Comments for Onymous

Comment on A Veteran’s Tale by RonRapp1

RonRapp1 — Thu, 23 May 2013 18:50:51 +0000

Which is worse, facing the enemy or the VA? http://t.co/FNrw0MGFE2

Comment on A Veteran’s Tale by screwtheVA

screwtheVA — Thu, 23 May 2013 16:55:00 +0000

Sorry, but you DO have to submit. Otherwise, they say things like “well, your pain must not be as bad as you say” or you get a lovely denial because you didn’t submit to the torture. Been there, done that, and please don’t even think about telling me I’m wrong since I did 11 years in the Navy, then fought the VA for 15 years to get benefits. I survived a failed back surgery (disc herniation, the real doc was at the golf course and my “surgeon” phoned it in during the surgery) which left me with severe nerve impingement down both sides. I’d encourage anyone with the means to pay for their own surgery since you can’t sue the VA for a botched operation (see Sinclair Act,) nor can you sue the doctor of whom there is no oversight. (Doctors with the VA are licensed in their home state…but usually not practicing there….and state agencies have no oversight anyhow because it’s a federal facility….so all you can do is report a problem to the VA inspector general, who may or may not investigate, and then doesn’t have to tell you anything about it.) They lost my records, then asked me for copies if I had any….then refused to accept the copies since it didn’t come from one of their sources….then asked if I had any more copies! They refused to accept diagnosis/notes from a private doctor because he wasn’t with the VA, they told me over the phone that I received one punitive denial for contacting my congressmen. They scheduled me for multiple appointments at the same time in different cities, then denied me because I didn’t make all the appointments. I too had the DAV…who didn’t attend a hearing because they were all on vacation (really) then didn’t attend another because they were all at a conference (how convenient) and then I found out that the DAV and VFW receive funding and office space from the VA! No conflict of interest there, I’m sure. Ordinarily, I wouldn’t bother leaving a comment, but I’m a tad sensitive when it comes to issues dealing with the VA, and I know that I’m far from a special case when I’ve heard so many other veterans saying the same things. You, sir, are either a bald faced liar of extra-ordinary proportion or a paid hack for the VA, I deeply resent your comments, and were this in person and not a public forum, I’d issue forth verbiage of the profane sort raising serious doubts about your dubious intelligence, ancestry, and former service. If the writer of the story (S T) would like to contact me, I’d be happy to explain the do’s and don’ts of how to deal with the VA.

Comment on A Veteran’s Tale by RebeccaH

RebeccaH — Thu, 23 May 2013 16:02:00 +0000

My husband went through the exact same process with the VA, including multiple requests for the same documents, mysteriously “lost” paperwork, examinations and re-examinations, denials, and appeals. All in all, it took five years to win compensation, and the win was still incomplete. We’ve talked to other veterans and the consensus is that the VA will stall for years, hoping that the claimant dies in the meantime.

Comment on A Veteran’s Tale by WatchinIt

WatchinIt — Thu, 23 May 2013 13:22:43 +0000

Sorry about your travail, and I’m shocked to hear that DAV, one of my charities, is such a mess. I did want to tell you that this incremental disc failure is do to poor biomechanics (putting stresses on your spine that it’s not designed for). When surgeons fix one disc, they don’t get rid of the problem, only the symptom. Look into correct biomechanics – it can stop further injury, often heal the discs you have, and give you your life back. There are many sources for correct biomechanics. My favorite is Esther Gokhale (e.g., “8 steps to a pain-free back”) but there are many others – just google it. Good luck!

Comment on A Veteran’s Tale by ACS

ACS — Thu, 23 May 2013 13:12:05 +0000

Sadly, welcome to the big government for which we voted. Many respondents recommended that you contact your congressman. But, listen to how that sounds. Good service is a reflection of how politically connected you are and not standard practice for all. This is the end state of liberal government – a powerful or connected upper crust that receives all the benefits and advantages while the great mass wallow in poverty, apathy, and neglect. Wait until the VA starts asking for whom you voted or to whom you donated money.

But, trust them. Obamacare will be much different.

Comment on A Veteran’s Tale by Mary Lou Carter

Mary Lou Carter — Thu, 23 May 2013 06:57:17 +0000

This is simply beyond the pale. Where is the spirit of revolution of the American people who told the British to get the hell out of their country? Our Western nations have been bureaucrified — that is they have been crucified by bureaucracies.

Comment on A Veteran’s Tale by Millie Woods

Millie Woods — Thu, 23 May 2013 02:26:48 +0000

Nidal Hassan is hogging all of the VA benefits. Oh and don’t forget the $280,000 he got paid by Uncle Sam to wage jihad on the US army. The pentagon needs to suck the blood out of you and your family so that Nidal Hassan can gain strength to continue the onslaught. Suck it up princess, you’re not in Kansas anymore.

Comment on A Veteran’s Tale by Joe Mack

Joe Mack — Thu, 23 May 2013 02:17:22 +0000

I worked at a VA in residency. So many hurdles to jump over.
We would do it for the good guys, do what we could for the old COPD wrecks and just try to avoid the druggies.
The hardest thing to overcome was the clerk who would tell us we hadn’t filled out the form right and cancel a surgery.
Prick government employee dickhood.
“The government is us” the president says.
Well, it is him, a pot smoking POS that never helped anyone.

Comment on A Veteran’s Tale by Really?

Really? — Thu, 23 May 2013 01:32:48 +0000

I call shenanigans.
“Every disabled vet knows what came next: months upon months of MRIs, Xrays, and hellishly painful examinations.”
No. For the record, veterans are NEVER required to submit to MRIs. The hospital may offer them for treatment purposes, but VBA does not EVER require them for compensation claims. X-rays are common, and an examination is required. I cannot speak to whether this vet’s exam was “hellishly painful,” but as a disabled vet myself, at every exam I have taken, the examiner has instructed me to stop when motion becomes painful.
“[T]hat first blown disc resulted in his medical discharge. Over the years more discs have blown, only one correctable by surgery, which he paid for that out of his own pocket…the discs continue to bulge and the pain increases. Laser surgery is an option, but at 20K per disc, not one offered by the VA.”
Is the disc herniation service connected or not? If so, why pay for it your self? VA will do it for free. But if you insist on paying for it yourself, why bitch about the VA?
“He failed to include the ream of records from the intervening years of treatment and visits from discharge to claim update, therefore the injuries were deemed not service-connected.”
I thought this was already service connected at 10 percent? How was it deemed not service-connected?
I’m not here to stick up for the VA–the system is seriously screwed up. But I’m betting there is more to this “hellishly painful” story.

Comment on A Veteran’s Tale by Manolo

Manolo — Wed, 22 May 2013 22:34:32 +0000

Being nearly deaf in one ear from my service, I attempted to get a hearing aid immediately following my honorable discharge in 1998. Five years later I gave up on the notion of getting one at all. So much for getting care even with a 30 percent compensable disability rating. Now I avoid anything VA related like it’s the plague. Considering the outcome is probably the same, that’s not a bad long-term care plan….