Posted on 04/02/2016 10:13:30 AM PDT by SandRat
Seven of 15 outside health advisors appointed to recommend ways to improve veterans’ health services over the next two decades have proposed shutting down all VA medical centers and outpatient services, and having its nine million enrollees get their medical care in the private sector.
The 34-page “straw man” document released by the congressionally-created Commission on Care, calls for an immediate halt to construction of new VA hospitals and clinics, and launch of a “BRAC-like process” to begin closing existing facilities. Shuttering the largest medical system in the country would leave the VA to be “primarily a payor” for the care veterans would receive from civilian community doctors and health facilities.
To entice these physicians and facilities to accept more veterans as patients, the straw man document proposes that VA reimbursement rates be set five or 10 percent higher than Medicare pays.
Over the next two decades? It needs to be fixed now.
Self-ping for later reference.
Gotta boost the Obamacare enrollment numbers somehow.
This is pretty much what most military individuals have been suggesting for 50 years. The way that the VA is set up and organized....it will never be cost-effective.
More proof that government “healthcare” is doomed to fail every time. Obamacare is not long for this world either. “Single payer” will not work unless the “single payer” is the one who receives the medical care.
Between unemployment victims, veterans, employer dumping incentives, prisons, welfare baby mammas, and illegal immigrants, Obamacare should be just booming.
Side benefit for the regime: no one would go into the military.
Just give every vet with a disability a debit card good only for medical care and prescription drugs and be done with it.
L
self ping
There are a lot of VA facilities that deliver excellent care. What needs to happen is the shutdown of the VA facilities that are found to be substandard. These are often a reflection of their locations—Detroit, Atlanta, etc. They are staffed by union-protected employees who care little for the people they serve. Given their location and the people they have to draw upon for employees—I say shut those down. There is no hope. Keep the VA facilities who deliver good care open, as they fill a niche that civilian organizations can’t replicate.
Most of the medical people are OK.
The problem is the administrative personnel.
I wouldn’t even fire them.
I would treat the VA bureaucrats like they treat the Veterans.
Screw their pay and benefits up and then deny that there is a problem. After a year of no pay, they’ll leave on their own.
Contracting out the health care services to public or private hospitals and physicians kind of takes away what had been a sweet government monopoly and a source of patronage for what was treated, many times, as a plum assignment for “administrators” who had done a singularly good job of political service for some Senator or Representative in their home district, as well as steering cash flow back to the locality of the VA facility.
Can’t just take all that down overnight, you know. Think of all the people who get displaced....
Like a factory can’t be closed and the entire manufacturing facility be recreated in Mexico or China? Remarkable how swiftly THAT can come to pass.
I agree.
Here is an idea. Just think about this. Take all the money spent on the VA and figure out EXACTLY how many folks are in need of care that Qualify. Get rid of ALL VA,... facilities, people, doctors, etc. Every year, right each veteran a check for a distributive amount.
I have no idea but can only guess, each veteran would get tens of thousands of dollars each year and could well afford to buy their own insurance and cover some deductibles. I would bet each vet would get $40K to $50K per year for what the government wastes.
Somebody fact check me on that, it’s only a supposition.
“This is pretty much what most military individuals have been suggesting for 50 years. The way that the VA is set up and organized....it will never be cost-effective.”
Private medical practice cannot and should not be expected to handle all of the medical needs of the military veterans, especially with respect to many forms of traumatic combat and other military related injuries. The idea of simply shutting down the VA medical centers is a very bad idea. Instead, the civilian medical facilities should be used to supplement the VA healthcare, especially for the non-military related health problems, but the VA medical centers should be readily available to military service related injuries.
That is actually not a completely bad idea. For what the VA wastes on services, you could likely load those cards with $30K+ and still save the country money. Then VETS could buy their own insurance and still have money to cover deductible maxouts.
The best medical care I ever had was at the VA and their warfighter specialty programs are unique and unsurpassed.
5-10% above Medicare/Medicaide would ensure Vets have no access when needed and when they get access they won't get the care they need.
The RIGHT answer is to fix VA by firing, permanently, Regional Directors who don't deliver. And Hospital/Clinic Directors too.
Ask any vet in the Norcal or Seattle area systems and you will hear nothing but praise. Texas is supposed to be quite good as well...as is Nevada.
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