Senior Pentagon officials have defended the military’s practice of requiring troops to get anthrax vaccinations, and said a federal judge who ordered a stop to the shots was wrong to accuse the military of treating soldiers as “guinea pigs.”
Air Force Gen. Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the inoculations were necessary “to protect our troops.” He told reporters at the Pentagon that he disagreed with the ruling issued U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan that the Pentagon could not require the vaccination of military personnel. Sullivan ruled that the mandatory inoculations, administered to hundreds of thousands of troops annually since 1998, were in violation of a law passed that year prohibiting the use of certain experimental drugs on troops.
A spokesman for the Department of Justice, which represents the Pentagon in the civil suit, initially said that the military would have to at least temporarily comply with the order, defense officials would only say subsequently that they were reviewing what to do next. “This ruling is not supported by medical science or by medical facts,” said Dr. William Winkenwerder, assistant secretary of defense for health affairs. Winkenwerder said the vaccine is safe and is not experimental. More than 900,000 servicemen and women have received the anthrax shots, one of many vaccines administered to protect troops against disease and bio-terrorism threats. In an injunction, Sullivan said plaintiffs in the civil suit had convinced him that the vaccine is being “used for an unapproved purpose”—that is, for exposure to airborne anthrax as well as exposure through the skin. Asked if the Pentagon would reconsider the punishments—including courts-martial, discharges and substantial fines—meted out to troops who have refused the shots, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said he was awaiting a recommendation from attorneys. Winkenwerder said the judge was factually wrong when he wrote that the vaccine was still an “investigational” drug. He insisted that the vaccine was already licensed for use against the inhaled form of anthrax.

I will cast no stones!

Dave Barker

FOR DAVE

The prescription issue is raising its ugly head once again. Many in Congress feel the co-pay should be increased to offset the rising costs of pharmacy.
What do you say?

Speak now or forever hold your piece!

Dave Barker

TO LET THEM KNOW INCUMBENCY IS A LIABILITY FOR BOTH PARTIES IF THIS HAPPENS...

DO IT NOW...

DO IT OFTEN...

HOW SOON THEY FORGET!!

A news release I would like to see:


Former POW's and Purple Heart recipients will no longer pay presription co-payments in the VA Healthcare system.
Most likely Congress will give themselves a double pay increase before that would happen.

I will cast no stones!

Dave Barker

FOR DAVE...

up

HERE YOU ARE...

PART OF MY DAILY RITUAL IS TO REVIEW THE MIL.COM HOME PAGE...

I NOTICE THAT EVERY SUPPOSED CUT IN BENEFITS OR INCREASE IN CO-PAY REPORTED SO FAR SEEMS TO BE A FALSE ALARM, AND THE RETRACTION IS UNDER-REPORTED...

WE BOTH KNOW THE VA AND CONGRESS IS ANTI-BUSH AND ANTI-VETERAN AT THIS PARTICULAR POINT IN THE ELECTION CYCLE.

COULD IT BE THE DIS-INFORMATION CAMPAIGN (A LA MOVEON.CRAP) HAS INFILTRATED THIS NEWS SOURCE?

JES WUNDERIN...

To view and download VA news releases, please visit the following Internet
address:
http://www.va.gov/opa/pressrel


VA's Largest "Fisher House" Scheduled for Houston

WASHINGTON (Jan. 5, 2004) - Expensive hotels and cramped couches will soon be a faded memory for families of veterans being treated for long-term
illnesses at the Houston Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center when the largest "Fisher House" opens next fall.

Secretary of Veterans Affairs Anthony J. Principi accepted an offer from the Fisher House Foundation to build a 21-suite facility on the Houston VA campus in November. Fisher Houses provide temporary lodging to families of
hospitalized VA patients.

The groundbreaking ceremony for Houston's Fisher House is planned for Jan.16, and is scheduled to include Principi and former President George H. W. Bush. The former president is honorary chair for the fund-raising effort.

"This is a tremendous example of community members and VA working together to support veterans and their families," Principi said. "This generous gift from the Fisher House Foundation will improve the quality of life for veterans and their families during a stressful period."

The Houston VA Medical Center (VAMC) Fisher House is the seventh donated to VA by the Fisher House Foundation. It will house families of veterans while their loved ones receive medical treatment from the VA for unexpected or long-term illnesses, disease or injury.

Veterans from around the country are referred to the Houston VAMC for specialized diagnostic care, radiation therapy, surgery and medical treatment such as cardiovascular surgery, ophthalmology care and treatment of spinal cord injuries and diseases.

The new Fisher House will include guest suites with private baths, communal kitchen, living and dining rooms, a library, a family room and a manager's
office.

Normally, each Fisher House has eight to 11 suites. However, the Houston VAMC's current 35 courtesy guest quarters cannot accommodate all the veterans' families who want to stay near their loved ones during lengthy medical treatments. The Houston facility had more than 557,300 outpatient visits last year and about 10,000 inpatient admissions.

Fisher Houses are built privately and given to the government as a gift through the Fisher House Foundation, Inc. The program began in 1990.

"The house will serve as a tangible symbol of America's gratitude to its veterans, recognizing their service and sacrifice," said Kenneth Fisher,
chairman of Fisher House Foundation and grand-nephew of founder Zachary Fisher.

On receipt of the Fisher House, VA takes over management and maintenance of the facility. Other Fisher Houses are located in Colorado, Florida, Minnesota, New York and Ohio, and four homes are being considered in California, New York, Texas and Washington.

Richard E. Wainerdi, president of Texas Medical Center, led a fund-raising effort that collected more than $1 million, which will be matched by the
Fisher Foundation for construction expenses.

Major foundations, corporations, local businesses, veterans' service organizations, individuals, and federal and state lawmakers were quick to respond with support, including a local furniture store that pledged to donate all of the furnishings for the home, said Edgar L. Tucker, medical center director of the Houston VA Medical Center.

"The organizations, businesses, and individuals in the Houston community who unselfishly gave their time, resources and energy to support this charitable cause believe as we do - that our veterans deserve and have earned our respect, our thanks and our gratitude," Tucker said.

I will cast no stones!

Dave Barker

Disabled Veterans Get Health Care Priority from VA
January 2, 2004


WASHINGTON – All veterans with service-connected medical problems will receive priority access to health care from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) under a new directive.

“Caring for veterans with service-connected medical problems is a major reason VA exists,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Anthony J. Principi. “This directive should ease the minds of veterans who no longer have to wait for health care appointments.”

The new directive provides that all veterans requiring care for a service-connected disability -- regardless of the extent of their injury -- must be scheduled for a primary care evaluation within 30 days of their request for care. If a VA facility is unable to schedule an appointment within 30 days, it must arrange for care at another VA facility, at a contract facility or through a sharing agreement.

The directive covers hospitalization and outpatient care. It does not apply to care for medical problems not related to a service-connected disability. However, veterans needing emergency care will be treated immediately.

The new provision is an extension of rules that took effect in October 2002 for severely disabled veterans. Under the earlier rule, priority access to health care went to veterans with disabilities rated at 50 percent or more. For the severely disabled, the priority includes care for non-service-connected medical problems.

The number of veterans using VA's health care system has risen dramatically in recent years, increasing from 2.9 million in 1995 to nearly 5 million in 2003. Although VA operates more than 1,300 sites of care, including 162 hospitals and more than 800 outpatient clinics, the increase in veterans seeking care outstrips VA's capacity to treat them.

"VA provides the finest health care in the country, but if a veteran cannot see a doctor in a timely manner, then we have failed that veteran," Principi said.

"I will work to honor our commitment to veterans," he said. "But when it comes to non-emergency health care, we must give the priority to veterans with service-connected disabilities."

I will cast no stones!

Dave Barker

KEEP THIS IMPORTANT INFO FLOWING, DAVE...

FOR DAVE

AGAIN...

DAVE...

Please check the article of interest on Dread Iraqi Disease! Several of our VA doctors said it is good.
http://www.geocities.com/dave_barker_amvet/index.html

I will cast no stones!

Dave Barker

What can the individual soldier in the field do to prevent Iraqi Disease caused by the sandfly?

How Many More 9/11 attacks have to happen before you wake up and realize the world is at WAR?

People in the field must keep the flies off of their exposed skin. They need to sleep under netting. The troops have been supplied with repellent.
One of the ladies who works at the Chillicothe VAMC said her son stays covered and uses netting all day, all night.
This reminds me of history class when we were taught how Teddy Roosevelt and his troops fought the mosquitos over a century ago!
Thanks for asking.

I will cast no stones!

Dave Barker

GOOD INFO AND MUCH INTEREST.

Thanks for the answer -it sounds the same prevention steps as preventing Dengue Fever and Malaria.

A big problem here.

How Many More 9/11 attacks have to happen before you wake up and realize the world is at WAR?