Update: The congressional staff sent the picture at the left of Representative Walz having dinner with members of the U.S. Navy deployed to Iraq. [end update]
We'll be posting at length about this morning's press call about Congressman Walz's trip to Iraq, Afghanistan, Kuwait, Pakistan and Germany. A couple of brief observations here.
First, while those who've never served in the military may be puzzled by a congressional travel delegation focused on medical care and medical record keeping and sharing, we weren't puzzled by this mission at all.
A number of our former students and their friends were back in town for the holiday break; many of them are serving in the Guard, Reserves, and ROTC. One night while we were watching Resident Evil: Extinction, the on-screen casualties turn their banter into a discussion of having accurately documented medical histories. Having friends explain the issues last week provided a good context for understanding the significance of the problem.
Essentially, much of the care provided by the VA is based on military medical records. In their absence or incompleteness, the veteran has to prove a condition is service related; many of the problems Korean and Vietnam era vets experience in getting care through the VA are rooted in this problem. Agent Orange claims have been particularly troublesome for lack of documentation. The committee's oversight may forestall similar problems for my patriotic young friends as they enter the VA system.
Second, the press call was interesting because travels by members of the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight took Walz and others outside of the Green Zone to forward medical stations and bases. Walz also visited Camp Cropper near the Baghdad Airport to see conditions under which detainees were being kept.
There's more: tales of new equipment such as ground ambulances in Afghanistan, Walz's refusal to make a simple snap judgment about the progress of the war, and other details.
Walz also mentioned meeting a lot of area service people and calling parents, spouses and sweethearts with messages for those he encountered. He was impressed with the quality and morale of the service members he met, and awed by the skill and commitment of the medical corps for treating the wounded warriors--and providing the documentation for their medical care in the years ahead.
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