Frustrated vets voice concerns at Dublin VA town hall meeting
Several vets shared stories of hardship and concerns.
“Well here you are little buddy. We’re going to help you a little bit. No that’s bull—-,” one veteran said angrily.
Tensions were flaring as veteran after veteran voiced their disapproval of their care at the VA center in Dublin.
Interim Director Tom Grace, who stepped in to replace John Goldman, knew he’d get this type of emotion. He says it’s necessary.
“Well it’s feedback that’s very important for us to hear. We need to hear the voice of the veteran,” Grace said.
Stories about lack of service, calls put on hold for extended periods, and requests for care seemed to repeat themselves.
“I’m still fighting for our benefits. I’m still fighting for him, and what I really don’t want to see is for this to happen to somebody else,” Jen Kilpatrick, an Air Force widow, said.
Kilpatrick is originally from Dublin. She moved to Colorado to get what she calls a fresh start after watching her husband die.
“He was my one true love. It was like how you see in the movies. That first kiss, we were in love. We were going to spend the rest of our lives together,” Kilpatrick said.
She says doctors put her husband on pain meds, but never saw him until it was too late.
Specialists found stage four cancer around his abdomen.
“Because of all of that, the VA is saying his death is not related to his disability and they’re trying to deny me benefits and I’ve been fighting for 2 1/2 years now,” Kilpatrick said.
Grace says stories like Jen’s will help when it comes to retraining and addressing certain policies moving forward.
“We are certainly going to be taking a lot of actions to improve the perceptions of our veterans in terms of we want to be able to come here. We want them the VA to be the choice for veterans to come to,” Grace said.
He adds a new, permanent director at the Carl Vinson VA Medical Center in Dublin should be named by February or March.
Grace also tells 41NBC the Department of Veterans Affairs is looking into hiring more doctors and expanding its facilities in Bibb and Houston County to serve the large amount of veterans in the area.
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