Jump to content

Michigan: Worst State For Veterans


t-pain

Recommended Posts

I gotcha, no problem. I am a huge advocate for the v a, I love it & I appreciate what they do, but after the big shake up last year they made it seem like we were getting all kinds of great things & really it mostly stayed the same, I've said it before, the mental health side is top notch, but the medical side is bad, they aren't bad doctors & nurses, they are just way understaffed. As a civilian You go to your family doctor & build a relationship & trust, he knows you. I see these vets go to the doc & it's like meeting a new doc every time, he doesn't remember you or anything about your issue. Sometimes it's not even the same doc. Let's say I go to traverse city & they say I need an MRI, I have to go to Detroit for that, Saginaw for x-Rays, Ann Arbor for G I stuff. To access most college assistance you pay the bill out of pocket & they reimburse you. & when I told them of my canabis use, they hit me with a pain contract & when I said no they pulled my pain meds for my torn ACL

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

I know it's frustrating when you hear people say stuff like that douggie, it's hard to blame them for thinking that way, many news stories are falsely depicting the v a this way but i think we can all help better by sharing our real life expirence with the general public rather than coming out swinging with nasty names. Do you,( or anyone else on here) have an expirence you could share to help people understand what we have to deal with?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I know it's frustrating when you hear people say stuff like that douggie, it's hard to blame them for thinking that way, many news stories are falsely depicting the v a this way but i think we can all help better by sharing our real life expirence with the general public rather than coming out swinging with nasty names. Do you,( or anyone else on here) have an expirence you could share to help people understand what we have to deal with?

 

Im glad you asked this question. Coming back from the gulf Ive had a multitude of problems.

The main one for me that interrupted my daily life since 1992 is major bowel problems. But have also had surgery on every part of my body from my forehead going back to my neck and down my back to my tail bone.  I have some extreme nerve damage that is something that again started back in 1992. 

 

This is so awesome you asked this question today....as I just got back from a specialty GI clinic today (first time ever).

So, over the last 2 weeks we've been playing phone tag (trying to get thing scheduled). 

They kept claiming they were leaving messages and I didnt return them. Which just the opposite was happening.

The first call was on a saturday morning. A guy named George called left a quick message then hung up. I called right back and left a message.

Then called again  on monday. I left messages 2x. 5 days later I get a letter saying that they cancelled it because I was unreachable. 

So, I called and bitched left a message for George and how messed up he was being. 

I also called my primary care doc and he sent in another request. 

I got it scheduled for today. Its in wyoming, Mi. 2 hour drive. 

i have never been there before. So,I called2x for directions (forgetting to put the addy into garmen) No one knew how to tell me how to get to their building. 

Ah....thats small stuff. 

 

Im in talking with the Doc now.  Hes actually a pretty cool guy. But the first thing out of his mouth was because of my condition. My condition?

Yeah from the the colonoscopy that was done 5 years ago.......

Ok.....what are you talking about? one of the polyps were cancerous. WTF are you talking about? They removed 4 and said everything was fine.  

Well, I guess instead of telling me. They decided to just schedule me for more colonoscopies.

 

I went to another GI place in GR earlier on for "other" things.  The VA was flipping the bill for outside help. 

AWESOME! I had several surgeries. Then the VA called and said I need to schedule another colonoscopy.

The new GI place said NO. They would never allow it ....their is no need....soI listened to them.

The VA didnt accept the way they filed the paperwork and Im getting bills for 4000.00. Called the VA and they said Im on my own (remember this is bunny muffin they already agreed to pay for).

So, the next time I was called by the new place. I told them not to bother calling me anymore  I will NEVER pay them. I dont do anything with their insurance....its between them and the VA.

Im still getting bills 2 years later. 

 

So...here I am.....Cancerous (oh, BTW my father died of coloncancer)...told about it 5 years after first finding.....being harassed for 4000.00 or more now...I dont even bother opening their letters.

none of it was my making whoopee fault. 

 

Granted they have some AWESOME people that work for them. But they are abused people. 

Thats just from today. Ive had files thrown at me by a doctor. Because I wanted to be put on the Persian Gulf registry. He thought the whole thing was stupid.

Within 6  months of returning from the gulf. 4 people from my company died of weird bunny muffin... on guys liver just gave out. I went to El Paso (where they sent him) he was in ICU. SCREAMING in pain. His body rejected all medications.

He was in a rough state. He asked me to make sure they bury him in PR. He said hes never smoked, drank, chased women or even swore. He regretted it, he said in his next life hes going to liveitup.

 

Theirs a lot more.....but this combined with the bunny muffin I was posting in the legal forum. I need to stop....Im looking like a whiney biatch but have to admit I can be one when I see bull bunny muffin.

 

Yeah this guy had no complaints with the VA......funny nothing was said about it for 5 days....

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=251_1458970261

 

I have to say that the biggest problem with the VA is the idiots (for some reason I cant get away from that word) that  are in charge of the medications distribution. 

I took a gram of zoloft a day. They cold turkeyed me 4 times over the 6 years I took it. Just stopped giving it to me. I finally got some balls and told the doctor to shove all his making whoopee pills up his making whoopee donkey.

Their happened to be a customer in my store at the time. (never met the fellow before) . I apologized for my language. He said thats nothing Im going through the same bunny muffin with them. 

Im mean they have nice looking buildings....nice equipment...good people....but its still one messed up place that will kill you!

Edited by douggie
Link to comment
Share on other sites

hey douggie, Thank you for your service, I'm sorry for your misery. I can tell from your description that you have been placed on the Vetrans choice program, this program allows vets to receive care out of the v a due to long waiting list or excessive wait time or travel distance. It's not a bad program, I've used it twice and am currently in it again. It's not a bad program, but once you opt in to the choice program you opt out of the va for that particular service, which means you are responsible for driving the service yourself, your primary care team can still assist you but the bulk of the responsibility lies with the vetran. You can call the choice program supervisor at; 1-866-606-8198, they should be able to help you with your issues. If you still don't get the relief you seek you can always call your v a patient advocate at the Saginaw v a, they will help you out. Good luck to you, it's frustrating but don't give up, ask lotsa questions & don't take no for an answer.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

hey douggie, Thank you for your service, I'm sorry for your misery. I can tell from your description that you have been placed on the Vetrans choice program, this program allows vets to receive care out of the v a due to long waiting list or excessive wait time or travel distance. It's not a bad program, I've used it twice and am currently in it again. It's not a bad program, but once you opt in to the choice program you opt out of the va for that particular service, which means you are responsible for driving the service yourself, your primary care team can still assist you but the bulk of the responsibility lies with the vetran. You can call the choice program supervisor at; 1-866-606-8198, they should be able to help you with your issues. If you still don't get the relief you seek you can always call your v a patient advocate at the Saginaw v a, they will help you out. Good luck to you, it's frustrating but don't give up, ask lotsa questions & don't take no for an answer.

I feel like (governmental wise) 'm living in a 3rd world country. 

America the great......Ok...but what they dont tell you its America the great for politicians and 1% ers. 

Everyone else can go flower themselves and feed the politicians and 1%ers money. 

 

Granted, Im sure some of this has to do with the fact that I posted on a VA complain forum. Let it all out about a buddy of mine. 

His Name was Bob Hamer. He had ALS. 

It took years and 5 trips to the same places to get a diagnosis. 

The only reason they finally diagnosed him is because he took a 3rd party with that layed into them. 

Then, they treated him with an aspirin and sleeping pill for the first making whoopee year. A making whoopee year. 

Sure they sent him a hospital bed and a scooter.

 

This dude was a bad donkey.....well when he was younger. 

He was a korean war veteran. It fascinates me how these old timers can remember names. 

He was a heavy machine gunner at the northern most point in 1952.

He said every evening he would fill his pockets with grenades and carry as many boxes as he could because that is what kept him alive when most were dieing.

He reminded me of an old hippy.  But man, just like me, get him going on a subject and he got very adamant.

He passed away and although I spent over a year helping with his treatment, I was too sick to be there for the last month or so but managed to show up when he was doing the death rattle. 

Him and his wife (before diagnosis) used to come and drink coffee with me at my shop.

He lived a ripe old age...83. 

 

My advise is to take a 3rd party with (wife, girlfriend, friend, family member). It makes a BIG difference. Or record your interaction on your phone. 

You cant let them know...its against their rules. 

This (everything I posted so far) is just the tip ofthe iceberg. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Now...read the article. 

At first sight, I thought the police were justified. They maybe...but what isnt justified is the fact that someone needing help gets the cops called on him (by the VA) and the making whoopee bunny muffin beat out of them. 

http://popularmilitary.com/army-combat-vet-tased-pepper-sprayed-and-beat-by-police-after-call-to-va-crisis-line/

 

The only time they really exercise the privacy of a VET is when the Veteran needs information about himself. 

 

 

Last oct-nov I was going to go ahead and get a colonoscopy. It was going on the 5 year mark.

anyway, theyre real backed up at the VA so they were going to allow  me to use the civilian services. 

They called and said hey, this provider is only a few towns over from you. We'll send it to them. 

I promptly called and asked them not to. As, I have a lot of family that works at the office and I didnt want to be the topic of conversation 

During Christmas. 

Several days later I got a call that the office (I didnt want to go to) had my file and needed me to call them to  set up an appointment.

 

Another time, I was having REAL pain around my tailbone area. The nurse was new to me. She said the doctor is going to want to palpate 

the area so pull your pants and underwear off and lay on the table. So, waiting to see what happens I left my clothes on and got up on the table. 

She left...leaving the door wide open. 

The door was facing the waiting room...although they would have had to have gotten up and looked I felt like flower this and you. 

The nurse came back in....I told you to take your pants and underwear off. The doctor doesnt have time for this. You need to take them off.....

Again, leaving the door wide open she left again.

Came back one more time to yell at me. 

Then the doctor came in....the nurse must have told her I was being unruly because the doctor was not gentle and actually took a reflex tester and hit me in the tailbone. It caused enough pain to last several days. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...
  • 4 months later...

He may bring the people to revolution, or complete the police state the government has long been working for.

 

We desperately need to upset this apple cart, not continue with 4 - 8 more years of either party and Trump, like him or hate him, does not kowtow to either party!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We desperately need to upset this apple cart, not continue with 4 - 8 more years of either party and Trump, like him or hate him, does not kowtow to either party!

 

Trump is a megalomaniac and kow tow's to no one since he believes himself to be the center of the universe.

 

I wouldn't vote for either one of those idiots if there was a gun to my head.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Trump is a megalomaniac and kow tow's to no one since he believes himself to be the center of the universe.

 

I wouldn't vote for either one of those idiots if there was a gun to my head.

maybe supporters feel like a gun is to their head if she doesnt win? dunno,

 

"bamboozled long enough, we tend to reject any evidence of the bamboozle. We’re no longer interested in finding out the truth. The bamboozle has captured us. It’s simply too painful to acknowledge, even to ourselves, that we’ve been taken" Carl Sagan

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So what are you getting at dog man? Good or bad coming from a non vet whom has never expirenced the system? In the meantime I'm laying on my back after surgery on my broken (yes broken) back that I literately had to wait 15 month from the day of diagnosis. I didn't expect the surgery to be this painfull so I didn't make any medibles to bring with me, bummer. Hey Phaq, how bout some butter, I'm in Munson,lol

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So what are you getting at dog man? Good or bad coming from a non vet whom has never expirenced the system? In the meantime I'm laying on my back after surgery on my broken (yes broken) back that I literately had to wait 15 month from the day of diagnosis. I didn't expect the surgery to be this painfull so I didn't make any medibles to bring with me, bummer. Hey Phaq, how bout some butter, I'm in Munson,lol

 

So sorry to hear Jjamh, I just had to wait 5 months for arthroscopic surgery so I could walk again, and I thought that was bad. I think there are veterans that do have good luck with using the VA , healthy Veterans that only need a flu shot or some other mundane medical ritual. It is the veterans that need specialty care that are getting phucked! And more and more I've got to wonder if our primary care physicians are being told to make us wait, because this is two times in a row for me, 3 month wait before this 5 month one. Anyone that does not use the system is better off keeping their opinions to themselves about what a great deal we are getting and how wonderful this system works.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I still stand by my comments.

 

The waits and distances are no different than anyone else.

 

Took me Four and half months to get my first appointment(ten minutes) with my cardiologist which i have to drive 2 hours to get to. Then i waited 3 months after that to get the test I had been waiting for for 7 months total. And that is just everyday healthcare that most americans deal with. I drive 40 miles to see my primary care, 60 miles to see my orthopedic, 100 miles to my cardiologist, 110 miles for anything 'serious'.  4 hours for anything very serious.

 

 I stand by my comments.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please follow the link and read the comments from veterans that have been "spoiled" with this great healthcare.

 

The Art of Neglecting Veterans

 

 

 

 

The Department of Veteran Affairs has as its mission statement:

To fulfill President Lincoln´s promise: “To care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan” by serving and honoring the men and women who are America´s Veterans.

How does this lead the VA to go on art shopping spree while our Veterans’ life span is dramatically reduced by inhuman living conditions and lack of medical care? While the department worries about overpayments to ex-soldiers and scrupulously “saves” millions of dollars on benefits, it seems that blowing seven figures on “artwork” can do no harm.

The VA Santa forgot about gifts such as food and shelter, yet splurged on a 27 foot artificial Christmas tree ($21,000 only) for our homeless Veterans to admire al fresco.  More than half a million dollar rock sculptures are somehow necessary in a facility for blind Veterans and an army of ´´art consultants´´ is allegedly vital for VA´s transformation.

The $ 1 billion over budget Aurora facility for example, simply could not do without Brazilian wood and “a glass concourse the size of a football field,” not to mention the indispensable 70-foot-high glass walls.

The enormous budget and lack of accountability have certainly helped Secretary McDonald to hone his decoration skills. The VA Martha Stewart wannabe’s creative freedom and aesthetic appetite have clearly increased from his P&G days when he was reduced to boasting about empty drawers in his office and horsing around with a weird Japanese stick.

Secretary McDonald seemed unfazed by his September 28th subpoena and artfully skipped the topic of Denver Titanic and art expenditures, craftily turning over 18 of 71 required items of evidence.

 Rightly angered, Rep. Jeff Miller, Chairman, House Committee on Veterans´ Affairs demanded answers and stated:

“We simply will not tolerate VA’s attempts to keep information related to its wasteful art expenditures and the biggest construction failure in VA history shrouded in secrecy. Sec. McDonald must immediately comply with the terms of this subpoena.”

Well, it would be about time to stop pampering Secretary McDonald with Hillary Clinton-like legal privileges; until now there are not only answers but questions which are missing.

How comes that VA could afford Blue Eclipse $250 000 hanging bubbles piece of art, while neglecting burials and leaving bodies of our Veterans to decompose?

How is it possible that Los Angeles Homeless Veterans Leasing Act was signed into Law? Our homeless defenders are “outdoors”  while VA brazenly shares property inherited by Veterans with others.  

Who gave orders to VA police to harass, brutalize and charge our elderly Veterans with displaying a  “placard”? Who decided that American flag is a placard?

Why are crimes against our Veterans being tolerated, the wrongdoers promoted and whistleblowers persecuted?

When we will see arrests for rampant corruption, fraud and despicable treatment of our Veterans?

 

I think veterans are darn near spoiled personally.  I know it isnt popular to say, but when I look closely, I see extensive money and support given to veterans.  The problem is typically more about educating veterans where to get the help.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Why did Reagan get to cut soldier survivor benefits to kids going to school? Because they think no one is watching and folks can complain but no one is listening. Hopefully the information these days gets heard. I didn't have anyone to complain to back in 1982. You just ate the crap sandwich and looked out for yourself. And they named a supercarrier after Reagan. Makes me sick. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There are too many non combat vets taking advantage of the system.

 

Civilians are the working tax payers, paying to send our brothers and sisters into places we shouldn't be.

 

We Love All Our Troops

 

We Gotta Help the Combat Vets More

 

Let's be fair, if I am going to be paying the bill, can't we have the same health care?

 

Single Payer, At least we Tax Payers should have the same benefits a non combat nuke baby sitter has in Arkansas .

We All suffer the consequences of war

Edited by beourbud
Link to comment
Share on other sites

The VA told ABC News that the department is developing a national art policy that will cover the commissioning of artwork.

 

“While we must be stewards of taxpayer dollars, we also know that providing comprehensive health care for patients goes beyond just offering the most advanced medical treatments. Artwork is one of the many facets that create a healing environment for our nation’s Veterans. We want an atmosphere that welcomes them to VA facilities, shows them respect and appreciation, honors them for their service and sacrifice and exemplifies that this is a safe place for them to receive their care,” the VA said in a statement.

 

The American Legion also defended the VA’s spending, saying the agency “only used money to purchase upgrades for hospitals that Congress approved and authorized.”

 

“We don’t want our hospitals looking like the inside of prisons,” Louis Celli, director of veterans affairs and rehabilitation at the American Legion said in a statement.

 

The VA operates the nation’s largest health care system, with over 1,700 health care facilities.

 

Its 2017 budget request is for $182.3 billion, and the department – the second largest U.S. government agency – serves more than eight million veterans, according to a VA website.

 

 Furthermore, the report did not delineate what other purchases, like furniture or fixtures, could have been included in a contract that was also stipulated for artwork.

 

 

 

The ACSI assesses the satisfaction of Veterans who have recently been patients at the VA.  Since 1994, the ACSI has been a national indicator of patient evaluations of the quality of goods and services, including health care, available to U.S. residents.  They review customer feedback for both the public and private sectors.

 

The ACSI shows how our patients evaluate us here at the VA and identifies which activities have the greatest impact on their perception of the quality of care we provide.

 

Here are some highlights from the survey:

 

The ACSI index for inpatients recently discharged from a VA acute medical center holds at a strong 84 on a 0-100 scale.  This is four points higher than the industry average. The VA outpatient score of 82 is within one point of the industry average.

 

As I mentioned earlier, customer service remains the greatest strength for VA with a score of 91. Medical providers and appointment personnel remain highly courteous with scores of 92 and 91, respectively. Medical providers are also highly professional, with a score of 90.

 

For the third straight year, the  index of Veterans’ Loyalty to VA-provided health care remains at 93.  Respondents remain very willing to say positive things about inpatient care (91) and outpatient care (92).  They are highly willing to use a VA medical center the next time they need inpatient care (96) or outpatient care (95).

 

The ACSI results also suggest several areas for improvement at VA.  Those include the clarity of information provided by our health care providers, in particular how we explain test results to our patients; and the accessibility of VA medical centers.

 

 

 

VA's regularly rate higher than hospitals the rest of the public use.

 

Given a choice, I would pick the VA over other public health hospitals any day.

 

I know some of those 1700 facilities have problems. No doubt. But, The vast majority are doing wonderful work and Michigan has rated in the middle of the pack.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...