| AKAKA DOESN'T USE
VA, BUT OFFERS LEFT-HANDED ENDORSEMENT
Senate Vets' Chair: "It's not that I
don't want to use the VA system ... "
PLEASE
NOTE THAT THIS ARTICLE NOW HAS A CLARIFICATION POSTED BELOW
THE ORIGINAL ... CLARIFICATION POSTED ON 07-03-09 ... IT SHOULD BE
NOTED THAT AKAKA DID HAVE A CHANCE TO OPT IN TO VA HEALTHCARE AND
WOULD HAVE BEEN GRANDFATHERED IN THE SYSTEM, BUT HE CHOSE NOT TO
DO THAT.
NOTE from
Larry Scott, VA Watchdog dot Org
... This is absolute nonsense. Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-HI),
Chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs, wouldn't
let a VA doctor treat a zit. He is as afraid of the VA
system as are most veterans. Of course, he can prove me
wrong ... and switch his health care to the VA system. What
say you, Sen. Akaka? Want to be a shining example to the
nation's veterans?
-------------------------
Akaka Endorses VA Healthcare System
By Amanda Ruggeri
Washington Whispers
As chair of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, Sen. Daniel
Akaka of Hawaii oversees the VA's healthcare system.
 But
that doesn't mean the World War II veteran uses it himself.
"All these years I've used my
own private system," he says, going to his doctors in Hawaii.
But that's because it's
"easier," not because he doesn't like or trust the VA.
Akaka notes that he's worked for
the government for years, first for the state, then in the House,
and eventually in the Senate, so he's chosen to use government
healthcare
Akaka has been eligible to use
VA benefits.
He says, "It's not that I don't
want to use the VA system. . . . From what I know about the VA
today, I would tell you their system is good, and I would tell you
that the VA generally provides high-quality care for millions of
veterans across the nation."
-------------------------
Akaka Endorses VA Healthcare System
Clarified on 07/02/09: Although Akaka has been eligible for VA
benefits before, he isn't now and wasn't when he left the service.
By Amanda Ruggeri, Washington Whispers
As chair of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, Sen. Daniel
Akaka of Hawaii oversees the VA's healthcare system.
But that doesn't mean the World
War II veteran uses it himself. "All these years I've used my own
private system," he says, going to his doctors in Hawaii.
But that's because it's
"easier," not because he doesn't like or trust the VA. Akaka notes
that he's worked for the government for years, first for the
state, then in the House, and eventually in the Senate, so he's
chosen to use government healthcare.
Akaka also wasn't eligible to
use VA benefits when he first left the service and isn't eligible
now, although he has been for a handful of years in the past.
He says, "It's not that I don't
want to use the VA system. . . . From what I know about the VA
today, I would tell you their system is good, and I would tell you
that the VA generally provides high-quality care for millions of
veterans across the nation."
-------------------------
TOPICS:
veterans, veterans' benefits, VA, Department of Veterans' Affairs,
Sen. Daniel Akaka |
