on is not getting any attention at all -- that's the intangible environment of being in MED HOLD. This will present far greater challenges for revision.So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright 'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life Make light! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warpedskydiver 0 #34 February 21, 2007 Max since many of the posters here don't believe anything I say, would you consider telling them all what living in limbo, not knowing where you are going, or if you will be ever returning to duty, does to a person? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gawain 0 #35 February 21, 2007 I am not going to go into any great detail, because the WashPost article has really started things "hoppin-n-poppin'" here now. I will say however that it boils down to the system being overloaded not for lack of people, but for the current structure not able to address the extremely varied, and high-level needs of some patients when they become an outpatient. As it is right now, they are changing from a "following a standard manual" approach to maintaining accountability. I've given my feedback to some of the people there, and will continue to do so until I leave (hopefully this is my last week here).So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright 'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life Make light! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kallend 2,150 #36 February 21, 2007 QuoteMax since many of the posters here don't believe anything I say, would you consider telling them all what living in limbo, not knowing where you are going, or if you will be ever returning to duty, does to a person? The Pentagon admits it. www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/02/21/AR2007022101179.html... The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zipp0 1 #37 February 21, 2007 Veterans who deserve benefits can't always get them due to funding not meeting rising demand. Any way you look at it, it's wrong. From http://www.factcheck.org/article144.html While it's false to say the veterans budget has been cut, and false to say that any veteran getting benefits has been cut off, it is true that funding is not growing as rapidly as demand for benefits, or as rapidly as veterans groups would like. Veterans groups are unanimous in calling for more money than the administration or Congress have provided. Four groups -- AMVETS, Disabled American Veterans, Paralyzed Veterans of America, and Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States -- have joined to ask for $3.7 billion more than the administration is requesting for next year. Even Bush's own Secretary of Veterans Affairs Anthony Principi -- in a rare break with administration protocol -- told a House committee Feb. 4 that had asked for more money than Bush was willing to seek from Congress. "I asked OMB for $1.2 billion more than I received," he said, referring to the White House Office of Management and Budget. Some Denied Benefits; A Cut Proposed In January, 2003 the Veterans Administration announced that -- because the increase in funds couldn't meet the rising demand -- it would start turning away many middle-income applicants applying for new medical benefits. That led to accusations that Bush was denying benefits to veterans. " We have 400,000 veterans in this country who have been denied access in a whole category to the VA," Kerry declared during a debate Oct. 9, 2003. The VA's estimates of the number who might be denied benefits is much lower, and in fact nobody can say with certainty how many middle-income veterans might have signed up for medical benefits if they had been allowed. Meanwhile the VA continues to add hundreds of thousands of disabled and lower-income veterans to those already receiving benefits, and has kept paying benefits to all veterans who were already receiving them. The middle-income veterans who currently aren't being allowed to sign up are those generally with incomes above 80% of the mid-point for their locality. The means test cut-off for benefits ranges up to $40,000 a year in many cities. And any veteran with income less than $25,162 still qualifies no matter where they live. Those figures are for single veterans. The income cut-off is higher for those with a spouse or children. Veterans groups have called for "mandatory funding" of medical benefits, which would automatically appropriate whatever funds are required to meet demand. Kerry has endorsed mandatory funding, which would allow middle-income veterans with no service-connected disability to resume signing up. The administration also has proposed to make the VA's prescription drug benefit less generous. Currently many veterans pay $7 for each one-month supply of medication. The administration proposes to increase that to $15, and require a $250 annual fee as well. Congress rejected a similar proposal last year. The proposal wouldn't affect those -- such as veterans with a disability rated at 50% or more -- who currently aren't required to make any co-payments. -------------------------- Chuck Norris doesn't do push-ups, he pushes the Earth down. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ExAFO 0 #38 February 21, 2007 Every VA facility I've been to has been a sewer...I wonder how they pass inspection...Illinois needs a CCW Law. NOW. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kallend 2,150 #39 February 21, 2007 QuoteEvery VA facility I've been to has been a sewer...I wonder how they pass inspection... Get George Bush to give a speech there, and it will be spotless.... The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Alias 0 #40 February 23, 2007 QuoteThis country asks a great deal of the men and women who serve our military, particularly in the first war of the 21st century. We put a lot of fine troops into harm's way to make this country more secure and the world more free and the world more peaceful. We ask them to face great dangers to meet a national need. In return, we have made a commitment. We have made a commitment to the troops, and we have made a commitment to their loved ones, and that commitment is that we will provide excellent health care--excellent care--to anybody who is injured on the battlefield. George W. Bush, December 18, 2003 He's a shame! Bush! In touch - NOT! http://www.military.com/NewsContent/0,13319,125064,00.html "The budget for hospital and medical care for veterans is funded for the current year at $35.6 billion, and would rise to $39.6 billion in 2008 under Bush's budget. That's about 9 percent. But the budget faces a cut to $38.8 billion in 2009 and would hover around that level through 2012. The cuts come even as the number of veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars is expected to increase 26 percent next year." Bastard! Carpe Diem Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warpedskydiver 0 #41 February 23, 2007 Did you realize he is only president until 2009? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Alias 0 #42 February 23, 2007 QuoteDid you realize he is only president until 2009? Yes. Why? My point shows that our president has made a "commitment that we will provide excellent health care--excellent care--to anybody who is injured on the battlefield". But his projected budget for hospital and medical care for veterans in 2008 says different - showing a 9% increase vs the projected 26 % increase of wounded soldiers returning from his war that same year. I guess he feels that his "commitment" will still be effectivly met? Hognuts! Did you realize he will be president in 2008? Carpe Diem Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gawain 0 #43 February 23, 2007 QuoteQuoteDid you realize he is only president until 2009? Yes. Why? My point shows that our president has made a "commitment that we will provide excellent health care--excellent care--to anybody who is injured on the battlefield". But his projected budget for hospital and medical care for veterans in 2008 says different - showing a 9% increase vs the projected 26 % increase of wounded soldiers returning from his war that same year. I guess he feels that his "commitment" will still be effectivly met? Hognuts! Did you realize he will be president in 2008? Your point about who will draft the FY2009 budget is correct, however, a 26% increase in the number of vets does not correlate to a "necessary" 26% increase in the VA budget.So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright 'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life Make light! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kallend 2,150 #44 February 23, 2007 QuoteQuoteDid you realize he is only president until 2009? Yes. Why? My point shows that our president has made a "commitment that we will provide excellent health care--excellent care--to anybody who is injured on the battlefield". But his projected budget for hospital and medical care for veterans in 2008 says different - showing a 9% increase vs the projected 26 % increase of wounded soldiers returning from his war that same year. I guess he feels that his "commitment" will still be effectivly met? Hognuts! Did you realize he will be president in 2008? Those who dispute the estimate made by Nobel Laureate Joseph E. Stiglitz and Harvard budget expert Linda Bilmes that the eventual cost of the Iraq fiasco will be between $1 Trillion and $2Trillion conveniently assume that all the wounded vets will make miraculous recoveries and not require long-term care. A nice thought, but highly improbable.... The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kallend 2,150 #45 February 23, 2007 QuoteEvery VA facility I've been to has been a sewer...I wonder how they pass inspection... Care of wounded US troops 'unacceptable'-Gates... The only sure way to survive a canopy collision is not to have one. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
billvon 3,120 #46 February 28, 2007 Troops blamed - problem solved! --------------- Soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center’s Medical Hold Unit say they have been told they will wake up at 6 a.m. every morning and have their rooms ready for inspection at 7 a.m., and that they must not speak to the media. “Some soldiers believe this is a form of punishment for the trouble soldiers caused by talking to the media,” one Medical Hold Unit soldier said, speaking on the condition of anonymity. . . . They were also told they would be moving out of Building 18 to Building 14 within the next couple of weeks...It’s also located on the Walter Reed Campus, where reporters must be escorted by public affairs personnel. Building 18 is located just off campus and is easy to access. http://www.airforcetimes.com/news/2007/02/TNSreedinspect070227/ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andy9o8 2 #47 March 1, 2007 http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=2915742 Quote Walter Reed General Loses His Command WASHINGTON Mar 1, 2007 (AP)— The Army said Thursday that the two-star general in charge of Walter Reed Army Medical Center has been relieved of command following disclosures about inadequate treatment of wounded soldiers. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warpedskydiver 0 #48 March 1, 2007 This does not suprise me, there is no excuse in the damn world why any soldier wounded in combat shoud ever have to live in conditions like that. I would like to add there are alot of wasteful government programs and just the wasted dollars alone would fund the VA beyond it's wildest dreams. Imagine what they could do if they had the money and it was spent with very close oversight. I am also aware that there are a few VA officials being paid a large salary, and for what I do not know. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warpedskydiver 0 #49 March 1, 2007 I bet the incoming commanding general will be a bit tougher and there will be changes. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
warpedskydiver 0 #50 March 1, 2007 Bill when I was in the hospital we were always expected to get up on time and make our own beds. We also made sure the room was tidy as best we could. I guess things were different then. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
