VA Records location vs. travelling??

[Tom-NC]

Old Sarge,

Why do you need the VA anyhow you are receiving TriCare.

THe VA does have tha capability to send records from one state to another.

[gray ghost]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tom-NC Old Sarge, Why do you need the VA anyhow you are receiving TriCare.

Depending on what an individual has that is service connected, the VA meds/treatment may be free as opposed to paying the tricare copay.

[Tom-NC]

Grey Ghost,

The Meds at the VA cost all Veterans $9.00 for a 30 day supply and whatever benefits are at the VA it all depends on your income.

I am also assuming with tricare you get free meds so why go to VA?

It truly ammazes me how retired military personnel who get a nice retirement plus truicare, plus Social Security are always looking for a free lunch.

I served in the military and didn't retire from it therefore I need the VA
for physicals, prescription stuff and I'm sure there are a lot more military personnel who need the VA especially the current war vets so why take it away from them as there is only so much resources the VA has.

This is just my opinion and not meant to start any arguments with any of my military veterans who served this great country of ours. May God Bless!

[gray ghost]

Tom, I realize that everything posted here is opinion, but the free lunch comment is a bit offensive. Those who have that cushy retirement paid some dues for that. Most of us were never in one place long enough to build up any equity in a home, so at retirement we start where many of our peers were ages ago. But there I will just agree to disagree.

VA versus Tricare. Both systems have a formulary of meds they support. IIRC they are different, so a certain drug might be free, low cost, high cost, or not available on one system, but a better deal on the other. (BTW, meds on Tricare are NOT free).

As far as medical care itself goes, with Tricare you must find a doctor that takes the program. The government severely limits what they can actually charge which means that you may or may not be able to find a doc in your area. And it also is NOT free, there are co-pays, etc. A retiree with service connected disabilities can receive care for that from the VA (OIF/OEF vets get free care for anything for five years after returning from theater), so why should they have to use a system that requires payment for that?

[BpK9Miami]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tom-NC I am also assuming with tricare you get free meds so why go to VA? It truly ammazes me how retired military personnel who get a nice retirement plus truicare, plus Social Security are always looking for a free lunch. This is just my opinion and not meant to start any arguments with any of my military veterans who served this great country of ours. May God Bless!

Not meant to start any arguments? Indeed.

I had my share of "free lunchs" during 30 odd months of laying in one hospital bed or another during a career that spanned from 1968 through Nov of 2011. I'm not proud of three purple hearts, nor have I ever heard of my peers asking for anything, yet all of us have taken advantage of the things that have been afforded to us by the Govt (admittedly some more then others).

As for us OIF/OEF era vets, yes we're eligible for TriCare, but I can assure you we still have to pay for the annual fee and co-pays when getting medical treatment. And no, Rx is not free either, co-pays apply for them as well.

SS Disability, is not automatic, if you have a disability (even 100%) it does not mean you are not considered able to "work" and that is the deciding factor. I was ruled 80% medically retired by the military, and 100% by the VA, yet myself and others like me, do not qualify for SS Disability. Check it yourself if you don't believe that. . .

Last, given a choice, I'll continue to go to a civilian Physician, even for cash if necessary, rather then the VA system. It reminds me too much of Military Treatment Facilities and I actually hate the fact that I find myself more often than not, surrounded by my fellow Vietnam era vets complaining about one thing or another.

Just IMHO of course....

I'll step down from my soap box now and excuse me if my opinion offends you, but I feel I've earned the right to express it.

[Tom-NC]

I'm sorry if I offended you vets that are injured or were incapacitated during your career.

I was certain that Tricare took care of everything but found out that only happens after you reach 65 and get Tricare for life.

The Va does require in order to get benefits you must fil out the eligibility form and get a physical once a year. The benefits I get are great and whatever isn't covered by the VA my supplemental insurance which I have to pay for picks up. I especially like the meds whih are $9.00 for 30 day supply even thoufgh they may not be the exact drug.

The original question was about the vA going between states and they will as you are in the computer.

Again I'm sorry if I offended any veterans, God Bless America!

[henryn]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tom-NC I'm sorry if I offended you vets that are injured or were incapacitated during your career. I was certain that Tricare took care of everything but found out that only happens after you reach 65 and get Tricare for life. The Va does require in order to get benefits you must fil out the eligibility form and get a physical once a year. The benefits I get are great and whatever isn't covered by the VA my supplemental insurance which I have to pay for picks up. I especially like the meds whih are $9.00 for 30 day supply even thoufgh they may not be the exact drug. The original question was about the vA going between states and they will as you are in the computer. Again I'm sorry if I offended any veterans, God Bless America!

I receive care from the Raleigh VA, and thus far found them to be great. I want to thank you for the apology to vets. that's what is great about this forum. You have great character sir.

[Old Sarge]

Wow! This thread sure took off on a tangent. Just to clarify a few points. 20+ year retired military (and some others in special cases) are eligible for TRICARE. It is a medical insurance plan just like any other. If you opt for the simple plan, you don't have to pay premiums but your deductible and co-pays are very high. With TRICARE Prime you do pay a monthly premium and still pay deductibles on all visists, procedures, and meds.

For the poster who said TRICARE doesn't kick in until age 65 and then it is free....You can only get TRICARE For Life (That's what iit is called) IF you sign up for Medicare Part II. For the life of me I don't see how a premium increase of over 500% compared to Prime is FREE! I would much rather stay on TRICARE than being forced into Medicare. Just one more of those wonderful benefits granted to us by our loving politicians who have benefits far exceeding ours.

Respectfully,

[Old Sarge]

And to continue with my last post. (I know how difficult it is to stay focused on those long winded posts. )

My original intent and question was just concerning DISABILITY paperwork maintained and acted upon by the VA.

Yes, I am retired military and I do have TRICARE Prime at this time and will go to TRICARE For Life in one year.

BUT I also receive disability payments from the VA for reasons I do not need to specify here. For various reasons, including a worsening of existing conditions and development of additional problems, I have requested a review of my disability compensation findings.

This process takes forever! (Common', it's a government agency.) And I can expect many directed visits to VA "approved" medical examiners for evaluation of my claims.

This is the part that has me concerned:

As I travel, I will not be in my home area (which is served by the regional VA Administration Center in Indianapolis) and most certainly do not want to have my (not necessarily medical) records transferred as that takes at least six months to accomplish. I know because when I submitted my claims my records were in Cleveland ('cause I used to live in their administrative area) and had to be transferred to Indiana, already necessitating a significant delay.

When they (Indianapolis) order an evaluation they will schedule an examination at the Louisville VA Medical Center (the closest to me at my current address). This is where the problem develops.

What happens if I happen to be in Tucson visiting my son when they decide to get off their bureaucratic behinds and schedule said examination?

Please don't say I need to stay where I am at as I am a full timer and staying in southern Indiana twiddling my thumbs is simply not acceptable. My current address just happens to be a forwarding address. (Yes! Once this is all finalized, I will change my "home of record" elsewhere, probably South Dakota.)

Once again, my question has nothing to do with medical care or medical records but is focused on the administrative side of the VA bureaucracy.

Hope I've made things as clear as mud!

Respectfully,

[PyrateSilly]

I am temporarily in CA (we live in MI). Since we were going to be here for awhile I started the process here in CA. As to should you move your records I was told to try not to do that before the CnP exam. That's what takes the longest. If you have your CnP exam and then move I was told to also then try not to move the records. So basically it's try not to move the records. You can change the mailing address without changing your record of home. I have for now.
I would suggest just to travel and call them or set it up to look up online at least once a week for any upcoming appts. If you are worried about missing one then unfortunatly I would probably say to not go any where until most of the process is done.
I have been in the system for over 20 yrs and I can tell you that it is so much better now for just about everything. It is not perfect by any means but it is better than 20 yrs ago.

[Senior Chief]

Would it be possible to have your mail in Indiana opened and read or emailed to you? (some mail forwarding systems will do this). That way at least you wouldn't miss an appointment notice.

[patty98311]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tom-NC Grey Ghost, The Meds at the VA cost all Veterans $9.00 for a 30 day supply and whatever benefits are at the VA it all depends on your income. I am also assuming with tricare you get free meds so why go to VA? It truly ammazes me how retired military personnel who get a nice retirement plus truicare, plus Social Security are always looking for a free lunch. I served in the military and didn't retire from it therefore I need the VA for physicals, prescription stuff and I'm sure there are a lot more military personnel who need the VA especially the current war vets so why take it away from them as there is only so much resources the VA has. This is just my opinion and not meant to start any arguments with any of my military veterans who served this great country of ours. May God Bless!

A couple points here to address
(1) Meds from the VA for service related issues are free,
(2) Meds from the VA for members who are > %50 dis are free,
(3) meds from Tricare (Prime or standard) cost copay(schedule is to long to list here) from military pharmacy are free
(4) meds cost from VA are also cost based so they may still be free based on ability to pay,
(5) Medical care in the civilian world does not always understand the rigors and injuries of military life and there for the proper treatments are sometimes either very difficult or impossible to get.

This last group I am in, while I am retired at 24yrs I tried using civilian doctors for over 5 years spending thousands on insurance and my own money, seeing many different doctors until I went to a VA doc(PA) and the issues were corrected in less than a month.

It is not a perfect system but it does work, it is not socialized medicine like many say as every Vet earned it by raising his hand. If you don't want it, that's fine but don't take shots at others who do.