VA Scandal

He probably means me, though incorrectly.

Sounds like a plan and a very good one.

Frank, I don't get the concerns with your form of posting, you've used it for over ten years and I am used to it and honestly for a dyslexic like me it actually helps.

My apology. It seemed that might have been suggested. There are a lot on the RW who seem to think VA, SSI, ADC are charities and "entitlements". If I offended you it was not my intention and I am sorry.

Must have been on on different website, not on A2K. Here, Fran started with it in late April.

Have a read Bob. It seems the VA has been rolling forward a surplus for the last several years. It isn't a matter of funding, it appears they have all the money they need.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/05/27/va-expects-to-have-more-medical-care-funding-than-it-can-spend-for-fifth-year/

An investigation of medical care at Veterans Affairs facilities has found "systemic" problems and "manipulation" of waiting lists, prompting new calls for VA Secretary Eric Shinseki to resign.

"We are finding that inappropriate scheduling practices are a systemic problem nationwide," the VA inspector general said in an interim report Wednesday that disclosed that the investigation has expanded to 42 sites from the previously reported 26.
http://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-va-phoenix-investigation-20140528-story.html

Walter, I met Frank on Abuzz.

That's nice, so did a lot of us.

I've met him not only there but in reality as well.

The Veterans Affairs Scandal Was Decades in the Making

Yes, you should be angry. But at whom?

After reading this article, a couple of things seem clearer, one of them is that the guy Shinski should be fired for incompetence and those that falsified wait list should be fired as well. Another thing which seems clear is one of the problems is that technology has outpaced doctors and other health care professionals. In other words, as callus as this sounds, veterans which used to die don't, which is good, but they come home without limbs and other complicated problems which creates a lot of vets coming out of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars with not enough doctors and facilities to handle it all at the same rate. Another things is clear, as Frank did say, the doctor shortage is a problem nation wide, private practice just don't publish their waiting lists and people who happened die or get sicker waiting to find a doctor who is still taking patients, or waiting for your insurance to approve certain medicines and/or procedures.

I met Walter and Edgar in Albuquerque. Also, a few others.

That's exactly what I think and I know of no reason to think otherwise.

Precisely. That's the MO of this Administration, and so far it's worked thanks to a submissive press.

We should be mad at the ineffective, and unaccountable government. It doesn't matter all that much which party holds the White House. It's a case of the lesser of two evils.

Watched some of the congressional hearing on this last night and was sickened.

Sickened by the ineptitude and dodging of the VA witnesses, and sickened by the grandstanding of congressmen in both parties looking for sound-bites they can use in fund raising and re-election campaigns. Sickened by the memory of a candidate who spoke large about providing vets with their due during his campaign, but then forgot all about them once he was elected.

I'm sickened by the absence of any real accountability in government not-with-standing all the bullshit declarations of accepting "full responsibility."

Sickened that millions of my fellow countrymen are perfect marks for this obscene con job, and even more sickened when I realize that the perfect mark for a con is someone motivated by greed.

Somehow it must be George Bush's fault.

He did not help at all. He closed three hospital here in Texas while firing up his two unpaid for wars.

SHINSEKI OUT

Got to figure that poor government management hurts both parties, but the D's more, because what sane person would want bigger more powerful government when the government we have is run this poorly?

Shinseki knew about these problems several years ago, and should have found solutions for them. All he needed to do was have independent audits done of all VA hospitals. He can't start getting angry if he didn't manage his responsibility as he should have. All public hospitals must go through audits of their service quality and finances on a regular basis. This needed to be done at VA hospitals.
Why weren't they done?