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V.A. Rule Change: Medical Care

By VVAW

One of the supposed benefits of being in the military—so we were told—was the ability to get medical care at a V.A. facility once we were out of the service. But not anymore; now it requires a certificate of poverty before we can get treatment. New V.A. eligibility rules for medical treatment required that a veteran "reveal" his financial status, and that those whose income exceeds $15,000 per year will be told to get treatment somewhere else.

According to Congress, this rule change will save the V.A. $109 million a year; a V.A. spokesman says it will save only $9.3 million with the added cost of sending investigators around to check financial status before a vet will be treated.

Let's face it; very few vets go to the V.A. willingly. A vet has to be pretty sick to tolerate the lines, the bureaucrats, the poor care, the need for interpreters to talk to the doctor—the list goes on and on. A sizable majority of vets making over the federal minimum also have some kind of medical plan—and would probably not go near a V.A. facility on a bet. Those who don't also do not need to go through the additional hassle of proving anything before they can be cared for.

When we went out to fight for the good old U.S. of A., we weren't told that our benefits would depend on how much money we earned. The fact is that the government is trying to erode every benefit that vets have—a little at a time in hopes that vets won't stand up and fight the cuts. This change in rules is simply one more step in that process.

(Information form the National Vietnam Veterans Review, P.O. Box 35812, Fayetteville, NC 28303.)