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Do you think there will ever come a time when the va treats combat veterans and veterans differently. I am asking because I go to the va and I am not a combat veteran. Sometimes I feel ashamed when I see combat veterans at va with battle wounds. For instance I hurt my foot after the military and went to PT at the VA and I felt like I was taking a spot that could be for a combat veteran that was wounded. Do you think there will ever be a day when combat veterans have their own facilities and funding and veterans with issues that happened after the military would not get as many benefits for instance being able to go to va for free if you make under certain amount of money. Or do you think veterans and combat veterans are all veterans and will all be treated the same?
A lot of times in the media they refer to combat veterans and I know they deserve a lot of respect but how proud should I be of being a navy veteran with some sea time but no combat I was in from 98 to 02. I wish I would have done more but I got out.
Politically they have made a distinction on when, not where, you served when awarding employment preference for other government jobs. You took the risk and unless you where one of the Joint Chiefs you were told where to go.
Is it possible the VA health system could work like employment preference, but not likely. Because what we do during peacetime is still dangerous. The USS Fitzgerald could have been struck by a freighter in 2000 instead of 2017 for example. I know that my old company suffered from a training death at the National Training Center and a traumatic amputation at Fort Riley in the years leading up to the Gulf War but suffered zero casualties in Iraq and Kuwait.
Do you think there will ever come a time when the va treats combat veterans and veterans differently. I am asking because I go to the va and I am not a combat veteran. Sometimes I feel ashamed when I see combat veterans at va with battle wounds. For instance I hurt my foot after the military and went to PT at the VA and I felt like I was taking a spot that could be for a combat veteran that was wounded. Do you think there will ever be a day when combat veterans have their own facilities and funding and veterans with issues that happened after the military would not get as many benefits for instance being able to go to va for free if you make under certain amount of money. Or do you think veterans and combat veterans are all veterans and will all be treated the same?
A lot of times in the media they refer to combat veterans and I know they deserve a lot of respect but how proud should I be of being a navy veteran with some sea time but no combat I was in from 98 to 02. I wish I would have done more but I got out.
Respectfully ......
Admirable that you think this way, but you did your service and you had an agreement w/ your country/gov't that you'd lay in on the line if needed. It wasn't in the cards. I'd still salute those on the table next to you for their sacrifices. But you don't need to apologize for anything if you served honorably.
I am a Vietnam era veteran and have never tried to pass myself off as a Vietnam combat veteran.
As a 2 year Navy draftee ,I probably should have used the GI Bill for college or vo-tech .
Many used it, a few abused it.
However, after retiring I did inquire about using VA healthcare for dental but found out unless you have a service connected disability, it is nearly impossible.
I was advised to check out the VA medical.
I have received a right hip replacement in 2014
Left hip replacement in 2015
A complicated hernia surgery in 2016.
I was not billed one penny. VA Choice program at a new civilian hospital.
It is my understanding VA acts like a supplement for my Medicare, but I have never received any billing info from either the VA or Medicare
I'm another who served during, but not in, Vietnam. It was discovered during AIT that I had a skill that the Army could use here in the States. You go where they send you.
Still, I wouldn't object if the VA were to put combat vets at the front of the line. I had a friend, a great guy, who came home a mess, although escaping significant physical injury. I've spent years around a handful of Marines who survived Vietnam but most still live with it every day. We can't do enough for our combat vets.
What we've learned in recent years about how the VA has conducted itself in some areas is disgusting. Trump seems to be addressing the problem. The ability to fire bad employees is a good start.
I did three years in the Army with two tours of combat duty in Viet Nam. Luck of the draw. As far as I'm concerned, you wore a uniform and you served your country. A Vet is a Vet. Period. End of discussion.
VA has eight priority levels, you should have gotten that in your initial brief.
List gets lengthy, I'm posting 1-5:
Priority Group 1
Veterans with service-connected disabilities rated 50% or more disabling, or
Veterans determined by VA to be unemployable due to service-connected conditions
Priority Group 2
Veterans with service-connected disabilities rated 30% or 40% disabling
Priority Group 3
Veterans who are Former Prisoners of War (POWs)
Veterans awarded a Purple Heart medal
Veterans whose discharge was for a disability that was incurred or aggravated in the line of duty
Veterans with VA-rated service-connected disabilities 10% or 20% disabling
Veterans awarded special eligibility classification under Title 38, U.S.C., § 1151, “benefits for individuals disabled by treatment or vocational rehabilitation”
Veterans awarded the Medal Of Honor (MOH)
Priority Group 4
Veterans who are receiving aid and attendance or housebound benefits
Veterans who have been determined by VA to be catastrophically disabled
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Priority Group 5
Nonservice-connected Veterans and noncompensable service-connected Veterans rated 0% disabled by VA with annual income below the VA’s and geographically (based on your resident zip code) adjusted income limits.
Veterans receiving VA pension benefits
Veterans eligible for Medicaid programs
What is your definition of "combat veteran"? I served on a ship in the Persian Gulf during Desert Storm and we fought the enemy. I didn't have bullets flying over my head but we were fighting an enemy and they wanted to kill us. Is that "combat"? Many of my shipmates were injured and two of them killed during our preparation to fight the enemy. Many others were injured while conducting combat operations even though the injuries were not directly caused by the enemy.
Or do you feel that ground combat is what constitutes "combat veterans"?
The military is a combat occupation regardless of what you do in the military. You can be ordered at any moment to combat and most in the military serve in dangerous positions regardless of what your job is.
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