From: Jim Gashel 
Subject: Re: Resolution 97.04
hello andy:
thanks very much for a non-argumentitive post.  Don Garner is not my
source, but I told the individual involved that I would not identify where
I received the information.  the documents that I have are internal to the
va and are far more than price schedules.  I acknowledge that non-veterans
might be on a waiting list behind veterans, but I don't think that your
information necessarily reflects the situation at all of the va blind
rehab centers.  
thanks,
j. g.
On Thu, 9 Oct 1997, Andy Baracco wrote:
> 
> 
> Hello Mr. Gashel. Before I wrote yesterday's post, I spoke with several
> persons involved in V. A. Blind Rehabilitation Services, both persons in
> the field, and administrators. I was assured that the V. A. has no plans
> to serve non-veterans other than the classes mentioned in my previous
> posts. As I stated yesterday, the V. A. does have a fee schedule for the
> billing of high income veterans and those with medical insurance. These
> schedules are probably what you received from Don Garner. BTW, there has
> been talk of a pilot program to provide some medical services to the
> members of certain Indian tribes in the southwest, where V. A. hospitals
> are the closest medical facilities to the reservations, but I have not
> heard of blind rehab being part of this. I also mentioned in yesterday's
> post that the V. A. does not have the capacity to handle more business
> than it presently has. In fact, many Visual Impairment Service Team
> coordinators are lobbying Mr. Garner for the authority and funding to
> contract with non-V. A. blind rehabilitation programs for service to blind
> veterans. Really, I would hate to be the non-veteran who would have to
> wait 2 years for services from the V. A. The one part of the resolution
> that is accurate is the part dealing with the refusal of the V. A. to
> consider visually impaired mobility instructors for internships or jobs. I
> want to let you know that this is one of the areas where I feel that the
> V.. A. is wrong. I hope that the change in atitude on this issue in the
> general blindness community will infiltrate into the V. A. There are many
> line level V. A. staff who also feel that the V. A. is wrong here. I am
> sure that their atitude will eventually change, but keep in mind that the
> VGovernment still will not accept responsability for the exposure of
> Viet-Nam War vets to Agent Oange.
> 
> Andy Baracco
> 
> 
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