I heard that too about the VA, that would be a blessing, we travel two and 1/2 hours one way to get to the VA.
I also think as much as it is appreciated that they upped the funding, it isn't nearly enough. If 60% of the people who get ALS are veterans then they should give one hundred million toward research. We give billions to other countries yet our veterans are dying because of their service, often times decades after they served or soon after they served having been deployed or while deployed post 9/11 because war isn't quite enough ALS is heaped on top of all that comes with deployment, yes they get benefits from the VA which is outstanding BUT I'm pretty sure every veteran with ALS would rather not have ALS and the government benefits that go with it. What stands between a quicker road to really understanding this godawful disease, truly viable useful treatments, and potentially a cure is money, pure and simple, money. The government ought to ante up on this disease that kills veterans, and all non veterans with ALS will blessedly coattail on it.
Oh, and if anyone up there on Capital Hill thinks it's too much they can spend a week in the life of someone with ALS. Have someone dress them, fix their meals, feed them, wipe them clean after they toilet, brush their teeth, you know the kind of things PALS & CALS are pretty intimate with. We could offer the same ALS week to the top dogs at the DoD too.
Not meant to ruffle any feathers here, just a rant that has been building up for a while. I don't spend a lot of time feeling this way, there is too much of life to live with my PALS but it nudges me from the back of my mind and sometimes it spills out. It spilt tonight.