Notorious Kelly Posted July 23, 2015 Share Posted July 23, 2015 A week ago Fox News said "The VA said it wants authority to use up to $3 billion from the new Veterans Choice program to close the budget gap, with as much as $500 million going to treat hepatitis C." http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/07/14/va-threatens-to-close-hospitals-to-shrink-25b-budget-gap/?intcmp=latestnews Today they say "The $6 billion pot of money called “Non-VA Care,” where veterans could go for treatment outside the system, is now basically drained.http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/07/23/lawmakers-scramble-to-fix-billion-dollar-shortfall-at-va-that-could-lead-to/?intcmp=latestnews SO- which is it? Are the Choice coffers empty or are they available to be re-allocated to keeping hospitals open? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Navy04 Posted July 24, 2015 Share Posted July 24, 2015 Thanks for the Info bud, and it is no Surprise that the Well is Never as Deep as the Govt Says!!! 100% PTSD 100% Back 60% Bladder Issues 50% Migraines 30% Crohn's Disease 30% R Shoulder 20% Radiculopathy, Left lower 10% Radiculopathy, Right lower 10% L Knee 10% R Knee Surgery 2005&2007 10% Asthma 10% Tinnitus 10% Damage of Cranial Nerve II 10% Scars SMC S SMC K OEF/OIF VET 100% VA P&T, Post 911 Caregiver, SSDI Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HadIt.com Elder Chuck75 Posted July 24, 2015 HadIt.com Elder Share Posted July 24, 2015 It's actually "apples and oranges" or the "color" of money! There are other "community care" programs besides "Choice". They are the ones "out of money". Remember that the choice program is just now starting to get off the ground. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Content Curator/HadIt.com Elder Vync Posted July 24, 2015 Content Curator/HadIt.com Elder Share Posted July 24, 2015 From what I read, the Choice Card program was temporary and it says it right on the card: "Veterans Choice Card Temporary Program". Don't quote me on this, but I recall reading somewhere that it was supposed to be funded only for either three or four years. It would not surprise me if the VA burned through that much funding way ahead of schedule... "If it's stupid but works, then it isn't stupid."- From Murphy's Laws of Combat Disclaimer: I am not a legal expert, so use at own risk and/or consult a qualified professional representative. Please refer to existing VA laws, regulations, and policies for the most up to date information. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HadIt.com Elder Chuck75 Posted July 24, 2015 HadIt.com Elder Share Posted July 24, 2015 I suspect what happened has to do with how slowly the Choice program became usable. It is most obvious that the VA did (and does) not have the internal capability to do things as they are needed. So, much maligned other outside care programs were used, and the inadequate funds for them exhausted. Remember that they were often deliberately underplayed, in order to try to strengthen the VA's arguments about in house vs. outside care. The whole thing begs of an endless series of questions concerning The relationships between money budgeted, required services by law and necessity, and who/what is in charge. (The bean counters, or actual necessity and obligations required by law) The idea to consolidate many of the various programs dealing with outside care is, on the surface, a good one. Unfortunately, as is often the case, the devil is in the details. The VA's past record is that the changes benefit the VA, and are often to the detriment of veterans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HadIt.com Elder john999 Posted July 24, 2015 HadIt.com Elder Share Posted July 24, 2015 The VA Medical system is planned failure. When the VA starts to talk about changing benefits like this Veteran's Choice you better duck fast. There is a rational way to create a good veteran's health care system based on the Medicare model. That would mean about 900,000 VA employees would lose their jobs. All the welfare to hospitals, University medical programs, and political appointees would have to stop. Medicare has tiny administrative costs while I bet the VA spends billions just doing the paperwork. The VA spends mucho money to bill my insurance to capture a couple of dollars. The only time we get any increase in benefits is when there is a war going on somewhere. Let's hope Iran is busy making an Atom Bomb so we have a good excuse to send 500,000 troops back to the Middle East again. Now that Iraq and Afghanistan are off the front pages the population and congress has started to forget the vets already. Our benefits have only increased according to the CPI since WWII. That just means that your compensation has the same buying power it had in 1960. A 100% vet gets about $2900 a month. Multiply that by 12 and you are below the average median income by about $15,000. If you we were on welfare we could at least get food stamps and have a free pad in the projects. Notorious Kelly 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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