Navy Veteran Nate Banks needed a CT scan after experiencing severe abdominal pain. However, when he contacted his local VA hospital for care, he was not provided with the help he needed. After months of back-and-forth between the hospital and Congressman Steve Pierce, Nate was finally able to get access to the care he needed through Mercy Regional Hospital. This story illustrates both the difficulty Veteran s face in accessing proper healthcare and the positive impact of initiatives like the VA Mission Act. Let us take a closer look at these issues.
Nate Banks served as an aviation mechanic in the Navy from 2003 to 2007 before returning home to Arizona. In April 2019, he began experiencing severe abdominal pain and sought medical attention from his local VA hospital. After undergoing tests, Nate was told that he needed a CT scan, but it would take six weeks for him to be approved for one and even longer for him to receive treatment if any serious issues were discovered. Unwilling to wait that long, Nate decided to contact Congressman Steve Pierce for help.
Fortunately, Representative Pierce took immediate action on Nate’s behalf and contacted the VA demanding prompt approval of community care at Mercy Regional Hospital so that Nate could receive timely medical attention. The VA then approved his referral within 48 hours of Rep. Pierce contacting them about his case—a decision which saved his life as it turns out that some potentially life-threatening issues had been detected in his scans at Mercy Regional Hospital which would have gone untreated had they not intervened so quickly.
The VA Mission Act was signed into law by President Trump in 2018 to make it easier and faster for Veteran s like Nate Banks to access community care, when necessary, instead of being forced to go through lengthy processes or wait too long for appointments with their local VA hospitals. While this act has helped countless Veteran s access the care they need more efficiently, there is still much work left to be done before all Veteran s can truly benefit from its effects.
The story of Navy Veteran Nate Banks speaks volumes about both how difficult it can be for Veteran s like him to access proper healthcare from their local VA hospitals as well as how beneficial initiatives like the VA Mission Act can be in helping them receive timely medical attention when necessary. This will serve as an example going forward of what can be achieved when people work together on behalf of those who served our country proudly but now need our support in return. Our Veteran s deserve compassionate care without unnecessary delays or bureaucratic hurdles getting in their way!
Listen to the full episode here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/american-potential/id1661043438#episodeGuid=americanpotential.podbean.com%2F46737907-30e3-3041-92c8-0c53ea15579d
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