Hey Captain!
It's
been a long ride. You and I got together over 20 years ago, first on
the Internet, and then at our first eye-to-eye meeting in Tucson,
Arizona. We've been advocating for our fellow Veterans long before
that. And, here we are today. Starting up ROLL CALL. We both know the
serious problems facing our fellow American Veterans. We know it first
hand. And we know what the Veterans Administration tells us, and our
government officials about how much they care for the American Veterans
is in the most part, true. But, under the covers, there lurks another
truth. And this is why the both of us decided to put together ROLL
CALL.
This is a
different 'spot' on the Internet. It is not a 'social network' like
Facebook or Twitter. It is not a BLOG. Dan Da Man, our web designer,
has set this site up per our requests in such a way that only you and I
communicate here. No one else. But, everyone else can enter this site
and view our comments. Our 'mission' here is to explain the facts to
those Veterans who are in need of getting their 'earned' help from the
Veterans Administration. But, we are cutting it to the chase here. We
are going to show each and every Veteran how to 'play the game' or,
'work the system' in such a way as to guarantee them their rights.
There
are close to one million backlogged claims at this moment at the VA.
And, this year is the "7 Year Burn". This phrase is one created by the
VA itself and means real trouble. Roughly spoken, the articulation of
this wording, broken down to GI talk, is that the returning Veteran from
the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have been 'home' for 7 years, and the
Black Snake (PTSD) has finally raised its fang dripping jaws from its
dark hideaway within the soul of the wounded Veteran, and he/she
realizes that his marriage is ruined. His relationships with family and
friends are wrecked. He's drowning the pain with booze and drugs, and
he's reached the edge of the Pit of Nadir. And, many are jumping into
this depression. And when they hit bottom, it's suicide. And the
numbers of Veterans doing this is staggering.
So, here we are, Captain. Once again, trying to do what so few care to do: Help our fellow American Warriors.
LT
Yes, explaining how to "play' the system to get those benefits which were earned, is well and good, but while that may be the most necessary "tactical" approach, just to survive...it really raises this question: WHY SHOULD ANY VETERAN HAVE TO GO THROUGH SUCH CONTORTIONS...in the first place?
ReplyDeleteSo, maybe there's a need for both the "tactical" and the "strategic" approach to the problem...in a classic Cav/Panzer pincer movement.
That one million backlog of disability claims is a low-ball estimation, from what I've heard. It may actually be more than that. Even so...it's a national disgrace.
Okay:
Re: How to "play" the system. You have first hand experience with the system. I'm one of the lucky ones who never had to even mess with it and, for the most part, stayed as far away from it as I could. Unfortunately, I kept tripping over friends like you, and other poor bastards, all tangled up with it. So, as you know, my old troop commander instincts erupted and boiled over, each time I did. How much good that ever did, can't say, although I do have the satisfaction that a couple of my hell-raising actions did produce some immediate results (well, okay, within less than a month is "immediate" by VA standards of "urgency".) Anyway, how does a veteran go about "playing" the system, when he hasn't a clue what the system is all about in the first place? One of the first steps, of course, is learning what are the "keywords" in the system's language. Use the wrong ones, or right ones in the wrong way...and you'll get zilch. The second thing is...having every kind of supporting "documentation" in hand, before even submitting a claim. And that...is probably the biggest hurdle to overcome, because, apparently, as I have come to understand it, one of the reasons the claims processing is so backlogged, is that the present system is designed not so much to accept such documentation, but to backtrack as far as possible to "verify" it. That is, because it is driven by the perspective that ANY disability claim is probably FRAUDULENT...unless proven otherwise. In short...guilty until proven innocent.
So, besides all that, the VA's blackhole of bureaucracy has,over the years, evolved into a culture focused on crocheting procedures to prevent "fraud" from happening, rather than resolving problems, or finding ways and mean to do so. Not speaking about its Medical staffs which, for the most part, are as good as it gets (while doing their best to get around those bureaucratic road blocks they have to deal with).
ReplyDeleteRe: Here's a few questions for you, LT...what happens to a disability claim after it is filed.? That is, where does it go after a veteran files it? How many layers of "endorsement" does it go through to reach the final authority that approves...or disapproves it? Furthermore, is that "authority" a medical or legal one? A medical authority might have some validity or justification for making such decisions. A legal authority, on the other hand, would only consider legal and/or cost factors, ignoring the medical factors involved. I may be wrong here, but that's where much of the backlog problem lies...not just at the intake end of the process.
Re:On the "strategic" aspect of the problem. In some respects the Armed Services are at fault here. First of all, before anyone is accepted for service they're subjected to a very thourough battery of physical and psychological tests, thus, if accepted, presumed to be free of any pre-esiting conditions. So, before they discharge a vet from service or active duty, shouldn't there also be a similar process in reverse, with a complete set of VERIFIED documentation for any physical or other dings that vet might have incurred from that service, as some kind of preliminary determination of what his/her level of disability might be because of them? After all, those Services a) were the first responders when those injuries occured, so b)have first hand info and knowledge of the circumstances involved...date, place, event...etc.
Having something of the sort in hand before approaching the VA would make it more difficult for it to stall on the disability claim process.
Re: Lastly, if these posting of ours are to have any real value, how are others going to know about them? More importantly, while we both have spent a number of years chewing on these issues...our perspectives are fair enough...but wouldn's some kind of "open source" approach help us all achieve that goal...preventing that 7 year trip wire...and getting veterans what they need...without a lot of whereases and wherefores? Something that might generate such a srong tsunami of pressure on the ultimate culprit in this sorry tale...our Congress...always happy to vote to send us off on some military adventure of one kind or another,...but never willing to pay the butcher's bill for them...which is what gives the VA the cue it needs to...Lie till they Die..
Your post, Captain, is going to require me to stay up a few nights chewing on the right apples so I can bake the proper pie. The best way to deal with you, I have learned over the years, is to apply the KISS Rule: Keep It Simple, Stupid.
ReplyDeleteYou bring up several points. I am not going to attempt to answer all of them in this post. As a simple minded Lieutenant, I'm going to simply go to the front door of the Veterans Administration and meet the first young soldier I see coming through its doors and kinda lead him to the flank, show him my 'Screaming Eagle' baseball cap, and use the universal salutation: "Welcome Home!"
Then I'm going to ask him if this is his first visit to the VA. If he says, "yeah", I'm going to begin with my Veteran Advocacy. And I'm going to do so by offering to buy him a beer at the nearest joint. If he goes for it, I will surmise that I can help him. If not, and he goes through those doors as a 'Cherry Troop', then I personally believe the odds are against him. I am convinced that by going to the VA "Cold Turkey", the 'system' has stacked the deck.
I'm not saying the VA is bad. Nor am I saying the VA is good. But, what I am saying is that there are a million or more claims at the VA this very moment that are backlogged. What does that mean? Simply speaking, that means there are a million plus Veterans who have done everything right, 'played the system', and gotten their claims filed, and they STILL are not getting their benefits. So, if you don't have a clue on how to play the game, what chance do you have of even getting backlogged?
Does this sound depressing? Do I sound demoralizing? Perhaps. And, like you yourself, Captain, many Veterans do not go to the VA for help. They 'suck it up' and go on with their lives, and don't play the game at all. My father and almost every World War II Veteran I ever knew DID NOT go to the VA. And many Veterans from the Vietnam War do not go to the VA and look down on those who do. And most Americans today feel those of us disabled from our war wounds are taking 'handouts' from the American taxpayer. Especially if your wounds are not visible like a missing part, or a blind eye, or a face burned scar.
So, let's go to the front door of the VA together, Sir.
Yeah...I have a Simple-Simon Mind and have to take my boots off to count to twenty!
DeleteBut if you think about it...a million backlog? Something is not right in Mudville, LT...bureaucracy can't be that incompetent or lackadaisical. Even the biggest goldbrickers in the world aren't. I do agree...the VA ain't good or bad (though some think it's just plain evil, although I don't hold with that). maybe the real answer is one simple word....INERTIA.
Re: Meeting young troops at the door. A good start...and the offer for buying a welcome home beer...a nice touch. But you may have to drink a lot of beers!
Re:Former Era Vets and VA...both my father and mother were WWII vets. So was my uncle. My father had some sort of fungal infection in his left eye, caught during his time in those Burmese jungles. Like a lot of others, since it was treated, and then more or less went away...he never even thought of it as a "disability". It wasn't until he reached his 80s that he found that eye permanently affected by it. By that time, of course, he didn't have much interest in messing with the VA, besides, he was busy with his writing, and the rest of the "good life" in la belle France. My mother, also incurred a minor disability while doing her 20 years. But in her case, it was more a case of not feeling that is was significant enough to warrant priority over kids who were really in a bad way. She spent the last 18 years of her life as a volunteer at the Truman Memorial VA hospital, in Columbia, MO, running their in-house mock-radio station and newsletter. It was only after her doctor nagged her about it, that she finally filed for a disability (5%). Took three years! She was so disgusted with the process she almost told them to shove it where the sun don't shine. As for me...well....more or less the same thing...probably didn't even think in terms of "disability". But then, in those days, probably few veterans even thought of it. Like you said...most just sucked it up and went on with their lives as best they could. Even so, I've rarely met anyone from WWII or Korea, or even Nam, who looked down on another vet...just because they'd applied, or were applying, for disability. Maybe I'm wrong, but I certainly haven't. Yes, those invisible ones, are the hard ones...but even then...war nerves...combat fatigue...etc...were an acknowledged fact. Not really understood, but recognized.
Re: Nam Vets...yeah some do but most don't. Those that do are mostly REMFS, I bet.
DeleteRe: American Taxpayers....a case of brainwashing...keep in mind there was a lot of anti-war feeling because of Nam...the purpose for it, even including Iraq, Afghanistan, were not clearly defined...mainly because these were more about cold war and other geo-political maneuvers...so there was no perceived "national threat"...the kind to rile up the national spirit behind it...and you're right...that attitude about anything military is still there. It might be changing...though probably not quickly enought to help America's Most Unwanted.
Re: Sidebar Anecdote: When I got back to HI in '74 from SEA, even though I'd been "archived" from active to retired reserve, I got curious. So I went to the local VA Center. Must have been at least 30-40 veterans there each waiting for their turn to speak with one of the 4 VA staffers available. Like everyone else, I took a number. I was curious to find out if I still had any educational programs available for one like me, because was interested in a technical training program related construction management. Three hours later...I had my turn. Nice guy. Nissei...very interested. WWII vet (Italy). After a bit of chit chat...he started leafing through several massive binders full of all sorts of program descriptions. The more he leafed through the more unhappy he seemed to get.Finally...he said...geez Capt. as far as I can tell about the only program you can still qualify for is a VA Home Loan deal...and...yes...you can get burried for free too. I thought he was going to cry! Tried to comfort him by loudly exclaiming.....if that's all there's left for me...what the hell do I need the VA for...my friends can put me in a canvas body bag with some concrete blocks at my feet...hire a offshore fishing boat...and deep six me in 5000 ft of ocean,,,all just as free and twice as nice besides! Needless to say...no one was amused at my outburst...as I stalked out. I never went back.
CENTURION
Good Afternoon, Captain!
DeleteHere is your final statement on this post: "..as I stalked out. I never went back."
I want any of you reading this to re-read this little quote made by the Captain over and over again. This is the essence of the VA's mission: Get the Veteran mad so he turns around, goes back home, and never returns. When the VA is able to accomplish this, in any manner whatsoever, they win the game.
So, Rule #1 in getting what is due to you from the VA for serving your country in the military is not to quit! No matter what, do not quit. If the VA tells you anything other than you have your benefits, then you can not only question them, you can get a second and third opinion.
Remember, Rule #1 in "playing the game" is not to quit!