Veterans with chronic pain: The VA has decided that Vets don't need pain medication. Can the VA refuse to give a Veteran needed medication?

Yep. VA could care less, and somehow theres no shortage of jackasses that think we should legislate against people that follow the rules to create a "safer" world for junkies- as if we should somehow have the right to dictate what junkies put in their bodies anyway. My advice to anyone at this point would be to never join the military, because if you get hurt you'll spend your life in pain before the VA lifts a finger to do anything about it. Its complete bull shit that a VA doctor's liability should be any concern at all. The first and most important concern should be the vets quality of life, thats what that job is created for, not to employ the latest minority with a medical degree. And how many doctors in the va have killed vets with negligence? You havent seen any change have you? Because va staff know its damn near impossible to get fired. The va is a jobs program, nothing more. Its an organization built to serve vets, yet somehow most vets cant stand it- thats no accident. Statistical analysis of success rates of opioids shouldnt matter- if its working for you, if its improving your life, thats all that should matter. This is the kind of crap that happens when you arent free. People youve never met decide what goes into your body. People you see when you cant possibly avoid it, that could care less about you alter your life without consulting you. We have republicans to thank for a war on drugs thats helped absolutely no one, and democrats to thank for a unionized va, that cares far more about provider quality of life than vets. And we have dumbasses who are one bad day away from wishing they had never supported this system when they find 3 or 4 pills a day could make all the difference. Heres hoping for legal weed, and that your pain goes drastically down with a new knee.

Leave it to the VA to go about things the wrong way. What are blood and urine test for if they don't or won't monitor drug abuse? Why aren't addicts being treated? Why the Gestapo treatment with all vets because some bad apples abused their meds?

I forsee bad results coming from this, particularly when you purposely effect people's quality of life. I believe suicides and workplace violence will increase within the VA. I know some of these vets who are at their wits end, but hope they seek improved medical care outside the VA. This is their only hope, and there are far more than many think.

So, this is American Universal Healthcare/Single Payer healthcare? Great!

Deep down behind closed doors, we are liabilities, the sooner we Die off or drop off the VA health care system the more money they can save for Administration costs such as fatting up the high level GS and SES salaries. Only a very few abused or sold their pain medications, but the whole VA patient community is going to suffer. Reason why we loosing 22 vets a day to suicide. They are frustrated with this being treated like this, I have two ruptured disk in my neck, one in my back abd two blown out knees, these was owed to multiple combat deployments and 22 years of crawling in and on tanks and Bradley’s, was given 2 Vicodin’s a day to ease the pain, you would h@ve never known I took them, active at work, fishing ,family life. Got cut off, no notice, use gabapentin, been living in hell ever since, from time to time I have had my teeth implanted back from breaking a couple in Iraq. Looks like I am going rely on Jim, JAck and Bud, because the VA really don’t give a $hit.