It’s Time for a Stronger Commitment to Women Veterans

The Department of Veterans Affairs has been wrapped-up in scandal and jumping from one crisis to the next. Amid all these stories, another important issue is getting lost in the tumult: the VA’s commitment to women veterans’ health care.

A recent report by the Associated Press sheds light on the fact that a stronger commitment to caring for our women veterans is needed.

And just as more and more veterans are coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan, more and more of them are women. Even the head of the VA's office of women's health acknowledges that persistent shortcomings remain in caring for the 390,000 female veterans seen last year at VA Medical Centers and Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs) — despite an investment of more than $1.3 billion since 2008.

Despite this investment, problems abound, which are listed below in more detail. The bottom-line is that the VA is falling behind on care for all of our veterans. And for women in particular, VA Medical Centers and CBOCs have yet to keep pace with the rising numbers.

With more than $1.3 billion spent in the past six years on women’s health, the problem is delivery and execution. The same is true for the veterans enduring egregiously long wait-times. So while the VA is ironing out its other problems, this is also an opportune time to re-evaluate the processes related to how care is delivered to our women veterans.

Among the shortcomings for women’s care:

• Nearly 25% of VA Medical Centers do not have a full-time gynecologist on staff. And 140 of the 920 CBOCs serving rural areas do not have a designated women’s health provider.
• When a CBOC refers veterans to a university or other private medical facility to be screened for breast cancer, more than half the time their mammogram results are not provided to patients within two weeks, as required under VA policy.
• Female veterans are placed on the VA's Electronic Wait List at a higher rate than male veterans, meaning their wait times are often over 90 days.
• And according to a VA presentation last year, female veterans of child-bearing age were far more likely to be given medications that can cause birth defects than were women being treated through a private HMO.

With their numbers increasing, there is no choice but to put more focus on women veterans and confront these issues head on. Indeed, we need to elevate the level of care for all our veterans, and ensure the men and women who served our country get what they deserve.

Read more on this issue on the AP Report published online in the Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/22/veterans-affairs-womens-health_n_5519796.html?utm_hp_ref=tw

Brigadier General Carol Ann Fausone (ret.)

General Fausone served her country for 36 years in the US Air Force and Michigan National Guard as a nurse and medical officer. Carol Ann continues serving by “Taking Care of Our American Heroes and their Families” to obtain the benefits they deserve.

If you need help with your VA benefits claim, contact Legal Help For Veterans, PLLC and learn more at www.LegalHelpForVeterans.com. 

VA Backlog Initiative To Process Oldest Veteran Benefit Claims

The Department of Veterans Affairs has announced that it is launching a compensation claims initiative for vets who have been waiting for one year or more.

Claims raters working with the VA have been combing through the oldest claims in the system to allow those vets to get their benefits, if eligible. The Veterans Administration has announced that vets who are waiting for their claim to be processed are able to submit additional materials as evidence up to one full year after their provisional rating and prior to the VA issuing its final decision on their claim. Provisional decisions are intended to provide vets with their benefits faster and also will allow them the safety of an additional year to submit additional evidence if necessary. Those cases will be "fast-traced," said the Undersecretary for Benefits, Allison Hickey.

 

In tandem with this initiative, VA has announced that it still intends to prioritize the benefits claims of veterans who are homeless as well as the benefits claims for former prisoners of war, terminally ill vets, vets who claim financial hardship, and recipients of the Medal of Honor.

Decisions on benefit claims will be predicated on the evidence submitted, if needed, medical exams will be ordered and processed expeditiously. If an increase of a benefit is determined after additional evidence is submitted, those benefit payment will be paid retroactively to the initial claim file date.

This new initiative is also designed to allow a vet to appeal a decision, including lower benefits than expected, a denial of claim or another issue. The vet will have one full year to submit additional evidence, after which, the VBA will contact the vet to inform them that their rating has been determined and will provide standard appeal information. 

The plan is that, as the oldest claims are processed, the average claim competition time through the VA's system will improve and the average number of days a claim is in the benefits inventory will dramatically decrease.

During the pending phase of compensation claims, vets who are eligible can receive their healthcare benefits from the VA. Vets from recent conflicts are currently eligible for as many as five years of VA healthcare for free. More than 55 percent of vets who have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan are now using VA health care.

Wounded Warrior claims, meanwhile, are continuing to be processed separately with Department of Defense via the Integrated Disability Evaluation System (IDES). Vets designated as "Wounded Warriors" are receiving their VA compensation benefits just 61 days, on average, after separating from military service.

Worry over Healthcare Leaves Elderly Vulnerable to Medicare Scam

Mark Mandell, Esq.           

Scammers are now targeting the elderly, a population who are increasingly concerned over their health care, especially in light of the Affordable Care Act’s ensuing changes. A Medicare-card related scam has left a trail of elderly victims across at least 15 states, including Michigan, West Virginia, Tennessee, Illinois, New Jersey and California.

Individuals fall prey to such a scam after receiving a phone call informing them of the need to verify information in order to receive a new Medicare card. Despite being warned to never give out personal information over the phone, when the caller on the other end of the line seems legitimate, it is hard to pick out a fraudulent call.

"Medicare is my lifeline,” says Bessie Bell, 72, just one of many senior citizens who has received a fraudulent call within the last year.

When fraudulent callers pick up on these worries and focus on current issues such as Medicare changes and the cost of prescription drugs, it is easy for concerned individuals to believe the newest pitch. Lately, Medicare beneficiaries are being told they must verify their account information by giving out their bank account or Social Security numbers in order to receive a new Medicare card. Others have been lured into believing in a new, “Preferred Medicare” card that would somehow be used alongside the current card.

The public is concerned with how to spot the scammers as they grow more convincing. Before giving out any personal information, individuals are warned to stop and think: would the government call each individual if changes were made to the Medicare program? Senior citizens have been advised to first call their doctor, the drugstore, or the AARP before taking any action. While a call may seem legitimate, it is important to remember that bank routing numbers are public information, and while a caller’s knowledge of such information may make the call seem more legitimate, it is better to be safe than sorry.

 

While this Medicare-card related scam may be one of the newer fraudulent schemes occurring across the nation, these scammers are not alone. Just last year, millions were called to verify their personal information in order to receive diabetic test strips; fraudulent online pharmacies lure in many each year by offering prescription drugs at prices too good to be true.

If you have questions about criminal matters, fraud or other legal issues, please contact Mark Mandell or Tariq Hafeez at 248.380.0000 or online at www.MichiganFraudLawyer.com.

To learn more and visit the original article, please visit: http://www.livingstondaily.com/article/20130210/OPINION01/302100310/Susan-Tompor-Scammers-target-seniors-fake-Medicare-card