VA chief calls House budget proposal 'inadequate'

2015-04-22T09:17:55-04:00

How can you get out of a hole when your only tool appears to be a shovel?

VA chief calls House budget proposal 'inadequate'

BTW - The head of the appropriations sub-committee is one Rep. Charlie Dent, R-Pa - who never served, but appears to know best about what vets need.

http://ap.stripes.com/dynamic/stories/U/US_VETERANS_AFFAIRS_BUDGET?SITE=DCSAS&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2015-04-21-17-00-47

Response by SSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 22 at 2015 9:41 AM

2015-04-22T09:41:18-04:00

Perhaps they could find the funding somewhere else. Just need to find out where to look. Hmmmm...let me think. Oh, I know! How about you reduce the amount of administration in the VA by AT LEAST 50%, instead spending it on care & medical technicians (doctors, nurses, etc)?!? Why should my file have to go through 5 offices in order to get a yearly physical approved?!?

Response by SGT Jeremiah B. made Apr 22 at 2015 11:36 AM

2015-04-22T11:36:33-04:00

I've been telling people for a while now, the GOP is not our friend. Cutting $690m from an already stretched VA? Yeah, things can be improved (and are!) but it takes time.

Next they'll want to gut our retirement and privatize the VA instead of fix it. Oh wait...

Response by SSG(P) Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 22 at 2015 11:50 AM

2015-04-22T11:50:50-04:00

With over a decade of fighting, they are going to have to completely revamp the VA for the growing Vet population.. not cut, expand.

Response by SFC Walt Littleton made Apr 22 at 2015 1:03 PM

2015-04-22T13:03:14-04:00

The VA is a sign of how government beaucracy is unable to run a company. Since its inception it has been a money pit! Layers and layers of government control instead of management at the top. All political parties are to blame. This agency has been plagued since the Viet Nam era.

The VA should only be an advisory organization. There should be a few regional medical centers to #1 treat only out of the ordinary cases which normal every day has no available procedure to treat war related injuries such as Agent Orange or today PTSD and TBI. The military medical system should manage the SM health care and additionally rate the SM as they are discharged under the VA guidelines.

If a soldier is rated as VA eligible at the time of discharge and his injury or illness is such that it mirror standard hospital or doctor treatment they should transferred to the SM local medical home of record hospital or doctors network. Hospitals and approved VA medical centers will take over the veterans health care.

Local hospitals will have a VA advisory board that will monitor and manage the VA program under the VA management system.

We know for profit medical care systems are cost managed and are capable of running an efficient operation.

Governments answer to mismanagement is to dump in more money. It and has more people in oversight than any company and many employees in the management or oversight arena are incompetent. How do you fix or repair an organization? You set goals and realistic outcomes or you terminate the employee. In this case you can't punish or terminate a supervisor or manager. HELLO DOES ANYONE EVEN BELEIVE THIS!!!

Response by SSG Dave Rogers made Apr 22 at 2015 1:10 PM

2015-04-22T13:10:39-04:00

I was talking to a rep from the VA about this problem, what most veterans don't realize is that while all VA facilities are part of the overall VA system, each one runs their own policies and procedures as long as they follow the VA paperwork system. It is why VA service is better at some facilities and not at others. It should also be noted that most VA hospitals themselves are administered by people who are not Veterans.

I started my time with the VA in Manhattan VA and now am with the Northport VA on Long Island. As everyone knows if you have a non-emergency and need to see a doctor during the day it falls under the ER still. With Northport VA that means waiting at the ER for your name to be called. While at Manhattan VA they set up non-emergency section of the ER. doctors have a small office, when you go in too see them you are set an appointment time to see one based on your place in line. So you know you are going to see the doctor at a certain time, just like an appointment, and don't have to sit there for 3 hours waiting for them to call your name because an emergency came in.

A lot of these decisions also depend on the medical school that the VA is connected too and how many doctors that school provides. The VA is a training hospital, and each school provides a certain amount of doctors per section, sadly if the school does not specialize in an area that are gets fewer doctors.

And also as some of you realize the VA is way behind the times. They have my healthevet, but it is not app friendly. They have telehealth, but it is only being used by a few doctors and not standard across the board. At times doctors hands are being tied for what they can do for you.