Our Veterans Deserve Better Treatment

Our veterans deserve far better treatment than they have been receiving from the Veterans Administration (VA). Veterans who fought in the Iraq and Afghan war have had to wait weeks, and even months, to see a doctor for treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder and other illnesses.

The former Veterans Affairs Secretary, who resigned since the scandal was revealed, disclosed internal accounting that showed some of the problems inherent in the VA. In some instances, VA schedulers were forced to falsify reports in an attempt to make it appear as though veterans’ waiting times for medical appointments were reasonable. This is a true case of a cover-up that only served to exacerbate the conditions faced by veterans.

Although the VA has seen a marked increase in the number of patients, their treatment of veterans is inexcusable. While there were 8 million veterans enrolled in the program in 2008, there are now 9 million, many of whom returned from the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, and some who are now much older and who have experienced an increase in health issues. Several veterans also switched their insurance to the VA following job losses in the last recession, or upon an increase in the cost of their private insurance.

In one instance of VA delays, 40 veterans in Phoenix died while waiting to see a doctor. Employees are alleged to have covered up these delays by keeping a secret waiting list. It was reported that 1,700 veterans who went to the facility for treatment were in danger of being “forgotten or lost.” These atrocities within the VA must be stopped so that our veterans can receive the medical care that they so justly deserve.

An on-going investigation needs to occur throughout the VA in order to discover any and all cover-ups that have taken place. Measures should then be implemented to prevent such cover-ups from occurring again.  There should also be ways of holding staff accountable for their actions.