First off, thankyou for doing what your doing for the VETS!

The question I have is this...I was told by my VET REP, Duane, that I finally got My I.U. but that was back in Sept, He told me I would be getting the Papers around NOV, well, NOV, came and went, I called Him again, and He said.." Well, YOU are dealing with the Government, just be patient" so...DO I keep waiting, or do I rock the BOAT?
I don`t want to Piss anyone off, I just want to be done with all this, what do you think?
and again, Thankyou very Much. E-man.

Don't you ever rest?

http://www.va.gov/hac/champva/champva.asp

Excellent site

I will cast no stones!

Dave Barker

THIS IS WORTH THE EFFORT...PEOPLE DO READ IT!

The article below is accurate. The one thing it does not reflect is the ratio of veterans and non veterans. When the ratio is factored this issue becomes apparently out of balance.
From the VA:
One-third of adult homeless men and nearly one-quarter of all homeless adults have served in the armed forces. While there is no true measure of the number of homeless veterans, it has been estimated that more than 200,000 veterans may be homeless on any given night and that twice as many veterans experience homelessness during a year. Many other veterans are considered at risk because of poverty, lack of support from family and friends and precarious living conditions in overcrowded or substandard housing. Ninety-seven percent of homeless veterans are male and the vast majority are single. About 45 percent of homeless veterans suffer from mental illness and, slightly more than 68 percent suffer from alcohol or drug abuse problems. Thirty-three percent have both psychiatric and substance abuse disorders.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is the only federal agency that provides substantial hands-on assistance directly to homeless people. Last year, VA provided services to over 77,000 veterans in its specialized homeless programs. Although limited to veterans and their dependents, VA's major homeless programs constitute the largest integrated network of homeless assistance programs in the country, offering a wide array of services and initiatives to help veterans recover from homelessness and live as self-sufficiently and independently as possible. Nearly one-quarter of homeless veterans have said they have used VA homeless services and 57 percent have said they have used VA health-care services.

VA, using its own resources or in partnerships with others, has secured more than 8,000 transitional and permanent beds for homeless veterans throughout the nation. VA spends several billion dollars from its health care and benefit assistance programs to assist tens of thousands of homeless and at-risk veterans. To increase this assistance, VA conducts outreach to connect homeless veterans to both mainstream and homeless-specific VA programs and benefits. These programs strive to offer a continuum of services that include:

• Aggressive outreach to veterans living on the streets and in shelters who
otherwise would not seek assistance;
• Clinical assessment and referral for medical treatment of physical and
psychiatric disorders, including substance abuse;
• Long-term transitional residential assistance, case management and
rehabilitation; and,
• Employment assistance and linkage with available income supports and
permanent housing.

VA has awarded more than 300 grants to public and nonprofit groups to assist homeless veterans in 50 states and the District of Columbia to provide transitional housing, service centers, and vans to provide transportation to services and employment.

I will cast no stones!

Dave Barker

Those numbers make me feel terrible. But what the VA is doing for these unfortunate souls is a blessing.

As a result of the move I will not be able to give as much attention as I normally do. Please be so kind as to give the VA threads a bump, now and then. The Swann excessive posts will push them out of sight.
Out of sight means out of mind. (Which moving may well put me out of mind!)

I will cast no stones!

Dave Barker

Friday I worked from 3:30am until 4:00pm packing boxes. In the meantime I still had appointments for claims. My volunteer Kathy joined me at 8:00am and she worked until 4:00pm. Her husband Bob helped as much as he could.
Monday and Tuesday we must pack over 3,000 files and all of the forms I use, for the big move Wednesday December 10th. Then we must put all of the stuff back in the drawers where it belongs.
So please boost this up until after Friday so it does not get lost.

thanks!

Dave Barker

DONE!

Good luck with the move. If I had to move my office, I think I'd just fall on my sword instead. Then there's my house; my husband is a pack rat.

Stay in touch as much as possible. I know that can be tough; do you ever sleep?

Watch the politicians!

I will cast no stones!

Dave Barker

IMPORTANT STUFF...

MOVING UP :-)

Cut & Paste
WASHINGTON (December 10, 2003) - The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is delivering high quality health care, benefits and memorial services to the nation’s veterans, according to VA’s FY 2003 Annual Performance and Accountability Report submitted today to the President and the Congress.
“We have fulfilled our responsibility to provide veterans with the best in benefits and health care by making our department a model of excellence,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Anthony J. Principi. “We are honored to care for the health, welfare and dignity of veterans in recognition of their service to our nation.”
The report documents VA’s progress during fiscal year 2003 towards making sure that America’s veterans and their families receive timely, compassionate, high-quality care and benefits.
VA achieved an “unqualified clean audit opinion” on its financial statements for the fifth consecutive year. This is the best report an agency can receive from an independent auditor.
According to the report, the number of veterans using VA’s health care system has risen dramatically in recent years, increasing from 2.9 million in 1995 to 5 million in 2003. To ensure availability of care for the core veteran population, a new regulation giving priority access for severely disabled veterans was implemented for those veterans with service-connected disabilities rated 50 percent or greater.
VA continues to receive high satisfaction ratings among its patients with scores of 73 percent for inpatients and 74 percent for outpatients, both numbers up from FY 2002.
In memorial affairs, VA maintained high levels of customer satisfaction with burial services. In a satisfaction survey, 97 percent of respondents rated the appearance of VA’s national cemeteries as “excellent.”
VA significantly reduced its backlog of disability claims from a high of 432,000 claims to 254,000 at the end of 2003. In addition, the percentage of claims more than six months old was reduced from 35 percent to 19 percent.
In 2003, VA met four of the five key performance goals relating to the smooth transition of veterans from active military service to civilian life. On the subject of having VA medical centers provide electronic access to health information transmitted by the Department of Defense on separated service members, VA surpassed its goal of 50 percent by achieving 100 percent.
The Federal Health Information Exchange and Government Computerized Patient Record, a joint program with the Department of Defense, is fully installed and functioning at all sites and will further ease the transition of veterans from active service to civilian life.
“As America’s troops return from liberating Iraq, we are reminded once again of the incredible sacrifices our servicemen and women make in defense of freedom,” said Principi. “I will ensure they continue to receive exceptional service and the respect they have earned.”
VA’s FY 2003 Annual Performance and Accountability Report can be found on the Internet at www.va.gov/budget/report.
I will cast no stones!

Dave Barker