The Caregiver Bill – Guest Post.

I received a request for a guest post by a reader. He sent me this in email:

By Taylor (Last Name withheld by A&P for privacy concerns)

The inability to implement the Caregiver bill

As the debate all over the country relating back to the Libya air strikes continues, some of the American administration is under serious criticism back home. President Obama, Congress, and the VA are receiving staunch criticism from veterans support associations over failed implementation and missing the deadline of the proposed support program for military veterans. The Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act was signed by President Obama last May with a deadline of January 31, 2011. When that date came two months ago, it happened without any type of start to the program for veterans. Congress has been apologetic in regards to the inability to get the support system started. The blame for the delay has correlated with Congress’ inability and inexperience working with stipends as a form of financial support. Even with the possibility of this bill being pushed through, it doesn’t extend any forms of support for veterans who are older and served before the year 2001.

If this act were to finally start right now, it would give veterans who have served after 2001 and their care givers counseling, lodging expenses, respite, and meal expenses. The spouses or family members of these soldiers who are currently providing full time care would also be eligible for a full training course. This growth in the level of support would be a great move in the right type of care for our veterans, however further research into including older veterans should be a goal as well.
For many veterans today, having a care giver is an absolute necessity. This relates to the fact that many of them are dealing with health problems that are directly related to their time serving in the military. These possible health risks include both small and large types, such as Hodgkin’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, many different types of cancer, mesothelioma, and lymphoma.

Camp Leujune in North Carolina was the source of public water contamination and consumption problems for over three decades. The public water system was found to be extremely high in VOC’s (Volatile Organic Compounds). With the consumption and exposure to these VOC’s, many of the people in/around the base that drank the water had health risks such as Parkinson’s disease and some other types of cancer.

Vietnam veterans have felt the repercussions of their time in the war through a number of different health problems. The terrible combination of pesticides known as Agent Orange caused extreme health problems for a number of Vietnam vets. The exposure to these pesticides has led to problems like lung cancer, sarcoma, and lymphoma.

The use of asbestos on all types of military bases has been shown in direct connection with some dangerous diseases such as asbestosis and mesothelioma. Even though asbestos aren’t used much anymore, older veterans may be in a life threatening situation, as mesothelioma life expectancy is extremely severe.

The amount of health problems that put soldiers and veterans at risk are always increasing. The need for caregivers with veterans is at an all time high. It’s unfortunate that the president sent even more soldiers to Libya to take part in another conflict, while our older soldiers and veterans aren’t receiving support back home. Hopefully by the end of the year, administration in Washington can work to get the support and care for our veterans started.

Thanks Taylor for bringing this issue up. I hope this will help shine a light on the cockroaches in congress. I would ask my readers with a larger audience to cross post this, or steal it entirely and post it on your site.

Thanks.