Anger Tab

When guys didn't graduate Ranger School we said that they had earned their Anger Tab -- they were usually pretty pissed off for whatever reason they didn't finish. Bottom line is, Ranger School is not fair. Some guys who graduate shouldn't, and some guys who fail out should have made it.




The concept of the Anger Tab has new meaning to me. I earned my Ranger Tab in 2001. Since I got out I've doned my ANGER Tab. But I am angry with how army medicine operates. The Ranger Creed (that I still hold near and dear in my heart) says "never leave a fallen comrade." Many injured soldiers are left behind every single day by the army medical system. That makes my blood boil.

- Ragin' Ranger Out

Call me, ask me, I want to help you, too!!

One morning I woke up to a phone call. I felt very much "cloak and dagger" when the voice on the other line said "I'm having trouble at the hospital and someone told me to call this number. Do I have the right person?" The wise guy side of me wanted to respond with "who are you looking for," or better still, "is this for pick-up or delivery?" But I knew exactly why he was calling.
My wife and I have been through a very ugly medical situation with our army hospital. Only strong expletives could accurately describe how I feel. So I knew this caller had heard something about us.
He went on to describe how the doctor he saw told him that "back pain is normal in the army," and "you'll just have to learn to live with it." And that was it. When the first doctor left the hospital for another assignment this soldier got another doctor. Instead of a real second opinion the second doctor just said "well if you've already been seen there is nothing more I can do for you." And now, because of his intense pain, he will be separated from the army.

Second opinions are hard to come by in the army. If a soldier is fortunate enough to be granted one the second doc will often just defer to the opinion of the first doc. It's just easier that way. It separates soldiers faster and is cheaper. The misconception that "the VA will take care of disabled vets," must be the only threads left holding these doctors' consciences together.

check out this site if you think the VA is doing its job: www.dav.org

I've been out for over 8 months and I still haven't seen a dime from VA for some of my well-documented disabilities.

In a nutshell on claims: I developed acid reflux during service. The VA considered that condition "service connected," which means the VA will assume responsibility for treating my indigestion at VA clinics and the VA pays for my antacid meds.
However, the VA claims that my bone spurs and joint degeneration in my neck (from wearing a Kevlar Helmet and Body Armor) is not service connected. I guess back pain just happens!?!?

It does according to the VA.

Disability ratings are based on two measures: subjective pain scale (1-10) and objective range of motion.
In the civilian world doctors use objective functional assessments to determine the effects of a patient's disability. These examinations often span a period of time (at least 2 days) and monitor many motions and actions on each day. Using this method gives and accurate description of how a patient's disability affects their activities of daily living (ADLs).

But the Army won't use this method!!

WHY is the easy question, at least it seems to be -- MONEY. A functional assessment would likely show higher disability ratings for veterans and that would increase VA spending greatly. The VA budget is a joke already. The VA will fight increasing disability ratings as long as it can. The current payments for disability is already sad as it is.
Check it out here: http://www.vba.va.gov/bln/21/Rates/comp01.htm

As you can see, a lone veteran who is 100% disabled gets $2,393.00 per month. That is tax free, but how far can that really go? That's $28,716 a year. Increases to that come at Congress's leisure.
Is that really the best America can do to reward a kid who went to war (perhaps didn't even want to go) and came home with a disability so bad that they can't work again, EVER, AT ALL!?!?!?!? And what of their mental health, family life, recreation, and overall quality of life!?!?!?!? There is no dollar amount worthy of the sense of wholeness and many vets feel themselves to be in pieces, broken shards of war's destruction.

Where else can this disabled vet get money?
Hopefully the Army retired them from active duty -- not a guarantee. A young soldier with 4 years of active duty service can get $514 a month for being considered 30% or more disabled by the Army. There is some fuzzy math that goes into these calculations but now this disabled vet is up to $29,230 a year.

Some perks come with this: guaranteed medical treatment, but how much does a disabled vet trust the Army's medical system. PX and Commissary privileges as a retiree but if the vet wants to get away from the seedy Army town this means little to nothing.

And that is sad considering all that this person sacrificed.

In all of my anger at the Army's medical system I remind myself that my personal experience wasn't too bad. I had a great surgeon who I trusted and fixed my shoulders very well. I just can't do certain Army tasks now. (But who really should carry an 80 lb. pack!?!?) I loved the physically demanding environment of the Infantry, my body just couldn't hang together any more.
I also had cartilage removed from my knee -- I was rucking (back-packing) exactly 6 weeks later. For those of you familiar with the Sapper School road march course at Ft. Leonard Wood, MO, I finished it in 2:45 (2nd place) only 2 and a half months out from surgery. Those docs did a great job!!

- Ragin' Ranger Out

Going away . . . coming back . . .

I was in Iraq just under a year but part of me never came home. I am different now. I can't quite put my finger on it but I changed.
I check the casualty list every day. I have friends over there now, some who want to be there, some who hate it there (for more than just the geography) and/or hate being away from family, and some who are torn between wanting to be home with family and wanting to stay there.
I respect my friends that want to stay in -- hey, if it works for them that's great, I hope they can stay happy. I hope they never have to deal with the medical side of the military.

Here's the page I look at. I wear a black bracelet for one who is listed.

http://icasualties.org/oif/default.aspx

Forgot to mention: the reason I like this page is the search function at the bottom and the statistical information the website provides.

Don't miss the link to Afghanistan casualties as well

- Ragin' Ranger Out

Intro

Greetings!

Welcome to my page of anger and frustration toward the medical systems that are supposed to provide health care for Service Members and Veterans of the United States of America. And it is OK to laugh at stuff I post. I'm from Red Sox Nation and have a very dry, often bitter, sense of humor. If you don't laugh at some of my posts you'll cry. Dealing with the "medical professionals" that handle service member care has reduced me to tears many times. I've mourned losses from battle but seeing a Disabled Veteran suffer due to a failing medical system can be a far deeper cut through my heart.

I don't claim to be a great writer and you might have to navigate through the occasional spelling or grammatical error. Sometimes when I get real pissed off and want to broadcast the awful truth that I have uncovered I forget to run my spell checker or double-check my comma usage.
Oh well. No apologies here, I was trained to kill, not to write about it.

That being said, my wife almost dumped me when we were dating because of an ill-placed comma in an emotionlly charged email. So, if you're confused about something I say just ask for clarification. Who knows, maybe you read it just right! Some of the $h1t I've seen done with medical "care" in the military is pretty F#$&@?g baffling.

More to follow

Rangin' Ranger OUT --