VA Mistakenly Tells Vets They Have Fatal Illness

An anonymous reader writes "Thanks to a computer glitch and bad diagnosis coding, the VA sent a letter to thousands of veterans telling them they have Lou Gehrig's Disease. Some were right, but many were mistakes. From the article, 'Recently, the VA determined ALS to be a service-connected disability and generated automatic letters to all veterans whose records included the code for the disease. However, since the coding contained both ALS and undiagnosed neurological disorders, some of those letters were erroneous.'"

Comments

Not amusing

[Max Romantschuk]

ALS is basically a slow and unpleasant death sentence unless you are lucky and can afford proper care. You really don't want to be told you have something that will lock your working brain into your body until you suffocate without a breathing apparatus.

I'm perfectly aware many people can live for ages with ALS, but a significant portion aren't as lucky...

Re:Not amusing

[mc6809e]

ALS is basically a slow and unpleasant death sentence unless you are lucky and can afford proper care.

It's still horrible, even if you're lucky. There are so many "better" fatal diseases I'd rather have.

And unfortunately there really isn't a lot of public research being done to find a cure. A great deal of medical research is driven by politics and popularity, and ALS just doesn't get the attention it deserves. The cynic in me believes that the lack of research dollars is due to the short average expected lifespan after diagnosis -- those with ALS just aren't around long enough to make enough noise to get the attention needed to boost funding and research interest.

Re:it happens,

[mc6809e]

If I got a random letter saying I had a fatal neurological condition, I'd be slightly sceptical. Maybe that's just me though.

Yeah, but these aren't random letters. These are letters from the government. The VA is basically the government health care system for veterans.

If they sent me a letter, I'd think I'd take it seriously.

Re:it happens,

[mpoulton]

If I got a random letter saying I had a fatal neurological condition, I'd be slightly sceptical. Maybe that's just me though.

Except these patients already had "undiagnosed neurological conditions". If you had neurological problems, were seeking a diagnosis, had been evaluated inconclusively before, and received a notice from your hospital that you have ALS, you might be less skeptical and more devastated.