President Obama Fulfills Two Critical Campaign Promises to Vets

"[At Walter Reed,] life beyond the hospital bed is a frustrating mountain of paperwork. The typical soldier is required to file 22 documents with eight different commands -- most of them off-post -- to enter and exit the medical processing world, according to government investigators. Sixteen different information systems are used to process the forms, but few of them can communicate with one another.

The disappearance of necessary forms and records is the most common reason soldiers languish at Walter Reed longer than they should, according to soldiers, family members and staffers. Sometimes the Army has no record that a soldier even served in Iraq. A combat medic who did three tours had to bring in letters and photos of herself in Iraq to show she that had been there, after a clerk couldn't find a record of her service."--The Washington Post

When the Walter Reed scandal broke in February 2007 spurring a massive public outcry, the politicians in Washington said heads would roll. But silently, and more than two years later, our seriously wounded troops continue to fall through the cracks, suffering through redundant tests, misdiagnoses, and delayed treatment all because of lost medical records.

But their saga doesn't end there. When these troops transition from the military to the VA healthcare systems, medical records and military service records regularly get lost in the shuffle, leading to long waits for disability benefits and a drop-off in the quality of care.

Our nation's heroes deserve much more than lost paperwork and endless delays.

Today, we are finally turning the page on this horrific chapter in our nation's history. President Obama has announced an overhaul of military and VA record keeping that will help ease the transition home for our veterans. IAVA was there at the White House for this historic announcement along with every major veterans' group.

This announcement marks the beginning of a new era of collaboration and cooperation between the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs. It was encouraging to see Secretary Gates and Secretary Shinseki stand behind President Obama during his speech, as they must work closely to implement this important change.

The Joint Virtual Lifetime Electronic Record Initiative will require DOD and VA administrative and medical records to finally be electronic and transferable. Not only will it help simplify the transition from the DOD to the VA, it will improve care for all veterans, especially the more than 33,000 wounded troops from Iraq and Afghanistan. With this initiative, President Obama is finally bringing the VA and DOD into the 21st century.

Today, the President also reiterated his support for advance funding of VA healthcare. For nineteen of the last twenty-two years the VA budget has been passed late, forcing the largest healthcare provider in the nation to ration care. Imagine trying to plan for next month's bills without knowing your next paycheck. That's what we ask veterans' hospitals to do almost every year. Advance funding will ensure that the quality of care for veterans will no longer be compromised by budget delays. With the strong support of the President and bipartisan leadership in Congress, advance funding can and must move forward this year.

Today, President Obama has taken action on two key campaign promises to America's veterans--and two of IAVA's top legislative priorities for 2009. Advance funding VA healthcare and an overhaul of military and VA recordkeeping will eliminate two of the most significant bureaucratic hurdles that keep veterans from the healthcare and benefits they have earned. Veterans nationwide applaud the Administration for making veterans and their families a priority. And we look forward to continuing to work together on the many other issues facing today's veterans, including psychological injuries, unemployment and homelessness.

UPDATE: Click here to watch a quick interview I did on CNN right after the announcement, and to voice your support for these critical developments.

Crossposted at www.IAVA.org

Comments

[marthainmaine]

Thank you Paul for all that you do for our veterans. I have seen you on Democracy Now . You are a good representative .

Good to hear our President is taking care of you all.

[Antifascist-08]

The treatment of veterans that the non-serving politicians have perpetrated over the last 40 years is one of the most egregious scandals in this country's history. Send them off to war and then say "it costs too much" to help them when they get back is an "old tradition.­" McCain and others voted against several health support bills over the last few years because the were "too expensive.­"

Now I hope they can look into the scandal of refusing to diagnose post traumatic stress syndrome on battle veterans because it costs too much to treat and too many people are afflicted. Of course the fact that these people are wandering around in our society without treatment doesn't seem to be a problem for the neocons.

Anyway, now we are finally doing something right for our veterans.

[Roguewolf]

He wanted to make Vets pay for service related illnesses with private insurance, what a crock.

[nirek]

READ the article , before you accuse the President of anything! He never said anything like that.

Enough !

[Roguewolf]

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Veterans groups are angry after President Obama told them Monday that he is still considering a proposal to have treatment for service-connected injuries charged to veterans' private insurance plans.


President Obama, with Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shineski, spoke with leaders of veterans groups Monday.

Leaders of the country's most prominent veterans groups met Monday at the White House with Obama, Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki, White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel and Steven Kosiak, the director in charge of defense spending for the Office of Management and Budget.

[Bruupo]

They wanted to force insurance companies to pay if they were already collecting premiums from said vets on policies that covered said services-

That it might establish a bad precedent, or -seem to- violate a principle, is something much different than your accusation, and I bet you know it.

[kendraro]

Thank you so much for you work. Our vets deserve better than they have been getting. Why not just give vets medicare? simplify. all the paperwork problems sound pretty contrived - they know how to keep track of you when they want to ship you out don't they?

[suncatcher]

As a disabled combat vet (nam) its great to see this young veteran helping us!! Thanks to Obama too--finally a president who remembers what vets have done for America

[slarabee]

Great work Paul Rieckhoff and President Obama!!

[denicci1977]

I wish they would move this story to the front page off Huffpo. This story about Obama and our Vets should be the first thing we see instead of the drama riots of the right wing tea freak show....

[newshawk14]

I for one truly appreciate what you are trying to do for our troops Mr. Rieckhoff, my feeling is that
between general Shinseki and president Obama the situation is going to improve with time, but
there is an awful lot of Bush administration incompetence that needs to be overcome.

[jmcallahan]

Great News!!! And long, long overdue.

My heart goes out to all the troops, their family and friends who helped them fight the paper-war after returning from the real battlefields.

I haven't heard one good word about this achievement from all the troop-loving right-wing nuts. And that's sad because this is truly a bipartisian issue.

[nirek]

I would like to know why there are not more comments on this story? There is more progress on so many fronts by the Obama administration then all 8 years by bush. President Obama has accomplished a lot in just 70 or so days, and is keeping promises , too.
Sure is nice to have a leader who really cares about the folks he leads.

[NoFactsJustTruth]

It SEEMS to be far more progress for veterans, Paul, in just the first couple months of President Obama being in office - than existed during the whole tenure of 'what's-his-name'. I'd also like to hear though that reviews have been ordered of every possible IED head injury finding or PTSD case, but especially where military and VA doctors may have been pressured to ignore findings just to deny benefits.

[1differentdrummer]

Believe it or not, the last I knew there were men from Korea with service connected injuries the VA has stiffed.

[mergina]

At least it is something. It does nothing for the Lost Generation of Vets from the Vietnam Era, you know that last unnecessary war for greed and profit that destroyed so many lives. It is in the news about how doctors are being told to not issue a diagnosis of ptsd. They did the same in the claims office for Vietnam era vets by the millions who contracted hepatitis C from the auto air gun innoculations of the day. The VA to this day shoots down the claims, denying proof that the sterilization methods of the day were inadequate to clear the virus from those guns, or went ignored all together. Veterans have found erroneous statements in their files by medical staff saying they used needles and drugs when they did not and were never even asked those questions. This country continues to destroy the lives of its men and women who served in the military. This latest paint job by the Obama Administration is just that, a paint job when you look at the big picture of what a mess the VA Health System is. Don't think so? Go get a colonoscopy at a few VA facilities AT YOUR OWN RISK.

[DrJulienArbor]

Paul ~ Thank you for your article and providing such valuable information. I was unaware that IAVA is also open to civilian membership and will be adding my name and support to your list. I have also downloaded the pdf files that you have linked and appreciate all the work that you are doing in bringing greater awareness and attention to the tremendous challenges that veterans are facing.

I had previously posted a comment (using an anonymous username) in response to another Huffington Post article (originating at Salon) regarding a report that the Army has been pressuring health care professionals to refrain from diagnosing PTSD. Rather than expressing my sentiments about this subject again... I am instead focus my comments in a more positive direction. I have spent the last year engaged in extensive research and will be obtaining the final pieces of data within the next few weeks in order to complete my study. For those who are interested­... I have included information about this in my Huffington Post Bio. This is a far more serious problem... not only for veterans, but also for civilians and particularly women... than people are aware of and it is my greatest hope that this research will make a significant contribution to putting an end to the horrific suffering and additional health complications that accompany the effects of traumatic stress.

[petef59]

How about extending something similar to other fed workers? Those of us with physical jobs, 'tho not in combat, wear our bodies down after 25-30 years (or less). Cops,firef­ighters,po­stal workers,co­nstruction­,etc. And the recent Republican control of government,with their managment appointments running departments & agencies, have had contempt for working people. Disregard for OSHA, ergonomic, worker's compensation and union contract law have created nasty working conditions. The old stereotypes about government workers have plaqyed well in favor of the public adn,disgustingly, Congressional oversight.

[eagledavey]

How about you lose that fed job and come see how the rest of the country lives without all those benefits and raises. Most average people dont have half what fed workers get in compensation. Private sector is losing jobs while the public sector--thats you petef59--are gaining jobs. What does that tell you? Sounds like your job is pretty secure.

[humble liberty]

Okay everyone should lose their fed job and compete with the already hurting private sector.
More kids go hungry, have to drop out and work for min wage, can't go to college, etc. because their parents are hurting.

What?

Don't vent against this guy. Homeless people in Detroit aren't as poor as African refugees but they're still feeling pain.

[crazyv]

I don't know about postal workers but I have long believed that police and firefighters don't get enough credit and until the Iraq /Afghanistan quagmire Veterans got too much attention. Since the end of the Vietnam war and until the beginning of these wars it was more likely that a cop or firefighter would be killed defending American citizens than a soldier sailor or airman. What takes more courage - dropping bombs from 30,000 ft or stopping somebody late at night or rushing into a a burning building.

[ColdSteel3]

It is quite simple really.
All those jobs are allowed to, and most frequently do join UNIONS.
Unionization is illegal in the armed forces. Take your complaints with benefits to your union rep, It is what you pay them for. These soldiers, sailors and marines protect ALL of us, and this is their sole protection.