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Three related stories out of the website "Veterans Today" concerning Gulf War Illness, its relationship to CFS, FM, GERD and IBS and the cassifications for disability inherent in those acronyms are a step forward for the veterans and potentially for civilian CFS and FM sufferers.
VA cites “Culture Change” for Gulf War veterans
VA’s new Gulf War Task Force report – which will be open for public review — will be “a step in the right direction,” says a top official.
VA’s new Gulf War Task Force report – which will be open for public review — will be “a step in the right direction,” says a top official.
Gingrich explained that part of the report’s contents include recommendations for changes to federal rules regulating veterans’ service-connected disability conditions.
When the three rules are published, Gingrich said VA would go back and inform every veteran who applied for service-connected disability compensation of information on the new rules, which, “should be final very soon,” he said.
When the three rules are published, Gingrich said VA would go back and inform every veteran who applied for service-connected disability compensation of information on the new rules, which, “should be final very soon,” he said.
Among those changes are examining the current rule dealing with service-connection for multi-symptom symptom illness and whether fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, and irritable bowel syndrome – currently “presumptive” conditions – are the only conditions that should qualify under that rule.
“We don’t think so, we think they are ‘examples’ of undiagnosed illness,” said Gingrich.
Another rule change will be in the definition of the geographic area of that defines the Gulf War area for Gulf War illness issues, and another will be related to PTSD.
Developing and providing new training materials for doctors, including those in primary care, is another key component of the culture shift documented in the upcoming report. Other key times Gingrich cited will be:
•Holding seminars on environmental exposures.
•Looking at VA’s benefits laws and rules differently.
•Newsletters, website will be updated.
•Added to performance metrics for VA healthcare facilities.
•Telephone survey of Gulf War veterans.
•Longitudinal studies to track long-term health outcomes.
•Better focus on female veterans.
•Partnerships, including doing much more with DoD.
•Need to have a transparency of records between DoD and VA health care facilities, including with the VLER (Veteran Lifetime Electronic Record).
•Looking at VA’s benefits laws and rules differently.
•Newsletters, website will be updated.
•Added to performance metrics for VA healthcare facilities.
•Telephone survey of Gulf War veterans.
•Longitudinal studies to track long-term health outcomes.
•Better focus on female veterans.
•Partnerships, including doing much more with DoD.
•Need to have a transparency of records between DoD and VA health care facilities, including with the VLER (Veteran Lifetime Electronic Record).
Gingrich also said that VA needs to learn from the experiences of Gulf War veterans for veterans of later generations."
GULF WAR VETERANS TO VA SECRETARY ON VA OPENING VETERANS’ CLAIMS, ‘WE’RE HIGHLY SKEPTICAL’ at:http://www.veteranstoday.com/2010/03/04/gulf-war-veterans-giving-feedback-to-va-secretary-and-chief-of-staff-on-va-plans-to-reopen-gulf-war-veterans-claims-veterans-highly-skeptical-on-plans/
Quoted "This training module dedicated to Gulf War Illness should be updated on an ongoing basis and should be made a requirement for all attending VA staff that treat Gulf War Veterans. All references to Gulf War Illness as “psychological” in nature should be eliminated from VA materials and replaced with real data and facts from the latest research and approved by the committee as true research into gulf war illness.
The next step is to add Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) and sinus problems to the list of illnesses. The illnesses of Fibromyalgia (FM) and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) should all be treated and rated as CFS. They both have the same symptoms and it is only a doctor’s opinion that will assign them CFS or FM. The rating for FM is 40% and the rating for CFS is 100%. The tendency is to assign FM to the veteran; however, by law the VA is supposed to give the veterans the higher of the two, but is not. the article: "
Additionally, on February 26th, Veterans Today published an article NGWRC STATEMENT ON VA’s REOPENING GULF WAR VETERANS CLAIMS at:
http://www.veteranstoday.com/2010/02/26/ngwrc-statement-on-recent-ap-story-va-to-reopen-gulf-war-veterans-claims/
"Jim Bunker, president for the National Gulf War Resource Center (NGWRC), is worried that having the same raters looking over claims they previouslydenied will be a waste of time and money. The VA’s first priority should be fixing the system.
In a letter he sent, on behalf of the NGWRC, to VA Secretary Eric Shinseki and Chief of Staff John R. Gingrich, Bunker has asked that there be better training on the entire rating system."
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