Submitted by Lawrence Rafferty, (rafflaw), Guest Blogger
I have previously written about certain politicians wanting to reduce Disabled Veteran’s disability payments in order to reduce the nation’s debt. Now it seems that even the Military health care system called Tricare, is balking at providing the necessary, albeit expensive, cognitive rehabilitation therapy for brain injured military personnel. Once again, wounded vets are being taken advantage of by the very system that is designed to provide them with medical care.
Recently, a group of 74 members of Congress from both parties, sent a letter to the Pentagon to demand that these wounded Heroes be taken care of properly and without any further delay. Some of these same members of Congress sent a similar demand to the Pentagon two years ago and in true bureaucratic fashion, the Pentagon and Tricare authorized a study to review the requested therapy. I bet you are surprised that the controversial study came down in favor of not paying for this much-needed therapy!
“Rep. Bill Pascral (D-NJ) and Rep. Todd Platts (R-PA) the leaders of the Congressional Brain Injury Task Force, cited an investigation by ProPublica and NPR revealing that Tricare, an insurance-style plan covering soldiers and many veterans, had relied on a controversial study to avoid paying for the intensive and often expensive treatment. ‘ “We hope that you share our concern that service members returning from the battlefield cannot wait to receive treatment for their injuries,” the letter states. “It is our hope that there exists some contingency plan to provide cognitive rehabilitation for service members who are returning home today.” ‘, as reported in the Raw Story article linked below.
I do understand that money needs to be saved in all areas, even in the Defense Budget. But, why is it that the Government and the Pentagon have the default position that the best way to save money is to hurt our wounded Heroes by reducing their benefits or blocking them from receiving the care that they so desperately need? Is someone getting rich off of Tricare trying to avoid covering an expensive therapy that provides hope for these wounded Veterans? These are questions that need to be answered. However, the first order of business is for Tricare to do the right thing and cover this therapy and assist the very people who fought for our country! Once we know that our Heroes are being properly taken care of, then we need to find out why they have been deprived of Tricare payments for this coverage for over two years, and who if any is profiting from this denial of coverage. Call me naive, but is it possible for anyone to not agree that it is our duty to provide for all wounded Veterans with the best possible care, no matter how much it costs?
Source: Rawstory
Submitted by Lawrence Rafferty, (rafflaw), Guest Blogger