Open Letter from a Montana Veteran Denied Care by the VA
I know a lot of our fellow Iraq and Afghanistan veterans agree with me: being forced to wear a mask inside of a VA facility is a slap in the face to those who have served.
It angers us. It reminds us of the awful way people are treated by the Islamic extremists in the very countries we served in. How dare the higher ups in the Veterans Administration force us to wear these burqas inside of our facilities. Especially now- 3 years later.
I got a note from a friend of mine who served his country in Iraq, and continues to serve his community as a firefighter. In fact, I got to serve with some of the best guys you could find, in one of the worst places in the world back in 2005-2006. It was in Ramadi, Iraq. Before our unit got on the ground, it was Travis Norby's unit and his men that were holding some of that same terrain.
I got the following note from Travis Norby after he was denied care by the VA.
Open Letter from Montana Veteran Denied Care by the VA
Yesterday I arrived at the Billings VA 15 minutes prior to my appointment as directed. The automated check in kiosk was broken so I eventually was answered by the women behind the desk. Her first question was, "Do you have a mask?" I stated, "No and I don't want one, I just want my physical." The conversation basically devolved into me saying "What? I can't hear you with your mask." and "I can't understand you with your mask." So this back in forth went on 4-5 times. Eventually I understood that without a mask I was not going to be seen, and that this was the policy for all federal buildings. I felt that the receptionist really enjoyed having the power to deny me my physical from my 14th doctor in 16 years. I contemplated having the VA Police escort me out, in order to get the situation documented. So I decided to leave the situation as it stood.
Luckily the VA called me this morning in order to reschedule my physical appointment that I missed. I told him I didn't miss my appointment it was denied because I wouldn't wear a mask. The VA employee replied, "What do you want me to do about it?' in a sarcastic tone. I hung up out of frustration.
I would just like some help on this, the Covid threat is over, stop treating us like children.
Travis Norby
After receiving the note from Norby, I thought about passing his message on to members of our Congressional Delegation. Instead, I got his permission to share this note with all of you. It is time for this BS to stop. We finally ended the COVID vaccine mandate that was punishing our troops, let's now end this worthless COVID mask mandate that is punishing our vets.
NEVER FORGET: Images from 9/11 and the days after