Posted on 04/11/2009 3:58:16 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
Prisoners of war suffer in ways most veterans don't, enduring humiliating forced marches, torture or other trauma that may haunt them long afterward. In partial recompense, the government extends them special benefits, from free parking and tax breaks to priority in medical treatment.
Trouble is, some of the much-admired recipients of these benefits apparently don't deserve them.
There are only 21 surviving POWs from the first Gulf War in 1991, the Department of Defense says. Yet the Department of Veterans Affairs is paying disability benefits to 286 service members it says were taken prisoner during that conflict, according to data released by VA to The Associated Press.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Why can’t the government figure this one out? Oh, wait...it’s the government.
Gee, citizens gaming the system to extract maximum benefit from the Taxpayer?
Color me shocked!
>>There are only 21 surviving POWs from the first Gulf War in 1991, the Department of Defense says. Yet the Department of Veterans Affairs is paying disability benefits to 286 service members it says were taken prisoner during that conflict, according to data released by VA to The Associated Press.<<
Is there a difference between having been taken prisoner versus being officially a POW?
Maybe the government need to pay me as a consultant because I’m pretty smart when it comes to complicated issues like this. I might look at the two lists of names and addresses and compare... ooops, oh, I don’t want to give my secret away.
More from the article:
“A similar discrepancy arises with Vietnam POWs.
Only 661 officially recognized prisoners returned alive
and about 100 of those have since died,
but 966 are getting disability payments.
And why can’t we investigate 286 people and figure out who’s real and who’s scamming??? What the hell is going on in Washington?
mrs
Maybe the young girls that wore bracelets with the fella’s names on them also get something/s
What? It’s not like it’s someone’s MONEY, or anything. Oh, wait...
Lest the MSM forget The Washington Governors race of '04 or the Minnesota senate race of '08
Focus is directed in the wrong direction IMO.
LOL.. If they have Bingo there, My wife is on her way.
and Thanks to your Brother!
I agree that something needs to be done about this, but it has to be done carefully.
My Story:
Last year I was diagnosed with Cancer of the larynx. The VA and the DoD accepts full responsibility for all respiratory, throat and larynx cancers for veterans who served in country RVN due to agent orange. This sounds like a no brainer, verify that I had Cancer of the larynx, verify I was in Viet Nam and cut a check and start my VA benefits.
I made my claim in December to the VA and today, it still isn’t approved. I am sure it will be, but I have gone 4 months now without the VA assistance I should get.
It is not a problem for a couple of reasons:
Medicare and my other insurance is picking up the tab for my care, and when the claim is approved , it will be back dated to December, but still, the wheels grind slowly.
My point is that if you spend too much time “verifying” the stories, people will be hurt. Do you err on the side of caution, or on the side of the person? I do not have an answer to that.
....Bob
Inter Governmental department Bickering!
Read somewhere some time ago that there were a bunch more claiming Nam Veteran benefits than served. Guess they still haven't figured it out yet!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q526mSA3TRs
My sister was a WAC in WWII and has a claim dated from Oct 2008 and it has been one stall after another for her request for assistance for her care home stay. Thank goodness her son is on it...
Well then an investigation should be done and the ones who are lying should go to jail!
Stolen Valor.
Maybe benefits are passed on to their children.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.