Not quite as creepy as their exploitation of children for political theater, but definitely weird, is the progressive habit of trolling for veterans willing to say something positive about VA hospitals.
The VA presents a serious PR problem for the advocates of government-run health care because virtually all veterans are dissatisfied with the care they receive in the VA hospital system.
Thus, our progressive friends are always on the lookout for the odd vet who actually likes the VA. Sometimes they get so desperate for positive feedback that they settle for surrogates.
A case in point is this post in which Chris Bodenner quotes “a reader” who took his father-in-law to the local VA hospital for an address change and a vitamin shot:
I just spent the day at the VA Hospital in Palo Alto, CA, with my father in-law. He went to file his change of address since he just moved into its service area, and he hoped, while he was there, to get his monthly vitamin B-12 shot … His registration took about 45 minutes, and he was able to get an appointment that afternoon to get his shot. His appointment was for 1:20; his name was called at 1:33. He was done by 1:50, and we were out of there by 2:00.
Anyone notice any issues here? Well, first of all, the patient was required to notify the VA system of his new address in the same way an ex-con would notify his parole officer of a recent move.
Even worse, this address change notification and B-12 shot required the reader and his father-in-law to “spend the day at the VA hospital.” These 2 simple things cost them a day of their lives.
At your local community hospital, an address change requires a telephone call. And you can walk in, without an appointment, to any “doc in the box” and get a B-12 shot in less than an hour.
We have not, of course, heard from the actual veteran. So, we don’t know what he thinks about all this. But his son-in-law acquired Stockholm Syndrome in only a single day among his captors.
Comments 8
Er, what? Since when does government not require notification of change of address from people who wish to recieve benefits? And they spent the day there because they wanted to both register and then get the shot in one visit (also presumably why they had to go on site to file a change of address) and didn’t book the appointment in advance.
If the author had booked in advance, the whole visist would have (by his account at least) taken less than two hours (45 minutes for registration and 40 for the appointment).
Maybe this isn’t representative of the service at VA hospitals. On the other hand, your take on this person’s story is so weak, I feel sort of like you’ve assumed I’m a idiot just by posting it for me to read.
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 1:12 am ¶A few observations:
I stopped by my doctor’s office earlier this week for a quick follow-up on a condition I’d been treating. 100% private transaction. The doctor runs his own business and my insurance is through Aetna, paid for by me and my employer.
Oddly enough, they had my address on file and asked if it was still valid. I guess I should now feel like I was an “ex-con” meeting my “parole officer”, right?
And while this guy chose to go in with his address change, you actually can register online. He chose to register in person.
While I prefer to use private insurance (I’d rather not be a drain on the VA’s resources, especially with so many war heroes needing their assistance), I did enroll with the VA for a time while I was a student after I got out of the Army.
My experience there didn’t really strike me as being all that different from what you find in most large clinics or hospitals. When I did need to go in, my experience was about the same as this guy’s. I showed up on time, they’d call me in, we’d take care of business and I’d be on my way.
As a matter of fact, my VA experience was in some ways ahead of what I currently have (and keep in mind this was several years ago). They had computerized all of their medical records. After I graduated and started working in a new city, I was informed that if I needed to be seen at the VA there, they’d have access to everything in my file. And when my private doctor took over, getting my records was easy.
Of course the private doctor still uses paper records. That’s the efficiency of the private sector for you!
So now you’ve heard from an actual veteran.
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 2:22 am ¶Since when does government not require notification of change of address from people who wish to recieve benefits?
Jon, you have (apparently without realizing it) reinforced my point. When you depend on government, you are required to jump through all manner of bureaucratic hoops.
Of course the private doctor still uses paper records. That’s the efficiency of the private sector for you!
Geoff, I can see that you have fallen for the myth of the VA’s magical EMR system. You might want to read this.
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 6:43 am ¶Um, I have private insurance and went to the hospital for tests and was kept waiting more than 40 minutes for a test for which I had an appointment booked weeks in advance. Have you spent any amount of time in doctors’ or hospital waiting rooms? Seriously. And changing your address? Do you not have to change your address with your insurer??? Seriously what paranoid planet do you live on????
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 7:40 am ¶Um, I think you mean Stockhausen Syndrome. And therein lies a clue.
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 8:38 am ¶Hey - don’t our vets deserve the best our private hospitals can deliver rather than these third rate facilities? Some people just don’t get the evil of government ‘care’. Great blog, by the way.
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 8:59 am ¶Catron has apparently never been to a private sector doctor or used private sector insurance, as both of these require you to update them when you change your address. Even if you are not on parole. What a ridiculous point.
Posted 13 Aug 2009 at 2:14 pm ¶I’ve been treated at the VA hospitals in the LA area for almost 20 years. Yes, at times the wait is long. Yes, sometimes you get a doctor so fresh from medical school that they can’t perform a PAP test without blushing.
But I remind myself that we veterans were promised FREE medical care, not GOOD medical care, and that puts it into perspective. The VA saved my life, and my VA disability compensation allows me to live comfortably despite my problems.
Each geographic area of the VA systems seems to have different areas of expertise and focus of treatment. The VA is working to improve services to women and to the current wave of battle damaged vets with ever decreasing funds. Costs to veterans has increased, but it is still quite affordable. Plus it’s AVAILABLE! Without the VA, I wouldn’t have ANY health care. That is why it exists.
It’s also interesting to spend a few minutes or longer chatting with other veterans. Every one of them has a fascinating or humorous story that they are willing to share.
The longest I “waited” at any VA facility was when I went to the ER with a bad gall bladder. I had to wait 3 days in the ER as there were no beds available for a female patient. Once in a room, I was comfortable, had my surgery, and was home feeling fine in 2 days. The doctors that treated me had been trained at UCLA, and many were also employed at Cedars Sinai. Not so shabby!
Many people don’t differentiate between the VA hospital and the military hospitals such as Walter Reed, where soldiers endure horrid conditions while awaiting treatment or release. The two are funded separately and differently, and it shows.
So I may have “drunk the Kool-Aid” from your point of view, but from mine I am receiving top drawer health care. If I have to pay with my time, that’s ok. As a disabled veteran, I can spare it. We’re used to “hurry up and wait”!
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