In article ,
"Terry Coombs" wrote:



I suspect the problems might be regional , because I've had nothing but
positive experiences with my VA health care . I go in tomorrow for my annual
physical , the appointment was made less than 2 weeks ago . The staff at the
Mountain Home Ar. center is VERY professional , they treat the patients with
respect , and the care is top notch . We also have a program now that if
you're more than 40 miles from a VA facility or can't get an appointment
within 30 days you can see a local provider . We're still looking for a doc
we like here , but it's nice to know I don't have to get hauled a hundred
miles to Little Rock if I have a hospital-type emergency . Or a cold for
that matter ...

Not according to anything I have seen on news reports. It is more the
other way where there are pockets of goodness. Most seem to be if you
live within the catchment area of a big city where most of the VA docs
are also on the faculty at local medical schools. But even that often
changes by specialty. Even between the cities, there are some wiht good
physical plant and many without.
Of course the local provider thingy sorta shows that the system has
fallen to the point it can't handle what it used to on their own.
--
³Statistics are like bikinis. What they reveal is suggestive,
but what they conceal is vital.²
‹ Aaron Levenstein