By Bill O'Neil
They risk their lives equally--but is the playing field really equal for men and women when they seek health care from the Veteran's Administration after leaving the military?
That's the focus of a town hall meeting set for Monday Evening in San Antonio.
Hosted by the American Legion--the session is part of a series of meetings that are held by the group every year."The mission of the program is to assess the quality and timeliness of health care--and to provide feedback from veterans", said the American Legion's Rich Damancus, adding "So far this year, we've conducted fifteen site visits within the VA's medical facilities."
So far, officials said the feedback has been eye opening--with many women feeling
as though they are not being treated as equals."They have gender specific needs that they need--so we want to make sure the access and quality of health care the VA is providing is adequate enough to meet their needs" said Warren Goldstein with the American Legion. He told 550 KTSA News the theme he's heard is a tough one.
"There's a big stigma within the VA that they (women vets) are not being treated equally or as fairly as their male counterparts are" Goldstein said.
Photos: wbdg.org; sheltonpost16.org; washingtonpost.com;war-veterans.org
