For a total of 25 months, I was based in Camp Lejeune. 25 months minus the nine months I was in Cuba. I drank the water, showered in it, etc. Today, my platelets disappear every once and a while due to a conditional called ITP. I finally got a Hematologist to write a letter supporting our contention the water at Camp Lejeune caused this. NP Crochet (who I do not mess with) told me to persist in my quest.
The VA can be a great place to go to for care. They respect this old Marine Sergeant. It is like pulling teeth though. I do have regular Medicare and Supplemental also. I have alternatives, many of us do not.
You should recognize us who spent time at Lejeune.
Thanks for this important analysis. And the suggestion the VA could save many of the rural hospitals by expanding coverage for all other payers. It is imperative to do this before the last rural docs are pushed out and specialists leave and the small hospitals close with the underfunding of Medicaid. The private corporate insurance model has never worked for the poor and rural people who don’t have large employers. FQHC’s can’t pick up the pieces or run the hospitals, but if incorporated into the VA system, they could provide the practical knowledge and skills needed to optimally manage the whole population.
Unfortunately the focus of this administration is to crash the whole medical care system of the US. The VA is just part of that dismantling. We are rapidly moving towards a society based on Social Murder.
Ric Winstead, MD -retired Family Physician and medical director of a rural FQHC.
It is heartening to hear a positive reaction from someone like yourself who has experience with rural health. Unfortunately, we're living through a time when promising ideas aren't being heard. Perhaps some states could experiment with this model, although it would require cooperation from the national VA -- unlikely under this president.
Like the prison system the VA is on the list for the money people who somehow are not elitist. Highway systems are on the list for tolls to be paid to private companies. Tariffs are to be paid by consumers but the GOP message denies it. Watch the prices of cars and trucks in the coming months. Healthcare will plummet as we stop researching diseases because that would save money to be able to let the 1% pay next to nothing in taxes. Using arms to negotiate with Ukraine is unheard of. Grabbing money from companies revenue stream as they must to do business with China so no longer is national security the issue. It's how much money goes to the richest by clawing back on the rest of us. The vets deserve better.
Merrill:
Yes the care is good at the VA
For a total of 25 months, I was based in Camp Lejeune. 25 months minus the nine months I was in Cuba. I drank the water, showered in it, etc. Today, my platelets disappear every once and a while due to a conditional called ITP. I finally got a Hematologist to write a letter supporting our contention the water at Camp Lejeune caused this. NP Crochet (who I do not mess with) told me to persist in my quest.
The VA can be a great place to go to for care. They respect this old Marine Sergeant. It is like pulling teeth though. I do have regular Medicare and Supplemental also. I have alternatives, many of us do not.
You should recognize us who spent time at Lejeune.
Thanks for this important analysis. And the suggestion the VA could save many of the rural hospitals by expanding coverage for all other payers. It is imperative to do this before the last rural docs are pushed out and specialists leave and the small hospitals close with the underfunding of Medicaid. The private corporate insurance model has never worked for the poor and rural people who don’t have large employers. FQHC’s can’t pick up the pieces or run the hospitals, but if incorporated into the VA system, they could provide the practical knowledge and skills needed to optimally manage the whole population.
Unfortunately the focus of this administration is to crash the whole medical care system of the US. The VA is just part of that dismantling. We are rapidly moving towards a society based on Social Murder.
Ric Winstead, MD -retired Family Physician and medical director of a rural FQHC.
It is heartening to hear a positive reaction from someone like yourself who has experience with rural health. Unfortunately, we're living through a time when promising ideas aren't being heard. Perhaps some states could experiment with this model, although it would require cooperation from the national VA -- unlikely under this president.
...And after they get it all privatized, SURPRISE! No more budget for outside health care!
Like the prison system the VA is on the list for the money people who somehow are not elitist. Highway systems are on the list for tolls to be paid to private companies. Tariffs are to be paid by consumers but the GOP message denies it. Watch the prices of cars and trucks in the coming months. Healthcare will plummet as we stop researching diseases because that would save money to be able to let the 1% pay next to nothing in taxes. Using arms to negotiate with Ukraine is unheard of. Grabbing money from companies revenue stream as they must to do business with China so no longer is national security the issue. It's how much money goes to the richest by clawing back on the rest of us. The vets deserve better.