VA Letter to Veterans - Congratulations! You Have ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease)

Latest VA SNAFU Serves a Death Sentence to Veterans

Can you imagine being told you have a deadly disease, by means of an impersonal letter from the VA?

Like many of you, I'm a veteran - retiring from the Marine Corps after more than 21 years. I utilize the VA services monthly and I'm satisfied, for the most part, with the care I get. When I learn of a horror story from a fellow vet about lax or shoddy medical care, I take it with a grain of salt and nod understandably, although I usually can't identify personally with what they're griping about.

My view is changing.

The Veteran's Administration has been getting a lot of bad press lately, and this latest debacle takes the cake. On Aug 11, 2009 the VA sent letters to 1,864 veterans and survivors with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis - ALS - commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease. The problem is, a number of those letters were mistakenly sent to veterans who do not have the disease.

ALS is a rapidly degenerative, neurological disease that eventually destroys all motor abilities, with death resulting in as little as 2-5 years. Receiving a diagnosis of Lou Gehrig's disease would be horrific in any instance, but to receive the news via a letter is unthinkable. That the Veteran's Administration would send such a letter by mistake is nothing short of preposterous and inexcusable. I hope heads are rolling at the highest level and that it's flowing downhill.

Some veterans contacted the VA immediately upon receiving the letter and found that it was in error, that they do not have ALS. What about those that took the VA at its word? Many veterans are still fighting battles, both real and imagined, as a result of service to this great nation. I know a number of veterans personally that might contemplate suicide upon receiving a diagnosis of ALS in the mail. Does it matter that the VA apologized a few days later? Hasn't the damage already been done?

The letters were mailed on Aug 11, and the VA didn't go public with an apology until Aug 24 - almost two weeks later. What sort of internal damage control were they doing for 13 days? And what irreversible psychological damage (or worse) has already occurred while they were trying to figure out who was to blame?