ABC: VA Chief shelved an inexpensive solution for wounded Vets from falling through the cracks

[sabra]

http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2007/03/under_va_chief_.html

Under VA Chief, Effort to Aid Wounded Vets Stalled, Ex-Employee Charges

A proposal to keep seriously wounded vets from falling through he cracks of the bureaucracy was shelved in 2005 when Jim Nicholson took over as the secretary of the Veterans Affairs Department, according to the former VA employee who was responsible for tracking war casualties.

As a result, seriously wounded veterans continued to face long delays for health care and benefit payments after being discharged from the military, says former VA program manager Paul Sullivan.

The program, called the Contingency Tracking System, had been approved by Nicholson's predecessor but died once Nicholson took over the VA, Sullivan told ABC News.

Sullivan said he was told the cost of the system -- less than $1 million to build and requiring a handful of staff to maintain -- was prohibitive.

....

Yesterday, President Bush put VA Secretary Nicholson in charge of an interagency task force to determine what can be done to deliver benefits and health care now to thousands of wounded vets who have struggled to receive care.

[BOSSHOG]

1. They not only lack compassion. They are stupid

bush wastes billions a month so he can preen as a war president (how's that working out?) but a million dollars is prohibitive. Now, thanks to nicholson's incompetence the fix will cost several, several times that and bush puts nicholson in charge to fix it. Jesus H. Christ, is this a three stooges episode?

[Solly Mack]

2. "I don't think it's a good idea for the people responsible for the problem to be in charge of fixing

it." (Sullivan)told ABC News

[SpiralHawk]

3. "We needed to save that money so it could be disbursed to republicon cronies."

"So just shut up about these veterans who served honorably. What about our fatcat republicon cronies? You might applaud their initiative, since their War Profiteering has become immeasureably RICHER under my republicon administration. Why not applaud their success. Smirk, smirk, smirk."

- Commander AWOL

"smirk, smirk, smirk"

[Virginia Dare]

4. The report they aired last night made Nicholson look like a..

complete fool, which probably wasn't a real stretch.

When they asked him about the Contingency Tracking System, he looked like a deer caught in the headlights. He was completely punked. What a disgrace.

[sinkingfeeling]

5. Saw that story last night on ABC News. They directly asked Nicholson about it and he wasn't even

aware of it. Note who Jim Nicholson is.

"He was a respected chairman of the Republican National Committee. And for the past three years he has served as the United States Ambassador to the Vatican." - G.W. Bush

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2004/12/20041209-5.html

[sabra]

6. "He was a respected chairman of the Republican National Committee."

pretty much says it all...

[fed-up]

7. kicking for more recs-a must read for those concerned about care for our vets

When asked about the Contingency Tracking System at the White House Wednesday, Nicholson told ABC News, "I'm not sure I know what program you're referring to." He added that "when the VA gets patients...we instantly create an electronic medical record for them."

In testimony before Congress today, a VA official confirmed that its current tracking system still depends on paper files and lacks the ability to download Department of Defense records into its computers, a key flaw originally identified as leading to veterans getting lost between the cracks.

Throughout 2004, the new program sat on a shelf while returning veterans struggling with serious brain injuries, psychological trauma, paralysis or worse spent weeks and months fighting the VA bureaucracy to receive the benefits they deserved after being discharged from the armed services, veterans advocates say.

"In that gap...people find themselves not being able to pay for their car, their mortgage, they may have marital problems because they can't pay their bills," said Steve Robinson, director of veterans' affairs for the advocacy group Veterans for America. "You find suicide, alcohol abuse, drug abuse, domestic violence."

[bobthedrummer]

8. kick

[Elwood P Dowd]

9. This old vet will give you a kick.

:kick: