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Veterans Administration holds first-ever meeting for vets in Janesville area

Janesville Gazette - 6/30/2017

June 30--TOWN OF ROCK -- Marine Corps veteran Tim Brooks went to a local urgent care once, and the Veterans Administration told him it wouldn't cover the cost because his problem wasn't life threatening.

It's hard to know what's life threatening, Brooks told VA officials Thursday, and wouldn't it be a good idea to have someone from the VA help a veteran fill out the paperwork to appeal such a decision?

That was one of the complaints VA officials from Madison received Thursday at Blackhawk Technical College's main campus.

Officials from the William S. Middleton Memorial Veterans Hospital in Madison were holding their first-ever listening session for the area, and they heard complaints but also praise from a handful of veterans who showed up.

Not a bad idea, hospital Administrator John Rohrer said of Brooks' idea, but it's all about the funding.

The VA nationally actually might help Brooks with his complaint. Now, the VA allows veterans to use their local health-care providers if they have been waiting for service for more than 30 days or live more than 40 miles from the VA hospital, Rohrer said.

But legislation is in the works to make it easier for veterans to be served locally, Rohrer said.

And the new secretary of Veterans Affairs, David Shulkin, wants such decisions to be based on quality of care, not distance or wait times, Rohrer said.

Brooks had another complaint: Why no VA dental coverage?

"We can go into battle and get our arm or leg torn off, but they can't pull a tooth?" he asked.

Rohrer said he didn't have the legal authority to approve dental care, and while it might be something the VA gets into someday, it's about how much money Congress allows the VA to spend.

Brooks and others also complimented the VA on the care they have received.

"The doctors I have seen here, they're amazing," said Kathy Kvistad of Janesville. "You guys up in Madison do a great job."

Kvistad praised the help she's gotten with losing weight from VA nutritionists, but she said it's hard for someone who qualifies for federal food aid to buy the nutritious foods they recommend.

Rohrer agreed healthful food costs more, but he said it's not something the VA can fix. He suggested local resources could help low-income vets.

Kvistad also had complaints about a lack of affordable housing, and Rohrer put her in touch with a VA housing coordinator, who spoke to her after the meeting.

A fellow veteran attending the meeting, Bill Matteson, also approached Kvistad, saying he works for a veterans-help program at the Rock County Job Center, and he might be able to help her find a job with better pay.

Mike Olmsted, the veterans resource officer at Blackhawk Tech--whose job is going away because of a loss of grant funding--said the biggest complaint he hears is that people don't know the VA is available and what it offers.

Rohrer said the VA has never been good at publicizing itself, but efforts are in the works to change that. One effort is a national campaign called Choose VA, which will start soon.

Rohrer outlined the VA's national priorities, which include changing its much-maligned records system and a big push this year for suicide prevention.

Twenty veterans commit suicide each day, Rohrer said, but only six of those were being seen at a VA hospital, and only three for mental-health treatment.

A new tool to combat the problem was put in place in February. The VA crunches data on all the people it serves--including the 43,000 served by the Madison hospital and its clinics--and finds those who are at high risk for suicide.

The VA generates a new list each month, and it reaches out to each patient, making sure they get the care they need, Rohrer said.

Rohrer said he is considering coming to Janesville more than once a year. Brooks liked that.

"I think there should be more of this because things in Washington are constantly changing, and we as vets need to keep up," Brooks said.

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(c)2017 The Janesville Gazette (Janesville, Wis.)

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