Right now, there’s a great deal of discussion taking place about our health-care system and whether a government-run health-care program is a good or bad idea.
What is sometimes overlooked is that we already have two government-run health-care programs in place: Medicare and the VA health care system. In fact, the VA is the largest independent federal agency in terms of budget and second only to the defense department in the number of employees. Due to the unique characteristics of our present war, there are many more cases of post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury, and disability claims have skyrocketed.
Despite additional funding and staff additions, the VA has been hard pressed to keep up with the dramatically increasing demand. Even though problems certainly exist, my husband Val, a veteran who served in the Merchant Marine in WWII, has received excellent routine health care at the VA hospital in West Haven. His experienced and thorough primary physician at the VA coordinates his care with his other medical specialists whom he sees as part of the Medicare program.
A nurse comes to the house every two weeks (at very low cost) to set up the confusing array of medications he now must take, and psychiatric help is available if Val finds the dialysis treatments he must undergo are causing depression or other problems.
We have been so impressed with the VA services that I decided to research the history of the VA because there may be many who are not aware that they are entitled to receive VA help.
First, Connecticut has two VA medical centers: West Haven and Newington. There are six clinics and three veteran centers. Anyone who served in the active military, naval or air service, may qualify and in many cases, spouses and family may receive certain benefits, as well. To apply, complete form VA10-10EZ, obtainable on-line at http://www.va.gov/ or call (877) 222-8387.
Help for disabled veterans has a long history going way back to the English Colonies in North America. The first law, enacted in 1636 by Plymouth, provided money for those disabled in the Colony’s defense against the Indians.
During the Depression, veterans who had not stayed home and benefited from high war-time wages, were especially hard hit, and there was a march on Washington to have immediate payment of certain “bonus certificates.” A near riot ensued and President Hoover had to call in the federal troops.
America belatedly realized there were shortcomings in the treatment of its veterans and passed, what many consider one of the most significant pieces of legislation ever produced by the federal government, the GI Bill of Rights, a comprehensive benefits package with three key provisions which covered payment for education and training, guaranteed home, farm and business loans with no down payment and third, unemployment compensation. When the GI Bill program ended in 1956, 7.8 million had received training and the VA had guaranteed 5.9 million home loans, transforming the economy and the society of the U.S. The dream of higher education and home ownership became realities.
General Omar Bradley headed the VA in 1945, and at that time the VA hospitals became affiliated with medical schools and offered resident and teaching fellowships. Now VA facilities are affiliated with more than 105 medical schools and more than half of the physicians practicing in the U.S. had some of their professional education in the VA health-care system. VA researchers played key roles in developing the cardiac pacemaker, the CT scan, improvements in artificial limbs, and their clinical trials established new treatments for tuberculosis and high blood pressure.
Now celebrating its 79th anniversary, despite some glaring problems with a few hospitals, the VA medical programs have garnered many awards for excellence including quality of service, patient safety and satisfaction.
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