Debunk the FUBAR Combat PTSD Wounded Times Kathie Costos April 7, 2018 Let us venture into this claimed "debunking" by the Chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee and debunk the FUBAR! In 1998, VA’s budget was $42.38 billion. Considering that WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam and the Gulf War were over, Congress didn't seem to be too concerned about two more wars adding more disabled veterans into the system. Gee, do you think they would have planned for them when they sent them?
We had aging veterans seeking healthcare from the VA, some for the first time even though they had service-connected disabilities, some were too poor to pay for their care while not connected to their service, and the newer veterans being offered free healthcare for the first 5 years after discharge. Report from the DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS, June 2, 1998
It operates 173 medical centers, 39 domiciliaries,
376 outpatient clinics, 131 nursing home care units, and 205 Vietnam Veteran Outreach Centers in the United States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the Republic of the Philippines, and provides for similar care under VA auspices in non-VA hospitals and community nursing homes and for visits by veterans to non-VA physicians and dentists for outpatient treatment. It also supports veterans under care in hospitals, nursing homes, and domiciliaries operated by 35 States.
$10 billion fund from which VA must pay for non-VA care furnished as part of the Choice Program. VA will provide a Choice Card to all Veterans who were enrolled in the VA health care system as of August 1, 2014, and to recently discharged combat Veterans
The program balance dropped from $2 billion at the start of March to less than $850 million this month. As a result, VA officials are asking to move around money from other outside care programs to cover the Choice program, the opposite problem lawmakers anticipated when they passed the extension. Committee ranking member Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., called the news upsetting. "For this to happen this late in the game is frustrating to me," he said. The news came as Shulkin presented Trump's plans for a $186.5 billion VA budget for fiscal 2018, nearly a 6 percent increase from current funding levels. The VA secretary said that includes $13.2 billion for outside care programs next year, a figure he says should be sufficient to meet department needs.
So, while you will read about how much more money the VA is getting, consider how much of that money is going into the "Choice" veterans did not want to have to make...because Congress did not do their jobs after all these years! Debunking the VA Privatization Myth April 5, 2018
There is no effort underway to privatize VA, and to suggest otherwise is completely false and a red herring designed to distract and avoid honest debate on the real issues surrounding Veterans’ health care.
Facts Debunk the Privatization Myth: A Two-Decade Comparison In 1998, VA’s budget was $42.38 billion.
VA’s 2018 enacted budget is more than four times that figure at $188.65 billion.
In 1998, VA had 240,846 employees.
As of March 29, 2018, VA had 385,233 employees, a nearly 60 percent increase in 20 years.
VA has increased its end strength by nearly 15,000 since the beginning of the Trump administration, from roughly 370,000 to 385,233 as of March 29, 2018.
In 2000 VA had 1,110 medical facilities.
Today, VA has 130 more medical facilities, for a total of 1,240.
VA Community Care Has Existed for More Than 70 Years, and Has Nothing to Do with Privatization
VA has been offering community care since the World War II era, starting with the then-Veterans Administration’s Hometown Program that began in 1945.
As former Secretary Shulkin said, "No health care provider delivers every treatment under the sun. Referral programs for patients to get care through outside providers (known as Choice or Community Care at the VA) are as essential to the medical profession as stethoscopes and tongue depressors."
Currently, VA operates seven distinct community care programs. VA is working with Congress to merge all of VA’s community care efforts into a single, streamlined program that’s easy for Veterans and VA employees to use so the department can work with Veterans to coordinate their care with private providers when VA can’t provide the care in a timely way or when it’s in Veterans’ best medical interest.
The fact is that demand for Veterans’ health care is outpacing VA’s ability to supply it wholly in-house. And with America facing a looming doctor shortage, VA has to be able to share health care resources with the private sector through an effective community care program. There is just no other option and, once again, VA has offered this solution since the World War II era.
The Bottom Line on the Privatization Myth
"If we’re trying to privatize, we’re not doing a very good job,"..."We’ve gone from 250,000 employees in the VA in 2009 to 370,000 employees, and we’ve gone from a $93.5 billion budget to what the president’s asked this year is $198 billion. It sounds like we’ve been an utter failure if we’re trying to privatize." – House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Phil Roe
On the last part, he got that one right! They are utter failures on taking care of veterans~ President Obama allowed Congress to start this mess, instead of making sure that everyone knew how disgraceful this response to the needs of our veterans was! UPDATE Add this to that part.
Roseburg VA Interim Director Dave Whitmer believes it would be safer for patients suffering nighttime medical emergencies to visit their nearest non-VA hospital instead. He said the VA does have highly trained emergency doctors on staff overnight, but because there are fewer ancillary services during those hours, the nighttime emergency department functions more like an urgent care than a hospital.
"We are left to parse the details of a private life. He robbed us of any explanation. There is no closure. There is no peace. There are no easy answers about what demons were following him. We wonder about what we could have done differently."
They grieve for Sgt. Major Todd Parisiwho put others first and himself, last. For Jon Harding, who wanted to make a difference but committed suicide on April 3. Grieve for a 76 year old Vietnam veteran who committed suicide at Boynton Beach public parking lot near City Hall and the Police station. And for Sgt. Louis Loftus who fought PTSD but died due to "heart complications" at the age of 30. Friend, family and patients at the St. Louis VA, are grieving after an un-named veteran committed suicide at the VA.
A 62-year-old veteran committed suicide inside the John Cochran VA Medical Center’s waiting room in St. Louis early Monday morning. Although authorities have not released the name of the victim, the hospital confirmed he was a veteran to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, which first reported the story.
Everyone is grieving for Kevin Williams, an Iraq veteran who lost his battle with PTSD at the age of 22. They grieve for Marty Nance, who vanished in January but his body was the end of March.
They grieve for soldier at "ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. (WJZ/AP) — Army officials say an incident involving a soldier who barricaded himself inside a home on a U.S. Army installation ended after a 17-hour standoff."
And for Mark Underhill who also committed suicide at a VA, Sheridan Veterans Affairs Medical Center. And for Albert Wong, who was reported to be "ashamed to ask for help" before he lost his battle for his own life.
What these veterans, among many more, have in common is that they lost their battles since March. The also have the other thing in common, and that was to have been willing to die to save others, but not able to fight for themselves. UPDATE
The Geary County Sheriff’s Office has ruled the death of Ronald Church Jr. a suicide. Church, a Fort Riley soldier, was found dead inside a vehicle near Milford Lake on March 18 with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.
Advocates speak up about PTSD after Elk County Marine dies WTAJ News By: Melissa Steininger Updated: Apr 05, 2018
St Marys, Elk County, Pa. - Todd Parisi leaves behind a legacy for both for his military brothers and sisters and those he calls "Team Spartan".
The 49-year-old was a Sergeant Major in the U.S. Marine Corps. He served in Desert Shield and Iraq. He received honors including a bronze star.
Retired Marine Sergeant Troy Schielein flew in from Michigan to be there one more time for Parisi. "I don't think anybody will ever match the Marine Todd Parisi was, is, and will forever be," adds Schielein.
While Parisi spent his civilian life helping others, he was suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Parisi died last Thursday after a battle with the disorder. He was laid to rest a week later.
"He was the most motivating person I've ever met in my life by far. He's done more for this community in the short time he's been back in a year and a half or so than I can remember anyone in my 50 years of living on this earth," says Mike Wolfel.
Wolfel was a friend of Parisi's he spoke Thursday in his memory.The last time Wlfel was on that same stage, was at his own son's funeral. The Wolfel family lost him to PTSD. "I know it made an impact on serval marines. How could I not speak at Todd's as well? I want to continue that information and if we can continue to save one more fellow marine here it's well well worth it," adds the military father. read more here
Daniel Akaka, first Native Hawaiian in Congress, dies at 93 Associated Press April 6, 2018
FILE - In this Feb. 16, 2011 file photo then-Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington. Former U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka, the humble and gracious statesman who served in Washington with aloha for more than three and a half decades, died Thursday, April 5, 2018, at the age of 93, sources tell the Star-Advertiser. He had been hospitalized with an illness. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, file)
HONOLULU (AP) — Former Sen. Daniel Kahikina Akaka, the first Native Hawaiian elected to Congress who served for more than three decades, died Friday. He was 93.
Akaka died in Honolulu after being hospitalized for several months, said Jon Yoshimura, the senator’s former communications director.
The Democrat served 14 years in the U.S. House before he was appointed to replace Sen. Spark Matsunaga, who died of cancer in spring 1990. Akaka won election that fall for the rest of Matsunaga’s term, and voters sent him back for consecutive terms until 2012, when he chose not to seek re-election.
His legislative style was described as low-key, a characterization he embraced.
“I have a Hawaiian style of dealing with my colleagues,” he said.
Akaka developed a reputation as a congenial legislator who made many friends while making few waves in pressing the interests of the 50th state. read more here
According to Facebook page the veteran served in Afghanistan, not Iraq, as reported by the Olympian. Seems there are a lot of things wrong with this report. The thing that jumped out when I first read this, was the comment that Patrick Seifert, founder of Twenty22Many made, “He was one of our success stories.” I doubt those who are now grieving for him view this as a success story. The group identified him to the reporter before his family had been contacted. The press released his name. The veteran, must have needed a lot more help if his life ended because of something as simple as this, "According to witnesses, several people were arguing on the sidewalk when the disagreement turned physical. Police say a man who intervened was confronted by the shooter, who fired “several times” before turning the gun on himself." Someone else tried to break up the fight but the veteran is the one who shot at others and then, the final bullet, directed at himself. Did anyone in the group know he needed a lot more help than he was getting? Friends surprised Iraq War veteran was involved in downtown Olympia shooting The Olympian Abby Spegman April 6, 2018
The man who shot another man and then killed himself in downtown Olympia on Tuesday is being remembered as an easygoing and quiet Iraq War veteran by those who knew him.
Patrick Seifert fondly recalls fellow veteran Jon Harding as he wears camouflaged covering Harding used to keep warm while sleeping. Steve Bloom
They also say he carried a gun and wasn’t hesitant to let people know he was armed.
“He was one of our success stories,” Patrick Seifert, founder of Twenty22Many, a local veterans suicide prevention group, said of Jon Harding, 31. “He will be missed, I'm telling you. He was awesome, and he was a huge part of our mission of helping veterans.”
Police say the shooting Tuesday night outside Burial Grounds coffee shop on Fifth Avenue Southeast appears to have been random.
According to witnesses, several people were arguing on the sidewalk when the disagreement turned physical. Police say a man who intervened was confronted by the shooter, who fired “several times” before turning the gun on himself.
He died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, according to the Thurston County Coroner’s Office, which had not released the man’s name as of Thursday because officials hadn’t yet located his next of kin. However, friends identified the man as Harding. read more here
Currently available data include information on suicide mortality among the population of residents in 21 states. Veteran status in each of these areas is determined by a single question asking about history of U.S. military service. Information about history of military service is routinely obtained from family members and collected by funeral home staff and has not been validated using information from the DoD or VA. Further, Veteran status was not collected by each state during each year of the project period. Appendix B provides a listing of the availability of Veteran identifiers by state and year. Further, this report contains information from the first 21 states to contribute data for this project and does not include some states, such as California and Texas, with larger Veteran populations. Information from these states has been received and will be included in future reports.
Then again, if you read about what Congress is supposed to be fixing, instead of complaining about, you'll know that none of this is had to happen if they did their jobs going back to 1946. Jurisdiction of the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs
Veterans' measures generally.
Pensions of all the wars of the U.S., general and special.
Life insurance issued by the government on account of service in the Armed Forces.
Compensation, vocational rehabilitation, and education of veterans.
Veterans' hospitals, medical care, and treatment of veterans.
Medal of Honor recipients welcomed with motorcade, hundreds of spectators in Texas FOX News By Travis Fedschun April 5, 2018
A motorcade along a Texas interstate to escort 17 Medal of Honor recipients on Wednesday drew hundreds of participants and spectators to honor the special guests.
The city of Gainesville, located 70 miles north of Dallas, has hosted the Medal of Honor Host City Program since 2001 to "provide residents with a more interactive connection with America’s history, the military and the veteran community."
In the years since founding the program, almost half of the nation’s Medal of Honor Recipients have attended the special weekend to honor their service.
This year's group arrived Wednesday at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, and were escorted by Patriot Guard riders and law enforcement up to Gainesville ahead of this weekend’s ceremonies. Crowds of onlookers stood atop overpasses and alongside the highway to watch them pass.
read more here
Navy Corpsman likely saved life of Calif. football player hit by car USA TODAY By: Tim Whelan Jr. High School Sports April 4, 2018
“I wouldn’t have wanted to be anywhere else in the world than there in that moment. I’m glad I was there,” Bustos told KNSD.
Family members are identifying the freshman football player hit by a car Monday night.
They say 16-year-old Maddox Sanders, a Granite Hills (El Cajon, Calif.) freshman, was crossing a street in El Cajon, Calif., at around 8 p.m. when it happened.
The victim’s brother, Brandon Sanders, told San Diego’s KNSD-TV that Maddox is in critical care but stable condition at a nearby hospital.
As KNSD tells it, the fast action of U.S. Navy Corpsman Emily Bustos may have been key to Sanders’ survival. One of the first people to reach him as he laid in the street, she performed CPR until the ambulance arrived.
Bustos was on leave from the Navy and was less than 24 hours away from departing for her own wedding in Hawaii. read more here
POTUS giant "F" you to veterans Combat PTSD Wounded Times Kathie Costos April 4, 2018 I was actually terrified of Donald Trump becoming President. Not for the reasons most people had. It was for the same reason I was terrified that John McCain would become elected to the office.
When I was growing up, my Mom asked me how many battles I was fighting. Then she asked me how many I was winning. When I said I lost all of them, she gave me a wise piece of advice. "Pick on and stick with it!" My battle has been for veterans. After all, I am the daughter of a Korean War veteran, niece of WWII veterans and wife of Vietnam veteran. The VA has been part of my life, all my life. I have seen the best it can do and the problems that come because Congress has consistently failed to live up to their end of the deal on men and women risking their lives in the military. Yes, I blame Congress. That is why when I hear someone wanting to hold the office of Commander-in-Chief utter the words "privatization of the VA" my heart stops! Think about it. Who the hell would proudly say they regard veterans just like every other civilian? After all, isn't that what they are actually saying? I guess it is suddenly nothing to be ashamed of. The same folks we elected, managed to screw up our healthcare, and now these same folks, who allowed the VA to be trashed, have the audacity to even suggest veterans should be treated like everyone else? Members of Congress have had the authority over how are veterans are treated since 1946! Any problems veterans still have are directly THEIR FAULT~ but they fail to offer a single apology for what they have done. Did he forget they got disabled serving this country in the military?
"Dubbed the Caring for Our Veterans Act, the bill eliminates requirements that veterans must have waited longer than 30 days for an appointment or live farther than 40 miles from a VA facility to seek private care. Instead, it opens that door directly if veterans and their providers decide together that community care is the best option."
And now you will know why!
"So why hasn't the measure become law? The bill lacks backing from the Koch-backed group Concerned Veterans for America — which has lobbied hard against it — and, perhaps for similar reasons, the White House. Advocates had hoped to get the bill included in the massive spending measure Congress passed last month, but in the end didn't succeed."
That came from the Washington Post! The VA is a government operation and has plenty of money. I guess these folks think it is OK to kill off the VA no matter how many veterans get hurt in the process. It must be OK to slap them in the face and then expect them to say "thank you" instead of another word that starts with "F" you! Sorry but I'm thinking "forget" and not the other word...hmm, on second thought. Now maybe you'll know why I am so angry in a show that was recorded last week before the Secretary of the VA was dumped on Twitter. You can hear it on KLRN Remember the Fallen with one of my buddies Sgt. Dave. We had a lot to cover but, well, lets just say I was not in a good mood about any of this. It is on at 8:00 Thursday. In a way I am glad it was recorded before this happened. I think I'd get bleeped out way too much if we recorded it this week.
Florida man passes himself off as decorated war veteran to land job, police say Local10.com By Peter Burke - Managing Editor April 4, 2018
Edward Liroff, 46, arrested after real veteran notices discrepancies on form
Among the discrepancies Byrne noted were that the Distinguished Service Medal was only awarded to four U.S. Army soldiers between 1983 and 2013 -- Liroff was not among them -- and that his Silver Star Medal was spelled incorrectly.
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. - A Florida man who passed himself off as a war hero and applied for a job with the city of Port St. Lucie was arrested after it was discovered that he never served in the military, police said.
Edward Liroff, 46, was arrested Tuesday on felony charges of fraudulently obtaining a Florida driver's license, uttering a forged instrument and unlawful use of uniforms, medals or insignia. read more here
