Travel / Lodging determined by travel department rather the specialty doctors.

[Lemuel]

 

7 hours ago, MKAH said:

Hi everyone,

After waiting months for an appointment, three days before my travel date I was denied hotel lodging (by the travel department of the destination hospital Mather VAMC) that my neurologist properly submitted a referral for lodging for imaging & EEG (electroencephalogram) to rule out brain injury due to SYNOPE, which was estimated to take several hours.  I lost my drivers license due to this condition so my wife would be taking me.  We are in our sixties and I am 80% SC disabled.

The destination hospital is 175 miles away making it 350 miles round trip.  Since the VA hospital is located on the far side of a major city from my location, the travel time  is listed at “Typically 2:30 to 3:20 hours each way” on google maps.  It has been my experience the actual time is usually 3:10 to 3:15 not counting unexpected traffic and or stops for restroom, food, and gas.

After the denial, my VA Neurologist contacted the local patient advocate who confirmed I qualified for VA lodging for this specific appointment.  The patient advocate then called the travel department of Mather VAMC, and was told by the travel department that it would not be covered as my appointment to not involve a “surgical procedure”.  

My local patient advocate called me and said the Mather VAMC travel department was not going to approve the travel because the visit did not specifically involve a “surgical procedure” and was mystified by the decision.    The patient advocate then contacted my neurologist and recommended that they place a referral for community care for the same procedure(s).

I have looked for the official VA policy on travel / lodging and am not able to find any reference to lodging for surgical procedures only.  The VA policies I have found are somewhat vague regarding lodging other than they must be submitted in advance and pre-approved.

 

From my perspective, the Mather VAMC "Travel Department"" has independently decided to save less than $100 on a hotel in exchange for delaying my treatment, which required my Neurologist to outsource treatment to community care, that will likely result in paying a local hospital many thousands of dollars more than VA costs, to accomplish the same tests.  In the old days, my generation referred to this as serious "overreach and red tape".

It is my impression that the Mather VAMC travel department has improperly denied the lodging request that my neurologist has properly submitted.

In order for me to better understand this issue, can someone please point me to the direction of the actual and official VA Policy regarding travel and lodging?

 

Thank You

It really varies with the Director of the VAMC.  I had a similar round trip in February from Torrington, WY to Hot Springs, SD for a C&P by a Nurse Practitioner.  Hot Springs gave me the night before and because a snow storm moved in the night after.  I was TDIU with a 70% base at the time.  A little older at 78 with a 72 year old driving companion.

Denver VARO scheduled me to a CBOC in Golden, CO with traffic problems including a travel time in rush hour.  Denver VARO wouldn't provide transportation.  My wife, who drives in that situation, was out of the country.  Both lodging and alternative transportation to POV were refused.  I was at the same TDIU rating.

Two years earlier I was provided a Fisher room for a visit to the VAMC in Denver on a less stressful trip.  Guess it depends upon the side of the bed the travel agent get up on more than anything else.

[MKAH]

On 8/2/2020 at 4:58 PM, Lemuel said:

 

It really varies with the Director of the VAMC.  I had a similar round trip in February from Torrington, WY to Hot Springs, SD for a C&P by a Nurse Practitioner.  Hot Springs gave me the night before and because a snow storm moved in the night after.  I was TDIU with a 70% base at the time.  A little older at 78 with a 72 year old driving companion.

Denver VARO scheduled me to a CBOC in Golden, CO with traffic problems including a travel time in rush hour.  Denver VARO wouldn't provide transportation.  My wife, who drives in that situation, was out of the country.  Both lodging and alternative transportation to POV were refused.  I was at the same TDIU rating.

Two years earlier I was provided a Fisher room for a visit to the VAMC in Denver on a less stressful trip.  Guess it depends upon the side of the bed the travel agent get up on more than anything else.

Lemuel,

Thank you for sharing your VA travel experience. 

It really interesting that the disabled veteran travel policy is so poorly written and undefined while the VA employee travel policy is actually decently written and well defined (much like a large corporations employee travel policy).

If that were not the worse part, the Mileage Deductible that veterans pay and the 50% reduction veterans are supposed to get that VA Employee allowed food expense costs (which BTW has never been when I have submitted for it on my travel voucher).  The response from the VA travel department employee simply said, we don't do that here.

I have seen plenty of stupid $hit in my life, but who actually decided that any of this is even close to a good idea?  

 

Edited August 4, 2020 by MKAH

[Lemuel]

4 hours ago, MKAH said:

Lemuel,

Thank you for sharing your VA travel experience. 

It really interesting that the disabled veteran travel policy is so poorly written and undefined while the VA employee travel policy is actually decently written and well defined (much like a large corporations employee travel policy).

If that were not the worse part, the Mileage Deductible that veterans pay and the 50% reduction veterans are supposed to get that VA Employee allowed food expense costs (which BTW has never been when I have submitted for it on my travel voucher).  The response from the VA travel department employee simply said, we don't do that here.

I have seen plenty of stupid $hit in my life, but who actually decided that any of this is even close to a good idea?  

 

It is not that the travel benefits aren't well defined.  The problem is the lack of supervision of directors.  Travel pay has long been a source of embezzlement.  I suspect that my travel pay from Douglas to Cheyenne, WY in the Bush 1 years was drawn.  Just not by me.

Things are better now because you are paid by check or direct deposit.  Harder fill one form out and have you sign it, then put another in its place. 

Those that experienced different cash payments for the same trip were probably experiencing lower pay from the agent who was skimming cash out of the drawer by that method.

I wrote several letters to the VA OIG calling out the problem and suggesting the change.  Same with check ins from the Phoenix/Cheyenne appointment crisis.  If you check in by kiosk, your check in can't disappear.  I advise everyone to learn how to use the kiosk for check in and travel pay.