VETERANS CORNER: How the government shutdown is affecting the VA

Veterans Administration facility at Togus. (Internet photo)

by Gary Kennedy

Well, here we are in the middle of a government shutdown because the Democrats and Republicans can’t play fair. If you want to see the why of it all you will have to check out your favorite news media but also check out the one you really don’t care for so you can get a fair picture of the two sides, if that’s even possible. Then you will have to extrapolate the truth of it all. I am certain you will find it if you are unbiased and seek the truth. I personally only care for the ramifications this sort of thing brings about that affects the elderly and in particular the veterans of which many elderly are.

Maine has always been known for being a hard working state with great values. That being said, most young men and some young women seek the military as their first real job. That is why Maine has many veterans in proportion to the population. For the most part government shut downs don’t affect our veteran population and our VA service centers. However, I went to VBA today and found a big note on the door that said it was closed due to the government shut down. This made me a little bit angry as the only area supposedly shut down was VBA. All the medical entities were open for business as usual.

I have been traveling the VA halls for 48 or more years, so I get to know most people working there, I mention this because if you have a shut down the non critical departments usually stay home without pay. As I traveled around the campus during lunch hour I noticed some of the employees that work at VBA were still there but not opening their duty stations. The front section of VBA is basically the same as other service organizations. They are there to answer questions and help with claims. They are not there to evaluate claims. So, I wondered why they needed to be closed. I somewhat understand why the back might be shut down as they deal with VA case situations. I guess I still wonder why? If the employees are still there, what is their purpose?

I have recently had several problems with VA clinics. Dental has been a nightmare for me as I have undergone some major work but have had a very poor follow up plan, which is very important to me as I do a lot of traveling and speaking. Obviously, my oral well-being is very important to me. I find that most of the follow-up is initiated by me. Less than a year ago such was not the case. The dental staff at that time was great but was destroyed by administrative decisions which in my opinion were very poor decisions. In past issues at this paper you might recall I mentioned the Peter Principle. Because of this VA has been on very shaky ground. Sooner or later someone from the Secretary of Veterans Affairs office needs to open their doors to those of us who have had a great deal of experience with the why of these situations. All poor management decisions can be weeded out and analyzed. Only then can we straighten up the VA and get it back on track. I really hate to see where the current path leads us.

As I conclude this article the shut down has been going on for a couple of weeks and it’s already taking its toll. Hundreds of federal employees are being permanently eliminated. The president’s team is saying those being removed are just drift wood. It is part of the already established cut backs that have been earmarked for elimination. The news media’s are saying they are not needed and that millions of taxpayer dollars are being returned to the tax payer. I think we all know that the government has been top heavy. I believe that could be said about state governments as well. If we look hard enough we all could point to money saving waste. Cleaning our government both state and federal can be a messy undertaking but it needs to be done when needed.

Hopefully, next week this will be all over and we can get back to working with veterans in a proper manner. Even though we are going through this government shutdown be assured that all the veterans’ claims are being processed. Watch “My healtheVet” on your computer and you can follow your case. Things will get better soon. It always does. God bless you and yours. Have a great safe weekend.

The views of the author of this column are not necessarily those of The Town Line newspaper, its staff and board of directors.