Inside Edition
Johanna Li
June 8, 2017
It was a beautiful moment as a Texas veteran with ALS stood in honor of his son’s graduation from basic training, after more than a year of dependence on a wheelchair.
read more here
Showing posts with label ALS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ALS. Show all posts
Friday, June 9, 2017
Texas veteran with ALS left wheelchair for son
Veteran With ALS Stands to 'Tap Out' His Son During His Graduation From Basic Training
Inside Edition
Johanna Li
June 8, 2017
It was a beautiful moment as a Texas veteran with ALS stood in honor of his son’s graduation from basic training, after more than a year of dependence on a wheelchair.
Last week, Frankie Sanchez Jr. of San Antonio graduated from basic training for the Air Force. As tradition, the graduate stood at attention until his father, Frankie Sanchez Sr., got out of his wheelchair to tap him out.
read more here
Inside Edition
Johanna Li
June 8, 2017
It was a beautiful moment as a Texas veteran with ALS stood in honor of his son’s graduation from basic training, after more than a year of dependence on a wheelchair.
read more here
Sunday, October 26, 2014
Florida Veterans Need to Consider VA Rules on Medical Marijuana
I support medical marijuana and hope it passes in Florida. Many people say that "Oh, it will get abused" so they don't plan on voting for it. Common sense should have shown them a long time ago that most things offering benefits to others end up getting abused, especially things intended to be medication.
The problem I have with this is there are important questions no one seems to be asking. The biggest one is, if marijuana is still illegal in the eyes of the federal government, then what happens when a veteran gets a prescription for it from a private doctor? Will the VA view it as legal or illegal when they take blood and urine tests for other things?
There are many states where medical marijuana is legal but the VA is a federal entity and must follow rules of the federal government. I haven't read anything about this being addressed.
They will not provide it or pay for it.
One more thing, don't bring it with you on VA property.
The problem I have with this is there are important questions no one seems to be asking. The biggest one is, if marijuana is still illegal in the eyes of the federal government, then what happens when a veteran gets a prescription for it from a private doctor? Will the VA view it as legal or illegal when they take blood and urine tests for other things?
There are many states where medical marijuana is legal but the VA is a federal entity and must follow rules of the federal government. I haven't read anything about this being addressed.
Viewpoint: Suffering? Don’t Move to FloridaI had to do a search to find the answer. Here it is.
Pensacola News Journal
Jon Mills
October 25, 2014
Retired Air Force Capt. Jeff Lahman served 25 years in the Air Force including time in special ops. He ended up with a series of injuries and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
He and his wife, also an Air Force officer, lived in Arizona. He was prescribed a large dose of oxycodone and other pain killers. Those prescription medicines brought him to a new low. A doctor suggested he try medical marijuana. He did and it changed his life. He was himself again. His wife saw the difference. Just last year he moved to Florida. He is a strong supporter of Amendment 2 because it would allow him to legally consult a Florida doctor about using medical marijuana.
Cathy Jordan was diagnosed with ALS in 1986 and given five years to live. She and her husband, Bob, moved from Delaware to Florida hoping a milder climate would help her condition. Doctors offered every prescription possible. Nothing worked. She began hoarding drugs with thoughts of suicide. She tried medical marijuana with the help of Bob and it worked. It acts as a muscle relaxer, anti-depressant and stimulates her appetite. In 2013, six officers entered her home and confiscated her medical marijuana.
read more here
Department of Veterans Affairs VHA DIRECTIVE 2011-004
Veterans Health Administration
Washington, DC 20420 January 31, 2011
ACCESS TO CLINICAL PROGRAMS FOR VETERANS
PARTICIPATING IN STATE-APPROVED MARIJUANA PROGRAMS
They will not provide it or pay for it.
(2) If a Veteran presents an authorization for marijuana to a VA provider or pharmacist, VA will not provide marijuana nor will it pay for it to be provided by a non-VA entity.
One more thing, don't bring it with you on VA property.
NOTE:
Possession of marijuana, even for authorized medical reasons, by Veterans while on VA property is in violation of VA regulation 1.218(a)(7) and places them at risk for prosecution under the Controlled Substances Act.
Sunday, September 14, 2014
ALS: Iowa National Guard Staff Sgt. Troy Musser
Living with ALS: Cedar Rapids veteran in the fight of his life
Ice Bucket Challenge, upcoming walk raise money, awareness of incurable disease
The Gazette
By Alison Gowans
Published: September 12 2014
As a member of the Iowa National Guard, Staff Sgt. Troy Musser earned the nickname, “The Machine,” after he broke multiple Guard physical fitness test records.
In two minutes, he could do 123 pushups or 95 situps.
Today he sits in a wheelchair, unable to move his legs and barely able to move his arms. Musser is living with ALS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
It’s a disease that’s risen in the public conscience of late, after a fundraising initiative for the ALS Association went viral. The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge filled social media with the clips and inspired millions of people to post videos of themselves dumping freezing water on their heads to raise money and awareness for ALS.
Even as the ice bucket challenge has spread awareness, there are thousands of people like Musser, fighting a terminal disease with no known cause and no known cure.
ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease after the baseball player who died from it in 1941, is a neurodegenerative disorder that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. It progressively robs people of their ability to walk, talk, swallow and breathe on their own. Eventually it leads to total paralysis and death.
read more here
Ice Bucket Challenge, upcoming walk raise money, awareness of incurable disease
The Gazette
By Alison Gowans
Published: September 12 2014
Musser, 32, lives in Cedar Rapids and was diagnosed with ALS almost three years ago, shortly after returning for a tour of duty in Afghanistan. He says he’s thankful for the strangers who have contributed to the ice bucket challenge — the national ALS Association reports it has raised more than $100 million through the fundraiser.
As a member of the Iowa National Guard, Staff Sgt. Troy Musser earned the nickname, “The Machine,” after he broke multiple Guard physical fitness test records.
In two minutes, he could do 123 pushups or 95 situps.
Today he sits in a wheelchair, unable to move his legs and barely able to move his arms. Musser is living with ALS, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
It’s a disease that’s risen in the public conscience of late, after a fundraising initiative for the ALS Association went viral. The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge filled social media with the clips and inspired millions of people to post videos of themselves dumping freezing water on their heads to raise money and awareness for ALS.
Even as the ice bucket challenge has spread awareness, there are thousands of people like Musser, fighting a terminal disease with no known cause and no known cure.
ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease after the baseball player who died from it in 1941, is a neurodegenerative disorder that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. It progressively robs people of their ability to walk, talk, swallow and breathe on their own. Eventually it leads to total paralysis and death.
read more here
Monday, June 16, 2014
Iraq Veteran talks about losing wife to ALS for Father's Day
Local single dad, veteran stars in ad
FOX 19
Posted by Kara Foxx
Posted: Jun 15, 2014
How did you spend Father's Day? For a local man, the special day isn't just one day a year.
Ryan Heitkamp of Cheviot is the face of an internet ad for Bounty called "Every Day feels like Father's Day."
Heitkamp is a single father and a veteran who lost his wife to ALS a few years ago, just six months after the birth of his daughter, Aubrey.
"And though she be but little, she is fierce," said Heitkamp.
He has that line from Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and a tiny footprint on Ryan Heitkamp's forearm tell a much bigger story.
"She fought through quite a bit before she even took her first breath," said Heitkamp.
His daughter Aubrey was born eight weeks premature.
"Just about everything about Amanda's pregnancy and Aubrey's birth was abnormal," he said.
Doctors performed a C-Section to avoid an emergency situation. She spent a month in a NICU unity weighing a bit more than three pounds. Her mother, Amanda, was deep into a battle with ALS. When Amanda was diagnosed, Heitkamp was deployed to Iraq and rushed home to be with her.
"It's just a major blessing she's even here," said Heitkamp.
Amanda died after a nearly two year battle with ALS in 2012.
"She had passed away November 18th. So, exactly six months from Aubrey's birthday," Heitkamp told FOX19.
Since then, it's just been Ryan and Aubrey.
read more here
FOX 19
Posted by Kara Foxx
Posted: Jun 15, 2014
How did you spend Father's Day? For a local man, the special day isn't just one day a year.
Ryan Heitkamp of Cheviot is the face of an internet ad for Bounty called "Every Day feels like Father's Day."
Heitkamp is a single father and a veteran who lost his wife to ALS a few years ago, just six months after the birth of his daughter, Aubrey.
"And though she be but little, she is fierce," said Heitkamp.
He has that line from Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and a tiny footprint on Ryan Heitkamp's forearm tell a much bigger story.
"She fought through quite a bit before she even took her first breath," said Heitkamp.
His daughter Aubrey was born eight weeks premature.
"Just about everything about Amanda's pregnancy and Aubrey's birth was abnormal," he said.
Doctors performed a C-Section to avoid an emergency situation. She spent a month in a NICU unity weighing a bit more than three pounds. Her mother, Amanda, was deep into a battle with ALS. When Amanda was diagnosed, Heitkamp was deployed to Iraq and rushed home to be with her.
"It's just a major blessing she's even here," said Heitkamp.
Amanda died after a nearly two year battle with ALS in 2012.
"She had passed away November 18th. So, exactly six months from Aubrey's birthday," Heitkamp told FOX19.
Since then, it's just been Ryan and Aubrey.
read more here
Wednesday, March 12, 2014
More veterans suffering from ALS
More veterans suffer from ALS, but VA moves to help
The News and Observer (Raleigh, N.C.)
By Martha Quillin
Published: March 12, 2014
REIDSVILLE, N.C. — Thomas Corbett may never know what — if anything — from his five years as a heavy-equipment mechanic in the Marine Corps brought on the disease that likely will steal from him the use of nearly every one of his muscles and, sometime in the next several years, his very breath.
Since he was diagnosed in 2012 with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, Corbett, 50, said he has wondered: “Was it some of those shots I took when I was going in and out of the country? Was it something in the water at Camp Lejeune? Was there something on some of those old ships I was on?”
In fact, no one knows why U.S. military veterans are twice as likely to develop ALS than the general population, or why those who deployed during the Gulf War in 1990-91 may be twice as likely to get the disease as other troops. Although it’s still a rare illness, affecting about 30,000 people across the country, it is so devastating to its victims and their families that the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs have made a mission out of trying to reduce their suffering.
The News and Observer (Raleigh, N.C.)
By Martha Quillin
Published: March 12, 2014
REIDSVILLE, N.C. — Thomas Corbett may never know what — if anything — from his five years as a heavy-equipment mechanic in the Marine Corps brought on the disease that likely will steal from him the use of nearly every one of his muscles and, sometime in the next several years, his very breath.
Since he was diagnosed in 2012 with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, Corbett, 50, said he has wondered: “Was it some of those shots I took when I was going in and out of the country? Was it something in the water at Camp Lejeune? Was there something on some of those old ships I was on?”
In fact, no one knows why U.S. military veterans are twice as likely to develop ALS than the general population, or why those who deployed during the Gulf War in 1990-91 may be twice as likely to get the disease as other troops. Although it’s still a rare illness, affecting about 30,000 people across the country, it is so devastating to its victims and their families that the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs have made a mission out of trying to reduce their suffering.
The military began to notice an increase in the number of ALS cases among troops who had deployed to the Persian Gulf and suffered from what became known as Gulf War syndrome. By the early 2000s, neurologists and epidemiologists were finding an increased incidence of ALS throughout the military, across all branches, over all periods of service, regardless of where or whether the troops had deployed.
read more here
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Veterans’ risk of developing ALS may be higher
Veterans’ risk of developing ALS may be higher
By Robin Erb
The (Detroit) Free Press
Posted : Sunday Aug 5, 2012
A small number of studies have suggested military veterans may be at a higher risk for developing ALS.
It’s enough evidence that, in 2008, the Department of Veterans Affairs began setting aside benefits specifically for anyone who had been in the service and developed the disease.
Although benefits vary depending on service time and other factors, ALS was categorized as a “presumptively compensable illness.” In other words, veterans diagnosed with ALS are eligible for monthly disability pay and funds to modify their homes, vehicles to transport them, insurance for dependents and survivors’ benefits.
From January 2003 to September 2011, Veterans Affairs — prompted by anecdotal reports of young veterans returning from the Persian Gulf War and developing ALS — collected information and even blood samples from willing veterans with ALS, said Dr. Eugene Oddone, who ran the registry and is now director of the Center for Health Services Research in Primary Care at the VA Medical Center in Durham, N.C.
The goal was to determine whether ALS really was more prevalent among veterans and, if so, among which veterans and why. The results were mixed.
read more here
By Robin Erb
The (Detroit) Free Press
Posted : Sunday Aug 5, 2012
A small number of studies have suggested military veterans may be at a higher risk for developing ALS.
It’s enough evidence that, in 2008, the Department of Veterans Affairs began setting aside benefits specifically for anyone who had been in the service and developed the disease.
Although benefits vary depending on service time and other factors, ALS was categorized as a “presumptively compensable illness.” In other words, veterans diagnosed with ALS are eligible for monthly disability pay and funds to modify their homes, vehicles to transport them, insurance for dependents and survivors’ benefits.
From January 2003 to September 2011, Veterans Affairs — prompted by anecdotal reports of young veterans returning from the Persian Gulf War and developing ALS — collected information and even blood samples from willing veterans with ALS, said Dr. Eugene Oddone, who ran the registry and is now director of the Center for Health Services Research in Primary Care at the VA Medical Center in Durham, N.C.
The goal was to determine whether ALS really was more prevalent among veterans and, if so, among which veterans and why. The results were mixed.
read more here
Friday, January 27, 2012
Salt Lake Veterans Affairs enlists vets for huge medical research project
Salt Lake Veterans Affairs enlists vets for huge medical research project
BY KRISTEN MOULTON
The Salt Lake Tribune
First published Jan 26 2012
Becky Kemp Carpenter’s dad, a Vietnam War veteran, died two years ago of ALS, better known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. So when she heard about the Million Veteran Program to help medical research, she — a third-generation veteran — didn’t hesitate to sign up.
"I come from a strong history of service," said Carpenter, who was one of 35 veterans enrolled Thursday during the program’s formal kickoff at the George E. Wahlen Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
"By doing a simple blood test and answering questions, we can help not just future vets but people who are around now," said Carpenter, a West Valley City resident who served in the Air Force in the 1990s. "There is so much more we can continue to do to serve our country."
Begun last year in Boston, the Million Veteran Program has so far enlisted more than 20,000 veterans to donate their DNA and release their VA medical records to researchers. The VA in Salt Lake City is one of 40 hospitals participating so far and has enrolled more than 300 veterans since fall; the program hopes to have 50 participating hospitals by summer.
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BY KRISTEN MOULTON
The Salt Lake Tribune
6 million vets get ongoing care through VA, and a national program aims to get 1 million to help create a huge database of continually updated records.
First published Jan 26 2012
Becky Kemp Carpenter’s dad, a Vietnam War veteran, died two years ago of ALS, better known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. So when she heard about the Million Veteran Program to help medical research, she — a third-generation veteran — didn’t hesitate to sign up.
"I come from a strong history of service," said Carpenter, who was one of 35 veterans enrolled Thursday during the program’s formal kickoff at the George E. Wahlen Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
"By doing a simple blood test and answering questions, we can help not just future vets but people who are around now," said Carpenter, a West Valley City resident who served in the Air Force in the 1990s. "There is so much more we can continue to do to serve our country."
Begun last year in Boston, the Million Veteran Program has so far enlisted more than 20,000 veterans to donate their DNA and release their VA medical records to researchers. The VA in Salt Lake City is one of 40 hospitals participating so far and has enrolled more than 300 veterans since fall; the program hopes to have 50 participating hospitals by summer.
read more here
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Proposal to help dying vets slow to pass
Proposal to help dying vets slow to pass
by SUSANNAH FRAME / KING 5 News
Posted on November 21, 2011
LAKE STEVENS, Wash. -- Last year at this time Rich Knapton of Lake Stevens was jogging six miles, four times a week. But his running days are over. Now he struggles to make it a few feet down his hallway with the aid of a walker.
"All the things that I love to do I can no longer do. It was just taken from me. All the plans I had were taken from me. (It’s a) tremendous loss; just tremendous loss," said Rich.
In September Rich was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease, which is also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). It’s a progressive, untreatable, and fatal disease that destroys the nerve cells that control muscle function. Eventually a patient can't walk, talk or breathe, while the mind stays sharp.
The news was devastating.
"I cried. I cried a lot. Eventually you can't cry. You run out (of tears) and I realized this is how I'm going to die," said Rich. “And it won't affect my mind. I'll be trapped in a body that won't work, but a mind that is still working."
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by SUSANNAH FRAME / KING 5 News
Posted on November 21, 2011
LAKE STEVENS, Wash. -- Last year at this time Rich Knapton of Lake Stevens was jogging six miles, four times a week. But his running days are over. Now he struggles to make it a few feet down his hallway with the aid of a walker.
"All the things that I love to do I can no longer do. It was just taken from me. All the plans I had were taken from me. (It’s a) tremendous loss; just tremendous loss," said Rich.
In September Rich was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease, which is also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). It’s a progressive, untreatable, and fatal disease that destroys the nerve cells that control muscle function. Eventually a patient can't walk, talk or breathe, while the mind stays sharp.
The news was devastating.
"I cried. I cried a lot. Eventually you can't cry. You run out (of tears) and I realized this is how I'm going to die," said Rich. “And it won't affect my mind. I'll be trapped in a body that won't work, but a mind that is still working."
read more here
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Head trauma from sports and war may be linked to ALS
Perhaps even Lou Gehrig had the related syndrome, but that will never be known because he was cremated. (AP File July 1939)
Multiple head injuries may spur ALS-type illness
“We believe that these three cases are the tip of the iceberg,’’ said neurosurgeon Robert Cantu, who is a codirector of the BU Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy. “We don’t know whether this is linked to the increased incidence of ALS in the military, who are subject to blasts and other head injuries, but we are concerned that it may be."
By Kay Lazar
Globe Staff
New research suggests that athletes who have had multiple head injuries, and possibly others such as military veterans exposed to repetitive brain traumas, may be prone to developing a disabling neurological disease similar to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease.
A team of researchers from Boston University School of Medicine and the Veterans Administration Hospital in Bedford said yesterday they have pinpointed evidence of a new disease that mimics ALS in the brains of two former National Football League players previously thought to have died of ALS. They also found the new disease in the brain of a deceased professional boxer who was a military veteran.
go here for more
Multiple head injuries may spur ALS type illness
Friday, April 9, 2010
ALS, Lou Gehrig's disease and PTSD found in Gulf War Vets
Review confirms PTSD, other syndromes in Gulf vets
Maggie Fox, Health and Science Editor
WASHINGTON
(Reuters) - Studies confirm that Gulf War veterans suffer disproportionately from post-traumatic stress disorder and other psychiatric illnesses as well as vague symptoms often classified as Gulf War Syndrome, a panel of experts reported on Friday.
The Institute of Medicine panel said better studies are needed to characterize a clear pattern of distress and other symptoms among veterans of the conflicts in the Gulf region that started in 1990 and continue today.
"It is clear that a significant portion of the soldiers deployed to the Gulf War have experienced troubling constellations of symptoms that are difficult to categorize," said Stephen Hauser, chairman of the department of neurology at the University of California, San Francisco.
The committee declined to say that there was any such thing as Gulf War Syndrome but did note many veterans had "multisymptom illness."
"Unfortunately, symptoms that cannot be easily quantified are sometimes incorrectly dismissed as insignificant and receive inadequate attention and funding by the medical and scientific establishment," Hauser added in a statement.
"Veterans who continue to suffer from these symptoms deserve the very best that modern science and medicine can offer to speed the development of effective treatments, cures, and -- we hope -- prevention."
Maggie Fox, Health and Science Editor
WASHINGTON
(Reuters) - Studies confirm that Gulf War veterans suffer disproportionately from post-traumatic stress disorder and other psychiatric illnesses as well as vague symptoms often classified as Gulf War Syndrome, a panel of experts reported on Friday.
The Institute of Medicine panel said better studies are needed to characterize a clear pattern of distress and other symptoms among veterans of the conflicts in the Gulf region that started in 1990 and continue today.
"It is clear that a significant portion of the soldiers deployed to the Gulf War have experienced troubling constellations of symptoms that are difficult to categorize," said Stephen Hauser, chairman of the department of neurology at the University of California, San Francisco.
The committee declined to say that there was any such thing as Gulf War Syndrome but did note many veterans had "multisymptom illness."
"Unfortunately, symptoms that cannot be easily quantified are sometimes incorrectly dismissed as insignificant and receive inadequate attention and funding by the medical and scientific establishment," Hauser added in a statement.
"Veterans who continue to suffer from these symptoms deserve the very best that modern science and medicine can offer to speed the development of effective treatments, cures, and -- we hope -- prevention."
The experts, including epidemiologists who study patterns of disease, neurologists and psychiatrists, found limited but suggestive evidence that Gulf War veterans have higher rates of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also called ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease -- a crippling, progressive and fatal nerve disease.
read more here
Review confirms PTSD, other syndromes in Gulf vets
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
VA to apologize for mistaken Lou Gehrig's disease notices
VA to apologize for mistaken Lou Gehrig's disease notices
Story Highlights
Letters sent last week informed 1,864 veterans and survivors of ALS diagnosis
VA confirms some recipients did not have ALS, and is reviewing claims files
VA: "Employees are personally contacting" those who don't have disease
Agency is reviewing notification process to ensure no such error is repeated
By Ashley Hayes
CNN
(CNN) -- The Department of Veterans Affairs said Wednesday it will apologize to veterans who were mistakenly told they'd been diagnosed with a fatal neurological condition.
Letters were sent last week to 1,864 veterans and survivors, the VA said in a written statement. They were supposed to be sent to veterans with ALS -- also known as Lou Gehrig's disease -- to keep them apprised of expanding benefits eligibility.
"According to the records of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), you have a diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)," said the letter, according to the National Gulf War Resource Center. "This letter tells you about VA disability compensation benefits that may be available to you."
But some who received the letters, like Brent Casey, do not have ALS. Casey, a disabled Army veteran from the first Gulf War, told CNN that when he received the letter, he was "just completely beside myself. Just floored. Went into a complete and total meltdown. I couldn't speak, couldn't -- I guess I was, truthfully, speechless."
After hearing from veterans who received the letter but do not have ALS, the VA immediately began reviewing individual claims files for all the recipients to determine who received the letter by mistake, agency spokeswoman Katie Roberts said in the statement. "VA employees are personally contacting these individuals to ensure they understand the letter should not be confused with a medical diagnosis of ALS, explain why they mistakenly received the letter and express VA's sincere apologies for the distress caused by this unfortunate and regrettable error."
read more here
http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/08/26/veterans.letters.disease/index.html
Story Highlights
Letters sent last week informed 1,864 veterans and survivors of ALS diagnosis
VA confirms some recipients did not have ALS, and is reviewing claims files
VA: "Employees are personally contacting" those who don't have disease
Agency is reviewing notification process to ensure no such error is repeated
By Ashley Hayes
CNN
(CNN) -- The Department of Veterans Affairs said Wednesday it will apologize to veterans who were mistakenly told they'd been diagnosed with a fatal neurological condition.
Letters were sent last week to 1,864 veterans and survivors, the VA said in a written statement. They were supposed to be sent to veterans with ALS -- also known as Lou Gehrig's disease -- to keep them apprised of expanding benefits eligibility.
"According to the records of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), you have a diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)," said the letter, according to the National Gulf War Resource Center. "This letter tells you about VA disability compensation benefits that may be available to you."
But some who received the letters, like Brent Casey, do not have ALS. Casey, a disabled Army veteran from the first Gulf War, told CNN that when he received the letter, he was "just completely beside myself. Just floored. Went into a complete and total meltdown. I couldn't speak, couldn't -- I guess I was, truthfully, speechless."
After hearing from veterans who received the letter but do not have ALS, the VA immediately began reviewing individual claims files for all the recipients to determine who received the letter by mistake, agency spokeswoman Katie Roberts said in the statement. "VA employees are personally contacting these individuals to ensure they understand the letter should not be confused with a medical diagnosis of ALS, explain why they mistakenly received the letter and express VA's sincere apologies for the distress caused by this unfortunate and regrettable error."
read more here
http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/08/26/veterans.letters.disease/index.html
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Veteran with ALS fights VA for benefits
If you are heartless enough to look at the claims tied up, the mountain of backlogged claims, and think for a second this is right, then I really feel sorry for you. What would it be like if you happen to be a civilian, hurt on the job and then have to wait over a year for a single check to pay your bills? What would it be like if Workman's Comp told you they were just too busy with other claims for you? Could you tell your mortgage company they just have to wait like you do?
Now, think about going to work for the nation in the military, training everyday for the day you would risk your life for the rest of the nation. What if you thought that it would be worth it if you were wounded the same nation would make sure you had what you needed to pay your bills and take care of your wounds? Then how would it feel when they didn't? You are left with whatever wound you carry, whatever illness caused by service that will stay with you the rest of your life plus bills you can no longer pay because of it.
Not great now is it? This is happening all over the country everyday while veterans wait to be taken care of, wait for claims to be approved and wait to be able to pay bills. One more thought. Did they make us wait when we said they needed to risk those lives and go off to war? The really sick part of all of this is that most of them would tell you they'd do it all over again even knowing how badly they had to suffer for doing it!
You've read about the false outrage over end of life decisions veterans are able to make. Well, here's one of the veterans that need the benefits he earned to help him make his days as comfortable as possible. Read this and then send it onto the people sending you the false outrage of the week about death book.
Now, think about going to work for the nation in the military, training everyday for the day you would risk your life for the rest of the nation. What if you thought that it would be worth it if you were wounded the same nation would make sure you had what you needed to pay your bills and take care of your wounds? Then how would it feel when they didn't? You are left with whatever wound you carry, whatever illness caused by service that will stay with you the rest of your life plus bills you can no longer pay because of it.
Not great now is it? This is happening all over the country everyday while veterans wait to be taken care of, wait for claims to be approved and wait to be able to pay bills. One more thought. Did they make us wait when we said they needed to risk those lives and go off to war? The really sick part of all of this is that most of them would tell you they'd do it all over again even knowing how badly they had to suffer for doing it!
You've read about the false outrage over end of life decisions veterans are able to make. Well, here's one of the veterans that need the benefits he earned to help him make his days as comfortable as possible. Read this and then send it onto the people sending you the false outrage of the week about death book.
Veteran with ALS fights VA for benefits
05:40 PM EDT on Monday, August 24, 2009
By RAD BERKY / NewsChannel 36
E-mail Rad: RBerky@WCNC.com
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- A U.S. Army veteran who is fighting for his life is also fighting the Department of Veterans Affairs for his benefits.
"I'm frustrated with the VA," said Todd Overgaard at a news conference in Charlotte.
Overgaard decided to go public with his story, hoping coverage would force the VA to act.
Overgaard is 45 years old and has ALS or Lou Gehrig's Disease, a disease for which there is no cure. He has been in a back-and-forth struggle with the VA to get $72,000 for end-of-life benefits that he says he is entitled to in order to make handicapped upgrades to his home in Hendersonville.
The improvements his family says he needs include a special bathroom and a lift. He says his requests have been delayed and denied after years of trying.
His wife Cindy said, "The frustration is having to fight for something you know by law they are entitled to."
When he was in the Army, Overgaard was a chemical weapons instructor. Since he left the service, the military now recognizes ALS as a service-related disease, making vets eligible for benefits.
read more here
Veteran with ALS fights VA for benefits
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
ALS-Lou Gehrig's veterans to receive VA benefits now
Recent VA News Releases
To view and download VA news release, please visit the following
Internet address:
http://www.va.gov/opa/pressrel
VA Secretary Establishes ALS as a Presumptive Compensable Illness
Cites Association between Military Service and Later Development of ALS
WASHINGTON (Sept. 23, 2008) - Veterans with amyotrophic lateral
sclerosis (ALS) may receive badly-needed support for themselves and
their families after the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced
today that ALS will become a presumptively compensable illness for all
veterans with 90 days or more of continuously active service in the
military.
"Veterans are developing ALS in rates higher than the general
population, and it was appropriate to take action," Secretary of
Veterans Affairs Dr. James B. Peake said.
Secretary Peake based his decision primarily on a November 2006 report
by the National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine (IOM) on the
association between active-duty service and ALS.
"We are extremely grateful to Secretary Peake, Congressman Henry Brown
and Senator Lindsey Graham for standing on the side of veterans with ALS
across the country," said Gary Leo, president and CEO of The ALS
Association. "Thanks to their leadership, veterans with ALS will receive
the benefits and care they need, when they need them. Thanks to their
efforts, no veteran with ALS will ever be left behind."
The report, titled Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis in Veterans: Review of
the Scientific Literature, analyzed numerous previous studies on the
issue and concluded that "there is limited and suggestive evidence of an
association between military service and later development of ALS."
"ALS is a disease that progresses rapidly, once it is diagnosed," the
Secretary explained. "There simply isn't time to develop the evidence
needed to support compensation claims before many veterans become
seriously ill. My decision will make those claims much easier to
process, and for them and their families to receive the compensation
they have earned through their service to our nation."
ALS, also called Lou Gehrig's disease, is a neuromuscular disease that
affects about 20,000 to 30,000 people of all races and ethnicities in
the United States, is often relentlessly progressive, and is almost
always fatal.
ALS causes degeneration of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that
leads to muscle weakness, muscle atrophy, and spontaneous muscle
activity. Currently, the cause of ALS is unknown, and there is no
effective treatment.
The new interim final regulation applies to all applications for
benefits received by VA on or after September 23, 2008, or that are
pending before VA, the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans
Claims, or the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on
that date.
VA will work to identify and contact veterans with ALS, including those
whose claims for ALS were previously denied, through direct mailings and
other outreach programs.
To view the entire regulation published in the Federal Register today,
go to: www.federalregister.gov/OFRUpload/OFRData/2008-21998_PI.pdf. For
more information on VA's disability compensation program, go to
www.va.gov or contact 1-800-827-1000.
To unsubscribe from this list, or to update your name or e-mail address,
please visit the following Internet address:
http://www.va.gov/opa/pressrel/opalist_listserv.cfm
To view and download VA news release, please visit the following
Internet address:
http://www.va.gov/opa/pressrel
VA Secretary Establishes ALS as a Presumptive Compensable Illness
Cites Association between Military Service and Later Development of ALS
WASHINGTON (Sept. 23, 2008) - Veterans with amyotrophic lateral
sclerosis (ALS) may receive badly-needed support for themselves and
their families after the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced
today that ALS will become a presumptively compensable illness for all
veterans with 90 days or more of continuously active service in the
military.
"Veterans are developing ALS in rates higher than the general
population, and it was appropriate to take action," Secretary of
Veterans Affairs Dr. James B. Peake said.
Secretary Peake based his decision primarily on a November 2006 report
by the National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine (IOM) on the
association between active-duty service and ALS.
"We are extremely grateful to Secretary Peake, Congressman Henry Brown
and Senator Lindsey Graham for standing on the side of veterans with ALS
across the country," said Gary Leo, president and CEO of The ALS
Association. "Thanks to their leadership, veterans with ALS will receive
the benefits and care they need, when they need them. Thanks to their
efforts, no veteran with ALS will ever be left behind."
The report, titled Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis in Veterans: Review of
the Scientific Literature, analyzed numerous previous studies on the
issue and concluded that "there is limited and suggestive evidence of an
association between military service and later development of ALS."
"ALS is a disease that progresses rapidly, once it is diagnosed," the
Secretary explained. "There simply isn't time to develop the evidence
needed to support compensation claims before many veterans become
seriously ill. My decision will make those claims much easier to
process, and for them and their families to receive the compensation
they have earned through their service to our nation."
ALS, also called Lou Gehrig's disease, is a neuromuscular disease that
affects about 20,000 to 30,000 people of all races and ethnicities in
the United States, is often relentlessly progressive, and is almost
always fatal.
ALS causes degeneration of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord that
leads to muscle weakness, muscle atrophy, and spontaneous muscle
activity. Currently, the cause of ALS is unknown, and there is no
effective treatment.
The new interim final regulation applies to all applications for
benefits received by VA on or after September 23, 2008, or that are
pending before VA, the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans
Claims, or the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on
that date.
VA will work to identify and contact veterans with ALS, including those
whose claims for ALS were previously denied, through direct mailings and
other outreach programs.
To view the entire regulation published in the Federal Register today,
go to: www.federalregister.gov/OFRUpload/OFRData/2008-21998_PI.pdf. For
more information on VA's disability compensation program, go to
www.va.gov or contact 1-800-827-1000.
To unsubscribe from this list, or to update your name or e-mail address,
please visit the following Internet address:
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Peake's answer to disabled veterans is to wait and pray
Mikolajcik urged Peake to grant all veterans with the disease, also called amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a service-connected disability. Currently only Gulf War veterans are covered, Mikolajcik said. "My comrades in arms don't get the same benefits, and it's not fair," he said.
For unknown reasons, veterans have a 60 percent higher chance of developing ALS.
The retired general described the meeting as "very personable." "Now we just wait and pray," he said.
Apr. 30: New Outrage, as VA Secretary Peake Tells Veteran Sick with ALS to Wait and Pray
Jill Coley
The Post and Courier (Charleston, South Carolina)
Apr 30, 2008
http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/ArticleID/9974
As I read this I had to read it twice. I thought maybe I took nap time early at my desk instead of on my bed. There are times when I read way too much and my eyes grow tired to the point where I'll skip a work here and there totally changing the meaning of what I'm reading. My brain could not tolerate what I read the first time. I thought perhaps I misread this and it said Peake is praying veterans don't have to wait anymore leading into a report that he is pressing congress and the Bush to make sure every veteran of this nation is treated with the utmost respect and the honor they all deserve for having served this nation. Alas, no. Then I thought a man in his position could not be so callous, so removed from the suffering of the veterans, so inept to deal with the crisis Nicholson left behind that he would actually answer all of this with "wait and pray" instead of solutions. The wait will be resolved in the next election provided it is not McCain taking over Bush's seat and appointing yet another pal of the faithful instead of the most competent person they could find. We all know what McCain's attitude and track record on veterans issue is and it's equal to if not worse than Bush's performance. Maybe what Peake is suggesting they pray about is that they survived the greatest threat to their lives at a time when we lose more when they come home from combat than we do during it.
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