Veterans Affairs
Poisoned Veterans from Camp Lejeune May Finally See Justice
Camp Lejeune is a Marine Corps base camp in Jackson, North Carolina. Since 1941, it has been the home of multiple commands, teaching our Marines how to effectively train in both water and on land. It was the third official Marine boot camp set up in the country, and it is the largest one as…
Read MoreBlack Veterans, Mental Health Care, and Racial Bias
A recent study revealing the presence of implicit racial bias in VA mental health care shows that Black patients can pick up on non-verbal cues from their doctors, leading them to experience disparities in quality of care. When patients perceive bias in health care, they may be less likely to seek necessary treatment, preventative medical…
Read MoreWhistleblower Reveals VA Attempted to Cut Waiting Lists by Making Up Fake Appointments
The day prior to testifying at a House of Representatives committee hearing regarding misconduct at the Department of Veterans Affairs, Minu Aghevli was given a document. It amounted to a 170-pages long pink slip, with approximately 140 of those pages explaining why the VA planned to terminate her. Ms. Aghevli, 42, is a native of…
Read MoreCongressman Asks for Answers Regarding Death of Navy Veteran Luke Smyth
NOV. 2019 UPDATE Channel 9 reports that Representative Phil Roe (R-TN) is seeking answers about the death of Navy veteran Luke Smyth. Rep. Roe told Channel 9 anchor Allison Latos that he will “get some answers” regarding “what happened to the employees involved [in Smyth’s death] and whether they instituted more mental health training” after…
Read MoreThe VA Ignored Millions Earmarked for Veteran Suicide Prevention
Preventing veterans from committing suicide was named the “highest clinical priority” by the Veterans Administration, yet VA officials still failed to spend the $17.7 million in the suicide prevention budget for fiscal year 2018, according to a story in Time Magazine. A report published in November 2018 by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) found…
Read MoreH.R. 1215 Hurts Veterans and the Values They Swore to Protect
You might not know Steve Cooper. He’s a U.S. Army veteran and former business owner dying from prostate cancer that could have been treated, if he had been given the right care by a VA hospital in Phoenix in 2011. Because of an act of medical negligence, Steve’s life has been cut tragically short. He…
Read MoreWhat Poisoned the Wells at Camp Lejeune?
Camp Lejeune, the largest Marine Corps. Base camp in the country, has been back in the news recently, thanks to a last-minute act by former President Barack Obama. As we previously discussed, an additional $2 billion has been set aside for Marines and their family members who spent at least 30 days at Camp Lejeune…
Read MoreThe VA Problem with Its Priorities
The Department of Veterans Affairs has been plagued in recent years for its systematic failure to address the health and wellness concerns of our nation’s veterans. In essence, the system is failing at the very thing it was designed to do. While new leadership is supposedly working to address the long wait times and crumbling…
Read MoreBarry Coates Dedicated His Life to His Country, and His Death to Fellow Veterans
Barry Coates, the man who would become the face of the Veterans Affairs scandal over delays in care, passed away in January of this year. His story is heartbreaking and poignant, and our thoughts and prayers are with his family as they continue to adjust to his absence from their lives. However, his story is…
Read MoreSystematic Misallocation of Funds Continues to Plague Beleaguered VA
The VA has been making headlines since 2014, when reports surfaced that patients were dying while waiting for appointments and important procedures. While officials have been replaced and rules have been implemented to hold the agency to a higher level of accountability, a study by the US Government Accountability Office in April of this year…
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