1,200 Vets Wrongly Told They Have ALS

(AP)  At least 1,200 veterans across the country have been mistakenly told by the Veterans Administration that they suffer from a fatal neurological disease.

One of the leaders of a Gulf War veterans group says panicked veterans from Alabama, Florida, Kansas, North Carolina, West Virginia and Wyoming have contacted the group about the error.

Denise Nichols, the vice president of the National Gulf War Resource Center, says the VA is blaming a coding error for the mistake.

Letters dated Aug. 12 were intended to notify veterans who have Lou Gehrig's disease of disability benefits available to them.

Calls to the VA were not immediately returned Monday.

Lou Gehrig's disease, or ALS, is a rapidly progressive disease that attacks the nerve cells responsible for controlling voluntary muscles.

[toldyouso29]

CORRECTION:

In 2003, my mother was being treated for lung cancer. MEDICARE informed the hospital that they would not pay for her experimental treatments any longer because she was going to die anyway. We had to get a lawyer and threaten lawsuits and media exposure--so they agreed to keep paying partially (on a bill of 18K per month, they paid a little over 11K) she lived for an extra 18 months as opposed to the 3 months prognosis given to her. Consider what would have happened if the gov was the only game in town with no recourse. THAT is the government for you.

[toldyouso29]

Survival of the fittest--what don't kill ya will make ya stronger--and to become strong--be a person metal or clay--they must go through the fire to strengthen their vessel. Embrace the fire, and when harden--MOVE ON and UP and OUT--don't sigh, sit in the fire and turn into a slagged up lump of melted and useless material. CHOICES. and this will not improve life or America to once again expect others to bail you out.

Health care is a mess--but the real mess is the ridiculous costs of medicine and medical devices and services--Obama is NOT addressing that--they will continue to escalate while everyone says "Hey, we know--lets get the rest of Americans to help pay for this stuff" Now does that address the ridiculous price of medicine and healthcare or shift the burden to others?

And in the shifting--what are those who don't try hard enough doing for themselves? The net result of this idea will be people hiding money or leaving this country or changing jobs to not bear this burden and until we cap the prices Big pharm and others make--the problem is the same, you only shift who you make pay for this problem.

This year, the CEO of a certain pharm company will get a 6 million dollar bonus for cannibalizing that company and destroying it. The company will be sold this year, over 40K workers will be out of work and the company will be sold off to various other drug companies. This CEO came out of nowhere and cut a deal which will net him 6 million as a bonus for closing the sale. The company has been in business for over 60 years. It's destruction will affect jobs all over the world, but mostly in the midwest. This is what this healthcare initiative and gov. take over does not change or stop. 6 million big ones for a new guy who sold out a company--nothing or almost nothing for the workers and 40K more people on the dole that will need free healthcare and jobs...

The gub'ment . Sounds like a great plan doesn't it? The serf system is being revived. The Elite are the lawyers who become our politicians, the serfs will be the middle class, and the poor won't even be on the radar.

[toldyouso29]

Uh huh--and we all just can't WAIT to be put on the "gub'ment" health care program that will cost some of us at least 9000.00/year than we pay now for insurance. Can't wait:

1. To be forced to buy into a program that is worse than what I have now but costs a lot more, so I can help pay for people who don't have insurance or can't get insurance.

2. To be told I have Lou Gherig's disease or some other fatal illness by mistake.

3. be exposed to HIV through faulty colonoscopy tests and procedures.

4. Wait two years or more for treatment if I have a brain related injury.

5. Have the gub'ment decide when and what treatments I can get and 'triage' my medical conditions deciding for me which ones my ~ 12K per year insurance will actually pay for (Medicare and Medicaid do this right now as do many HMOs which I do NOT belong to)

6. Not be able to sue if they botch my services or there is neglect due to them being under the umbrella of government

7. Not be able to change programs or insurance if they are crappy or if the Medical services are crappy, because they all will be crappy and my power to choose as a consumer will be dead because they all will be under government control and government protection.

Go from paying 4800.00 per year for my Provider plus BC/BS to paying around 950.00/month for less and waiting for services.

Yep--it'll cost more but it'll be a hoot because people who either did not want to pay or did not make sacrifices to have health care will now have it--thanks to my dollars and others dollars and we can finally all suffer and be f'd together--just like they always wanted.

There are two huge factors between those who are successful and those who are not--life's circumstances and how the individual responds to them--some fall and get up and never stop trying--others fall--and wallow in the mud then point fingers at their family, their life or their environment and BLAME their circumstance but never get up and do stop trying (or hide out behind alcohol, drugs or other distractions)

The other factor besides the way we react to circumstances is also the same in a way--it is who blames and who takes responsibility. Poor people blame the wealthy or well to do for their troubles and thinks those who have more should pay more for them--there is a sense of entitlement. "You have way more than me, so you should pay way more than me and in fact, you should pay FOR people like me" This allows two very negative things to occur:

A. They take no responsibility for their own lives so they never get up off their own butts and recognize change starts and ends with themselves.

B. They are constantly looking to parasite off of others and think that is a right.
Behind many people with poor benefits and outlook on life is a sorry family history,negative culture and hard luck--but that is behind many successful people too. The difference in the two is what each did or did not do in response to that poor family history, negative culture and hard luck.

You will find one worked against it and did not give up or give in--you will find the other bought into their negative lives and learned to (on some level) accept their lot and think the world should have done better by them--instead of recognizing that the world (and others) owe them NOTHING. They should have thought enough of themselves and cared enough about their lives and their kid's lives--to do better by themselves. It all comes down to choices--and as a person from the hood who clawed and worked and fought my way out--I know what I am talking about. It's true life can deal horrible blows (and I could match my story up to most people from that kind of environment) but it is also true that some people are defeated by their lives. It is a choice and an outlook.

[jackp32]

Sounds like an a*s*s at the VA was in charge of a*l*s.

[rwsmith29456]

This is from the people that never even cleaned the colonoscopy equipment after sticking it up everybody's butt.

[mav547166]

This is Government Health care at its finest. They can't handle a few million vets much less the other 290 million or so of us.

[jsf14]

You really think that doctors, clinics, HMOs, and other private organizations do NOT make similar mistakes? In any case, no one is saying that the government should run the MEDICAL side of a national health service. In countries that have universal coverage, the governments do not run the medical side or send out notices about patient ailments.

[jsd330]

jsf14

Ever been in a VA hospital? They lose paperwork, mix it up and that's just the administration part. Which the government is going to do, and they will be government employee's just like the VA. I kind of doubt the private health sector has those kind of problems.

[docpeter1953]

jsd330

Don't place any money you can't afford to lose on that bet.

Private health care providers and hospitals make the same mistakes. Substituting one digit in the ICD-9 codes can make a big difference in your "diagnosis".

And yes hospitals do lose paperwork. I worked in a hospital once where they lost (misplaced) a patient. Nursing staff was looking for him for over an hour so he could be transported via helicopter. Patient was in coffee shop drinking coffee waiting for the chopper. When he saw the helicopter land he went to the pad, that is when the patient was "found".

[trapbreaking]

You want the government running your health care? Read this article again.

.

[McHineguy]

And this is the same organization that wants to take over your health care. Of course they tell you that you will have choices. Just like the veterans have.