Tuesday, March 17, 2009

That wasn't what you told us when we signed up

During the 2008 election I was honored to serve as one of the two California Co-Chairs for Veterans for Obama. I believed then and I believe now that Barack Obama was and is the best choice to be President and Commander-in-Chief. But I am deeply disturbed at the recently announced policy proposal to have treatment for service-connected injuries charged to veterans' private insurance plans in order to save the VA money.

Not only does this break covenant between the country and those who offered their lives in service, but it puts at risk the insurability of veterans with service connected injuries and their families. Even if the injuries are excluded as pre-existing conditions, long term treatment of serious injuries would exhaust annual and even lifetime benefit limits on nearly all private policies.

If the injuries are service connected it is not the responsibility of the former service members, their families, their employers and their insurance companies to provide treatment. It is the responsibility of the people and their government who sent them into harm’s way.

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