[lpkshop]

Discussion on news show surprised me. Our vets are waiting on average 3 years to get disabilty benefits. I am outraged. I am already writing & calling senators. There must be more I can do. My son was in the Marines and we are so blessed that he is fine. Only makes me feel like I should do more.

[Monkei]

Originally Posted by lpkshop

Discussion on news show surprised me. Our vets are waiting on average 3 years to get disabilty benefits. I am outraged. I am already writing & calling senators. There must be more I can do. My son was in the Marines and we are so blessed that he is fine. Only makes me feel like I should do more.

the VA needs more doctors, more centers to do the exams, more administrative personnel. I worked and retired from the VA. It is one of those situations where more money is needed to fix the problem and to maintain the day to day activities the VA supplies.

[Cantwaittoarrive]

Our veterans deserve the BEST of everything! I always wonder how we can always find money to give to other countries that are not really allies but when it comes to taking care of our veterans we always put there needs on the back burner. Shame on us as a country!

[Bonnevie]

Ok, yes, we all want our vets taken care of. I work for a VA hospital and the claims that are clogging the system are not the veterans coming back from the current wars. They are done quickly. The backlog of claims are mostly for people trying to increase their service connection or trying to tie their current health problems to something that may have happened in their time in the service. Unfortunately, as a veteran ages and hasn't saved for retirement, upping a VA pension is the way to get it. I'm not saying it's deserved or not, that's not for me to decide, but that is why there is a backlog. It's not vets wounded in service, it's more on the order of someone who is claiming his back problems (while doing manual labor all his non-veteran life) are the result of basic training, the vet who was in for one month and now wants service connection for neurosis. Believe me, that's what's causing the backlog. The war veterans are being treated quickly and well, at least in my hospital.

[Newbeginnings]

My husband was a vet that had always received a benefit of 10% from VietNam, at age 62 he was diagnosed with multiple myeloma. He had a tumor in his spine and was operated on in Seattle, DR said to file for 100% compensation because this was an agent orange cancer. With the help of the American Legion service officer and writing to our state senator, Ted Stevens, my husband received his increase in 3 months. Unfortunately he passed away but the expedite helped us tremendously with his health issues as I could no longer work and was 100% caregiver for 4 years. So things become more prevalent as we age as our immune systems decline and the vets in these foreign wars after being exposed to dangerous toxic chemicals are now being diagnosed with cancers related to those exposures. I am sure we will continue to see more in the years to come as they age. God bless them. Keep on your senator if your in of need help, go to the top and you would be surprised who's willing to help you. I was shocked, didn't think anyone would pay attention to our problems and Uncle Ted did help us tremendously and always kept in touch to see how my husband was doing.

[Bonnevie]

when our veteran's contact one of our house of representatives they are on the phone right away...so that is definitely an avenue one should pursue. Also, all veterans should check frequently to monitor changes in coverage. For instance, new conditions are added to the diseases compensated under the agent orange category. I have spoken to a number of Vietnam veterans on heart medications and have alerted them that conditions like ischemic heart disease is now covered saving them medicine copays and in some cases they were able to file claims for service connection.