The veterans who attended, did so with the knowledge that they were meeting with someone who could potentially help them in their ongoing plight to obtain help for rural veterans.
Combat veterans of Korea, Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan were present.
Though many issues were addressed, the issue most stressed was the lack of services readily available to the veterans within the Congressman's congressional district.
Congressional District 4 includes Alpine, Amador, Calaveras, Mariposa and Tuolumne Counties as well as sections of Fresno, Madera, Nevada and Placer Counties.
According to the CalVet 2013 veteran population numbers, there exists 130,265 veterans within this district. (Though these numbers include the total populations of veterans in the full counties of Fresno, Madera, Nevada and Placer.)
With a comparative analysis, the population of veterans within this district is approximately equal to that of Orange County with 132,529 veterans.
Orange County boasts 5 facilities for veterans; North County Vet Center, South County Vet Center, VA Long Beach, Anaheim Veterans Clinic, and VA Laguna Hills Outpatient Clinic.
District 4 offers two facilities; Sonora Outpatient and Fresno Vet Center.
Questions were also raised about:
Access to prescriptions- use of a non-VA clinic to pick them up, Rite Aid, CVS, etc. One vet pointed to the turmoil of mail order scrips...when a vets prescription gets lost in the mail he can't just head up to CVS and get a refill.
Access to housing: there isn't any.
Inability to use Mather as opposed to Palo Alto- apparently the two VA hosptials do not "talk" to one another causing delays in treatment, services and care.
Excessive miles to travel for basic service - from some locations in Calaveras County the travel time to the closest clinic can exceed 80 miles and a trip to Palo Alto can be an almost three hour trip...one way. Try doing that with PTSD or a back injury.
VA backlog - in order to reduce backlog Oakland VA sent their claims out to less backed up VA's. One veteran's claim is back east after being bumped to three separate claims offices in three different states along the way.
'Proof of service' claim and care denials - many who served in wars that our government did not want the public to know about are not able to receive care through the VA. For instance, a DD214 (separation document) will not list Cambodia or Laos....supposedly we were not there. But for many vets the reality is very different. The fight to receive care for these veterans is a web of unfathomable bureaucracy and though they fought, they are refused care.
Possible use of HR3230 funds for a clinic in Calaveras or Amador - HR3230 recently signed into law by the President allows for some funds to be used for building and or leasing of building for outpatient clinics.
When asked what he had learned from the veterans in attendance, McClintock stated, "The sooner we go to a VA choice system the better (allowing veterans to use local facilities with VA reimbursing the facilities)...VA care is dramatically different from one area of the district to the other; there are clearly overcrowding issues in this area....we need to expand civilian services to veterans." He also stressed the importance of communication and that congressional inquiries into VA claims would be a top priority.
The hour was up too quickly and the vets could only hope that they had enlightened Congressman McClintock to their plight. Veterans thanked him for his time and his willingness to hear their concerns as well as his seemingly clear desire to see some action take place for services for veterans.
While I do not profess to be a veteran, I am a veteran advocate, and as such many veterans entrust their feelings and thoughts to me. This being said, it is very important to note that many of the veterans in attendance (about 98%) had been 'burned' by the VA at some point in their life. Some had given up accessing care through the VA and were simply trying to exist, others have opted to fight for something that is rightfully theirs. Either way, it is important to understand that their very presence at this meeting showed remarkable strength. They have learned over the years to not trust the very government they fought for; not to expect any help. But they did come and they did speak and hopefully their voices were heard.
This type of meeting was not taken lightly by the veterans. Some went home that night and suffered flash backs. Others went home feeling exhausted, spent, and still helpless against the bureaucratic machine. But they all came before their representative with one goal; "to fix the system for those coming home."
I hope Mr McClintock heard their simple requests for help they, and those coming home, so badly deserve and so desperately need. I hope he saw them for what they truly are....heroes.
by
Charity Maness
