Posted on 07/23/2007 12:07:48 PM PDT by BGHater
Frustrated by delays in health care, a coalition of injured Iraq war veterans is accusing VA Secretary Jim Nicholson of breaking the law by denying them disability pay and mental health treatment.
Suing on behalf of hundreds of thousands of veterans, it charges that the VA has failed warriors on several fronts — from providing prompt disability benefits, to adding staff to reduce wait times for medical care to boosting services for post-traumatic stress disorder.
VA spokesman Matt Smith said Monday he could not comment on a pending lawsuit. But he said the agency is committed to meeting the special needs of Iraq war veterans.
The lawsuit comes amid intense political and public scrutiny of the VA and Pentagon following reports of shoddy outpatient care of injured soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and elsewhere.
It asks that a federal court order the VA to make immediate improvements that would speed disability payments, ensure fairness in awards and provide more complete access to mental health care.
"The performance of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs has contributed substantially to our sense of national shame," the opinion from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals read.
More recently, following high-profile suicide incidents in which families of veterans say the VA did not provide adequate care, Nicholson pledged to add mental health services and hire more suicide-prevention coordinators.
Yet, the lawsuit says, Nicholson and other officials still insisted on a budget in 2005 that fell $1 billion short, and they made "a mockery of the rule of law" by awarding senior officials $3.8 million in bonuses despite their role in the budget foul-up.
"While steps can and will be taken in the political arena, responsibility for action lies with the agency itself," said Melissa W. Kasnitz, managing attorney for Disability Rights Advocates, in a telephone interview. Her group is teaming up with a major law firm, Morrison & Foerster, to represent the veterans.
The lawsuit cites violations of the Constitution and federal law, which mandates at least two years of health care to injured veterans.
The veterans groups involved in the lawsuit are Veterans for Common Sense in Washington, D.C., which claims 11,500 members, and Veterans United for Truth, based in Santa Barbara, Calif., with 500 members.
You don’t get to sue in socialized medicine. You get to wait and wait and wait and be thankful for anything the system spits at you.
And I know - 14 years in the military.
I know. Luckily, I never had to take anything other than ranger candy. There are some real horror stories out there though.
I can’t speak for the conditions in VA facilities in the present...
BUT — the VA facilities I visited in the 60’s/70’s were worse than bad.....
I made my wife promise she would never take me there under any circumstances...
I would prefer to be wheeled out into the back yard and be handed my 1911..
Warrior families should be taking a VERY hard look at the Government - BEFORE they allow their sons or daughters to enlist in TODAY’s military...
The Leftists will surrender before the fight is finished, thus rendering any sacrifice nearly worthless.
Vietnam, Somalia and next?
Those injured and needing care - may not get it.....
I completely dissagree. The U.S. political sons and daughters to have the military training liberals do not have.
Were there to be a civil war, our children will need to know how to call in artillary, and how to fabricate napalm. Wars are not won with bullets, and as things stand if things degenerate to that point the communist left within the U.S. has no counter offensive. I believe this is what prompted the Haditha frame.
Semper Fidelis
I have seen a vast improvement in the treatment available at V.A. facilities over the past ten years.
I know the V.A. is trying to downgrade disability ratings for Nam vets to have more funds available for the troops from the war on terror. There’s nothing right about that.
The Armed Forces finance bill, which was tabled by Senator Reid because they wouldn’t allow a timetable for withdrawal, contained the “Wounded Warrior” amendment which would have addressed a lot of the problems stated. I am a Viet Nam veteran and was discharged in 1971 after a 13 year career in the USMC with a diagnosis of “acute schizophrenic episode in remission”. When my son and son-in-law were deployed to Iraq in 2003, I began to experience severe symptoms (nightmares, etc.). I went to the VA and, after a two year fight, finally received the correct diagnosis. I had had PTSD since 1966 when I was aboard a submarine which collided with a merchant ship while on a covert mission in the South China Sea. This was the cause of my difficulties which lasted 4 years before coming to the attention of the command structure and finally resulted in a medical discharge with the wrong diagnosis which I carried for 35 years. I am glad i finally got the help i need but it took two years to get it. I also was given severance pay of $43,000 in 1975, that went fast and when I finally got a VA pension, I had to pay it all back before receiving any benefits. This is also addressed in the “Wounded Warrior” amendment.
I receive excellent care at the VA.
I’ve heard stories about that, have you ever met anyone in real life that has happened to? I would fight like a tiger for Mr. VITW. I understand that the public spotlight is on the current crop of wounded vets, but men like Mr. V did their tours in Vietnam with damn little public support and I’ll be damned if he gets screwed again.
Yes. Me.
I’m sorry this happened to you. I imagine you are spitting mad. Thank you for your service, em2vn.
The wrestling match is still going on. We’ll just have to see what the D.A.V. can do for me. They’ve been great in the past.
If you want ON or OFF the list please FReepmail me.
This explains a lot.
BTTT
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1868440/posts
Nicholson to leave VA and Return to the Private Sector
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1829933/posts
Vet Imprisoned for Seeking Benefits
Try having a baby in a military hospital!
This fight is about the money benifits that a disabled vet deserves. The va treats every vet as someone who does not need anythingelse, but speaking for myself there are lots of guys [& gals] coming back with lots of problems and the va is going to have to cough up a lot of money for them. From my experiance the va would rather pay out a one time death benifit to the family, rather live up to the comimit to the vets.
Remember that the head of the va and a bunch of the regional directors and other ex.s got a 5 million dollar bonus for saving the va money. It went into their pockets insted of to the staff’s,faclities,programs, ect...
I can not stand the all of the flamming hoops you have to jump through to get anything done on your own behalf.
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