Is VA medical care better or worse than private health care? Actual review/comparison

[broncovet]

   I just had Robotic hernia surgery (community care, that is private care paid for by VA, as my VA does not offer Robotic surgery).  

Here is how this went:  

    The robotic surgery was necessary because my first TWO hernia surgeries at VA failed.  My wife, a retired RN, indicated that its not unusual for hernia surgeries to fail.  Sometimes the repaired hernia can be re injured from lifting too much weight, for example, but that is not the only reason hernia surgeries have to be redone.    Its my opinion that the VA doc actually did a good job, considering they had to rush me through it.  But Veterans deserve the best, not substandard overburdened health care.  I got a great result form the private care hernia surgery. 

   VA always says "they need more money (from congress) to fix the problem."   However, its been shown time after time, that more money does not fix the problem.  After getting more money, VA mis management manages to squander the extra funds, with little/no, actual health care improvement.  Sometimes its actaully worse, when VA gets more money because they come up with a plan to spend the money, much of which often winds up in pockets of politically well connected contractors and overbloated VA (mis management) employees.  Its the same way with VA benefits, VA launches "program after program" to reduce wait times, and the wait times are worse than they were in 2002 when I first applied.  They always have a fancy name for the new program, such as Pact ACT or, what was the last one that failed?  

   Interestingly, I got to compare "VA health care (surgery)" and private surgery, because I had both.  Its my opinion, while VA did a good job, it was not near as good as private care. 

   I felt "herded into surgery like cattle" at the VA health care.  Similar to non surgery, Veterans get a very limited time with the doc, its "hurry hurry, hurry, done, next" pretty much like when we were in the military.  Not so with private care.  They took the time to thoroughly answer questions "because they could" and were not required to rush me through it".  

   This is my educated guess as to WHY.  The VA is, frankly corrupt.  Its a huge, huge organization, mostly managed by the VASEC which is a manager who rarely has serious experience managing this large of a hospital/benefits, but rather is a politically well connected appointment not based on management or medical skill Set, like in private practice.  There are just too many of these job appointments in VA management that are basically jobs  as "favors" for getting someone elected as opposed to hiring someone with a skill set of serious medical management, in many levels of VA managment.  

     Case in point:  I have a friend who is a psychiatrist.  He applied at my local VA AND my local VA was hiring doctors.  They needed him.  IT took VA 3 years to decide whether or not to hire him, so he gave up.  So, he is in private practice, basically because of VA mismanagement and red tape.  He is working in private practice.  Many/most people dont want to wait 3 years to get a job which pays "less" than private practice!  

     VA has some very good employees often who do their very best in a very badly managed system.   But, like many mismanaged companies, they dont turn out a good product.  In the private world, mismanaged companies do what mismanaged companies do: They fail.  However, with VA mis management is rewarded with more money from congress.  

Edited June 11 by broncovet

[Vync]

@Lemuel Don't forget to include that with Community Care, you can claim mileage. However, if submitting online you can only do that when the web site does not freeze up, so paper claims would be the way to go 95% of the time...

[relatively happy camper]

On 6/26/2024 at 4:50 PM, Vync said:

@Lemuel Don't forget to include that with Community Care, you can claim mileage. However, if submitting online you can only do that when the web site does not freeze up, so paper claims would be the way to go 95% of the time...

I finally gave up on the community care mileage.  I'd submit it, then they needed a verification of some kind that I attended, even though they've received the office's bill and paid it.  I'd submit that and then get a denial b/c the claim had at that point been over 30 days! Not worth my time.  I finally gave up.  My time is valuable to me and the aggravation it caused wasn't worth it, for the pittance they pay.  They won!   jmo

[Lemuel]

That is the way I have been treated with travel pay period.  Community care and VAMC.  Gave up.  Instead of getting someone to take time off from work to drive me, I ask for transportation.  If they cannot provide it on the day of my appointment, I cancel the appointment and make a new one.  If it is for a C&P through community service, I make sure the contractor, Optum or which ever, knows it is their responsibility to get me to the appointment in my wheelchair.  They cannot do it, then their travel has to cancel the appointment.  When I get a call to remind me of the appointment, and I do not have a scheduled pick up, I tell the provider that travel has not been scheduled so the appointment will be cancelled by travel in their record unless they can get me picked up by the contractors transportation services.  On the fourth try to get me 30 miles to an appointment for a C&P for cancer from PACACT claim.  Optum still not able to provide transportation even by providing a driver for my vehicle which has a wheel chair lift.