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We all need to be sending emails objecting to this ridiculous decision to not allow service dogs to accompany their vet while receiving needed care. Please recommend who to send our objections to.
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For your information, as of yesterday, the VA Podiatry Clinic at the Long Beach VA will no longer allow me to bring my hearing dog, Zochi, into their "examining" rooms. I have asked, therefore for referral to community care, but that was also denied.
Enclosed are two VA documents. One is a policy letter for the whole country, the other is the policy for Northern California, I am currently in contact with a civil rights lawyer who is helping me out. But at this point, I must leave my service dog at home if I want podiatry care. If you have any legal resources that I should contact, please let me know.
 InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608 Phone (562) 947-2258
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Now: Veterans Across America Virtual Chapter Meeting - Tuesday, April 18, 2023
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Event: Veterans Across America Virtual Chapter Meeting - Tuesday, April 18, 2023
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Jim!
Thanks for the update. Ron
http://www.conceptscommunications.com/team/ronald-drach/
On Apr 12, 2023, at 7:32 PM, Jim Rau <jimrau@...> wrote: Around - and around - and around we go and we are still here. In March I reported that I had news that VA would start captioning their VVC tele-health appointments on March 28th. Well that never happened. I was greatly disappointed.
So I called the Washington Hot Line (again) to inquire what is going on. Yesterday I got a reply back from the Minneapolis VA Advocate (Not the Washington Office) that VA had tried to roll out captioning in April but there were problems. They took it down and are working to fix the problems. Without the benefit of any further details it appears to me that we are in about the same spot that we were 14 months ago. Sorry folks.
Jim
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Around - and around - and around we go and we are still here. In March I reported that I had news that VA would start captioning their VVC tele-health appointments on March 28th. Well that never happened. I was greatly disappointed.
So I called the Washington Hot Line (again) to inquire what is going on. Yesterday I got a reply back from the Minneapolis VA Advocate (Not the Washington Office) that VA had tried to roll out captioning in April but there were problems. They took it down and are working to fix the problems. Without the benefit of any further details it appears to me that we are in about the same spot that we were 14 months ago. Sorry folks.
Jim
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Now: Veterans Across America Virtual Chapter Meeting - Tuesday, March 21, 2023
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Veterans Across America Virtual Chapter Meeting
When:
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Where:
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Organizer: Carla Beyer-Smolin
cbeyer-smolin@...
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We invite VAAVC members to attend the next Veterans Across America Virtual Chapter Meeting (VAAVC) online using Zoom.
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Event: Veterans Across America Virtual Chapter Meeting - Tuesday, March 21, 2023
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toggle quoted message
Show quoted text
On Mar 13, 2023, at 6:13 PM, Ronald Drach via hlaagroups.hearingloss.org <consultrwd=yahoo.com@...> wrote:
Jim!
Great info. Thanks for sharing. Ron
http://www.conceptscommunications.com/team/ronald-drach/
On Mar 13, 2023, at 11:35 AM, Jim Rau <jimrau@...> wrote:
I’ve been informed that VA plans to roll out captions on VVC (Veterans Video Connect) conferencing platform on March 28. Their new contractor was able to add captioning. Their old contractor was not able (or possibly unwilling) to do it and VA was locked into the contract until it expired.
Since VA does everything through government contracts I suspect that’s why hearing loops are so hard to get in VA. They simply don’t have a contract for hearing loops. I know - this only makes sense in government.
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Jim!
Great info. Thanks for sharing. Ron
http://www.conceptscommunications.com/team/ronald-drach/
On Mar 13, 2023, at 11:35 AM, Jim Rau <jimrau@...> wrote: I’ve been informed that VA plans to roll out captions on VVC (Veterans Video Connect) conferencing platform on March 28. Their new contractor was able to add captioning. Their old contractor was not able (or possibly unwilling) to do it and VA was locked into the contract until it expired.
Since VA does everything through government contracts I suspect that’s why hearing loops are so hard to get in VA. They simply don’t have a contract for hearing loops. I know - this only makes sense in government.
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Michael Ricklefs
Thanks for the update Jim!
On Mon, Mar 13, 2023, 08:35 Jim Rau < jimrau@...> wrote: I’ve been informed that VA plans to roll out captions on VVC (Veterans Video Connect) conferencing platform on March 28. Their new contractor was able to add captioning. Their old contractor was not able (or possibly unwilling) to do it and VA was locked into the contract until it expired.
Since VA does everything through government contracts I suspect that’s why hearing loops are so hard to get in VA. They simply don’t have a contract for hearing loops. I know - this only makes sense in government.
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I’ve been informed that VA plans to roll out captions on VVC (Veterans Video Connect) conferencing platform on March 28. Their new contractor was able to add captioning. Their old contractor was not able (or possibly unwilling) to do it and VA was locked into the contract until it expired.
Since VA does everything through government contracts I suspect that’s why hearing loops are so hard to get in VA. They simply don’t have a contract for hearing loops. I know - this only makes sense in government.
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Now: Veterans Across America Virtual Chapter Meeting - Tuesday, February 21, 2023
#cal-notice
Group Notification <noreply@...>
Veterans Across America Virtual Chapter Meeting
When:
Tuesday, February 21, 2023
8:00pm to 9:00pm
(UTC-05:00) America/New York
Where:
Virtual Zoom Meeting
Organizer: Carla Beyer-Smolin
cbeyer-smolin@...
View Event
Description:
We invite VAAVC members to attend the next Veterans Across America Virtual Chapter Meeting (VAAVC) online using Zoom.
Time: 8 p.m. ET, 7 p.m. CT, 6 p.m. MT, 5 p.m. PT
This will be an open meeting. We look forward to seeing you online.
REGISTER
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Event: Veterans Across America Virtual Chapter Meeting - Tuesday, February 21, 2023
#cal-reminder
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Reminder: Veterans Across America Virtual Chapter Meeting
When:
Tuesday, February 21, 2023
8:00pm to 9:00pm
(UTC-05:00) America/New York
Where:
Virtual Zoom Meeting
Organizer: Carla Beyer-Smolin
cbeyer-smolin@...
View Event
Description:
We invite VAAVC members to attend the next Veterans Across America Virtual Chapter Meeting (VAAVC) online using Zoom.
Time: 8 p.m. ET, 7 p.m. CT, 6 p.m. MT, 5 p.m. PT
This will be an open meeting. We look forward to seeing you online.
REGISTER
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Re: Video Forward from Jim Rau
Webex is the system that the VA Vet Centers use here in Southern California.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608 Phone (562) 947-2258
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| 02/18/23, 10:38:43 PM |
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 On Sat, Feb 18, 2023 at 7:43 PM Michael Ricklefs < outnaround@...> wrote: I wanted to add a positive note that I experienced last week. I have been voicing my difficulties to my VA Mental Health Professional that I meet with monthly via VVC. He has been very supportive and apologetic about the lack of Captioning. He contacted me earlier in the week, saying that he was able to figure out how we could take our monthly telehealth appointment to the Webex platform and try that. It worked well, Captioning was fluid, and I was able to keep up with the conversation and resulted in my best therapy session in along time. Webex. Try it, see if your local VA uses it as an alternative platform.
Happy for a spell, 🙄 Michael Ricklefs
Hmm, maybe they do in Connecticut to?🤔
Is this that old saying that goes,
If you've seen one VA... you've seen one VA.
What makes it even more tragic is the fact that the Vet Centers have closed captioning available for Southern California veterans.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608 Phone (562) 947-2258
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| 02/18/23, 04:57:56 PM |
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 On Sat, Feb 18, 2023 at 1:51 PM Michael Ricklefs < outnaround@...> wrote: I have to agree with you Steve on a vote for no confidence… I must say though that this morning I thought I was going to pop if I did not say something and emailed both section508@... and Senator Bob Casey as to how appalling it is that in fifty years they have not gotten the job done. As well as how in the heck you can come out with new applications on iPhone and Android platforms, yet they still do not offer captioning abilities. I do not believe that they can hide behind the old “aging Infrastructure” lies. Kindest Regards, Michael Ricklefs Sent from Mail for Windows I have very little faith in my Congressional Representative and my Senators. Instead, I have filed a complaint with the FCC and plan to file an EEOC complaint if I don't hear back from those that I spoke with yesterday.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608
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On Sat, Feb 18, 2023 at 5:42 AM Jim Rau <jimrau@...> wrote: Steve, that sounds. The supervisor of audiology at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center knows about it too as does the Washington office. My local outreach clinic knows too. The patient advocate knows me by name. VA is well aware of the issue (but not at all levels). They simply are putting us off intentionally. I recommend contacting your US Senator and Congressman. I had the dubious pleasure of participating in a telehealth event gone bad. The van that I drive went into the shop for an extended period of time because my transmission needed repair and rebuilding. I chose, therefore, to convert my primary care appointment to a televideo event. Normally, I can deal pretty well with telehealth appointments because of the headset that I normally use. However, in this particular case, there was a cacophony of background sounds that I was subjected to, and there was no obvious close captioning that I could rely upon to help me in this noisy background environment. I contacted the patient advocate at the Long Beach V A who was practically useless. She insisted that my doctor was responsible for the lack of closed captioning while I insisted that my doctor had nothing to do with it. I emphatically told her not to contact the doctor, and if she needed to contact anybody, it should be the EEO Officer at the Medical Center. She ignored me, and all of a sudden I had the doctor and his nurse apologizing for whatever wrong was done to me by them. I finally ended up talking with the Chief of the Audiology Department and the Patient Advocate Supervisor who now understand my dilemma and have promised to work together to find out what can be done to develop a local solution to this issue. The Audiology Department Chief went even so far to admit that many people with cochlear implants are forced to conduct their audiology business over the secure messaging service, because Telehealth does not include closed captioning. The Patient Advocate supervisor was not aware that the VA and other federal government agencies (except for Congress) were not covered by ADA but relied, instead, upon the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 for their rules and regulations. I don't know how far this is going to go, but I will keep you informed.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608
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On Fri, Feb 17, 2023 at 10:25 AM Michael Ricklefs <outnaround@...> wrote: Thankyou for the link to this YouTube video. It had some good information. I must say however that I am greatly disappointed in Cindi Trueharts’ statements that there are absolutely no negative comments by veterans regarding telehealth and VVC. Really? No captions, no recognition of this issue… and that if there are any video issues we just call them by telephone. Sorry for the dark side comment, I do appreciate your relaying this to me and for Jim’s desire to share it. Looking forward to our next visit. Kindest Regards, Michael Ricklefs Sent from Mail for Windows Hi VAAVC members, Jim Rau found this video to share with Michael Ricklefs and I thought it might be good to share with you all, too. This is a great video about getting a CI through VA. Can you forward this to Michael Ricklefs, please?” Jim https://youtu.be/gqGWDRxUD-0 Best regards, Carla Beyer-Smolin Chapter and Membership Coordinator Hearing Loss Association of America 6116 Executive Blvd, Suite 320 │Rockville, MD 20852 301.657.2248 ext. 101 | cbeyer-smolin@...│www.hearingloss.org “Like” us on Facebook│“Follow” us on Twitter Sign up for our free Hearing Life e-News
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Re: Video Forward from Jim Rau
Michael Ricklefs
I wanted to add a positive note that I experienced last week. I have been voicing my difficulties to my VA Mental Health Professional that I meet with monthly via VVC. He has been very supportive and apologetic about the lack of Captioning. He contacted me earlier in the week, saying that he was able to figure out how we could take our monthly telehealth appointment to the Webex platform and try that. It worked well, Captioning was fluid, and I was able to keep up with the conversation and resulted in my best therapy session in along time. Webex. Try it, see if your local VA uses it as an alternative platform.
Happy for a spell, 🙄 Michael Ricklefs
Hmm, maybe they do in Connecticut to?🤔
Is this that old saying that goes,
If you've seen one VA... you've seen one VA.
What makes it even more tragic is the fact that the Vet Centers have closed captioning available for Southern California veterans.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608 Phone (562) 947-2258
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| 02/18/23, 04:57:56 PM |
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 On Sat, Feb 18, 2023 at 1:51 PM Michael Ricklefs < outnaround@...> wrote: I have to agree with you Steve on a vote for no confidence… I must say though that this morning I thought I was going to pop if I did not say something and emailed both section508@... and Senator Bob Casey as to how appalling it is that in fifty years they have not gotten the job done. As well as how in the heck you can come out with new applications on iPhone and Android platforms, yet they still do not offer captioning abilities. I do not believe that they can hide behind the old “aging Infrastructure” lies. Kindest Regards, Michael Ricklefs Sent from Mail for Windows I have very little faith in my Congressional Representative and my Senators. Instead, I have filed a complaint with the FCC and plan to file an EEOC complaint if I don't hear back from those that I spoke with yesterday.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608
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On Sat, Feb 18, 2023 at 5:42 AM Jim Rau <jimrau@...> wrote: Steve, that sounds. The supervisor of audiology at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center knows about it too as does the Washington office. My local outreach clinic knows too. The patient advocate knows me by name. VA is well aware of the issue (but not at all levels). They simply are putting us off intentionally. I recommend contacting your US Senator and Congressman. I had the dubious pleasure of participating in a telehealth event gone bad. The van that I drive went into the shop for an extended period of time because my transmission needed repair and rebuilding. I chose, therefore, to convert my primary care appointment to a televideo event. Normally, I can deal pretty well with telehealth appointments because of the headset that I normally use. However, in this particular case, there was a cacophony of background sounds that I was subjected to, and there was no obvious close captioning that I could rely upon to help me in this noisy background environment. I contacted the patient advocate at the Long Beach V A who was practically useless. She insisted that my doctor was responsible for the lack of closed captioning while I insisted that my doctor had nothing to do with it. I emphatically told her not to contact the doctor, and if she needed to contact anybody, it should be the EEO Officer at the Medical Center. She ignored me, and all of a sudden I had the doctor and his nurse apologizing for whatever wrong was done to me by them. I finally ended up talking with the Chief of the Audiology Department and the Patient Advocate Supervisor who now understand my dilemma and have promised to work together to find out what can be done to develop a local solution to this issue. The Audiology Department Chief went even so far to admit that many people with cochlear implants are forced to conduct their audiology business over the secure messaging service, because Telehealth does not include closed captioning. The Patient Advocate supervisor was not aware that the VA and other federal government agencies (except for Congress) were not covered by ADA but relied, instead, upon the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 for their rules and regulations. I don't know how far this is going to go, but I will keep you informed.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608
| Sender notified by
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On Fri, Feb 17, 2023 at 10:25 AM Michael Ricklefs <outnaround@...> wrote: Thankyou for the link to this YouTube video. It had some good information. I must say however that I am greatly disappointed in Cindi Trueharts’ statements that there are absolutely no negative comments by veterans regarding telehealth and VVC. Really? No captions, no recognition of this issue… and that if there are any video issues we just call them by telephone. Sorry for the dark side comment, I do appreciate your relaying this to me and for Jim’s desire to share it. Looking forward to our next visit. Kindest Regards, Michael Ricklefs Sent from Mail for Windows Hi VAAVC members, Jim Rau found this video to share with Michael Ricklefs and I thought it might be good to share with you all, too. This is a great video about getting a CI through VA. Can you forward this to Michael Ricklefs, please?” Jim https://youtu.be/gqGWDRxUD-0 Best regards, Carla Beyer-Smolin Chapter and Membership Coordinator Hearing Loss Association of America 6116 Executive Blvd, Suite 320 │Rockville, MD 20852 301.657.2248 ext. 101 | cbeyer-smolin@...│www.hearingloss.org “Like” us on Facebook│“Follow” us on Twitter Sign up for our free Hearing Life e-News
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Re: Video Forward from Jim Rau
Michael Ricklefs
Hmm, maybe they do in Connecticut to?🤔
Is this that old saying that goes,
If you've seen one VA... you've seen one VA.
What makes it even more tragic is the fact that the Vet Centers have closed captioning available for Southern California veterans.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608 Phone (562) 947-2258
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On Sat, Feb 18, 2023 at 1:51 PM Michael Ricklefs < outnaround@...> wrote: I have to agree with you Steve on a vote for no confidence… I must say though that this morning I thought I was going to pop if I did not say something and emailed both section508@... and Senator Bob Casey as to how appalling it is that in fifty years they have not gotten the job done. As well as how in the heck you can come out with new applications on iPhone and Android platforms, yet they still do not offer captioning abilities. I do not believe that they can hide behind the old “aging Infrastructure” lies. Kindest Regards, Michael Ricklefs Sent from Mail for Windows I have very little faith in my Congressional Representative and my Senators. Instead, I have filed a complaint with the FCC and plan to file an EEOC complaint if I don't hear back from those that I spoke with yesterday.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608
| Sender notified by
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On Sat, Feb 18, 2023 at 5:42 AM Jim Rau <jimrau@...> wrote: Steve, that sounds. The supervisor of audiology at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center knows about it too as does the Washington office. My local outreach clinic knows too. The patient advocate knows me by name. VA is well aware of the issue (but not at all levels). They simply are putting us off intentionally. I recommend contacting your US Senator and Congressman. I had the dubious pleasure of participating in a telehealth event gone bad. The van that I drive went into the shop for an extended period of time because my transmission needed repair and rebuilding. I chose, therefore, to convert my primary care appointment to a televideo event. Normally, I can deal pretty well with telehealth appointments because of the headset that I normally use. However, in this particular case, there was a cacophony of background sounds that I was subjected to, and there was no obvious close captioning that I could rely upon to help me in this noisy background environment. I contacted the patient advocate at the Long Beach V A who was practically useless. She insisted that my doctor was responsible for the lack of closed captioning while I insisted that my doctor had nothing to do with it. I emphatically told her not to contact the doctor, and if she needed to contact anybody, it should be the EEO Officer at the Medical Center. She ignored me, and all of a sudden I had the doctor and his nurse apologizing for whatever wrong was done to me by them. I finally ended up talking with the Chief of the Audiology Department and the Patient Advocate Supervisor who now understand my dilemma and have promised to work together to find out what can be done to develop a local solution to this issue. The Audiology Department Chief went even so far to admit that many people with cochlear implants are forced to conduct their audiology business over the secure messaging service, because Telehealth does not include closed captioning. The Patient Advocate supervisor was not aware that the VA and other federal government agencies (except for Congress) were not covered by ADA but relied, instead, upon the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 for their rules and regulations. I don't know how far this is going to go, but I will keep you informed.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608
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On Fri, Feb 17, 2023 at 10:25 AM Michael Ricklefs <outnaround@...> wrote: Thankyou for the link to this YouTube video. It had some good information. I must say however that I am greatly disappointed in Cindi Trueharts’ statements that there are absolutely no negative comments by veterans regarding telehealth and VVC. Really? No captions, no recognition of this issue… and that if there are any video issues we just call them by telephone. Sorry for the dark side comment, I do appreciate your relaying this to me and for Jim’s desire to share it. Looking forward to our next visit. Kindest Regards, Michael Ricklefs Sent from Mail for Windows Hi VAAVC members, Jim Rau found this video to share with Michael Ricklefs and I thought it might be good to share with you all, too. This is a great video about getting a CI through VA. Can you forward this to Michael Ricklefs, please?” Jim https://youtu.be/gqGWDRxUD-0 Best regards, Carla Beyer-Smolin Chapter and Membership Coordinator Hearing Loss Association of America 6116 Executive Blvd, Suite 320 │Rockville, MD 20852 301.657.2248 ext. 101 | cbeyer-smolin@...│www.hearingloss.org “Like” us on Facebook│“Follow” us on Twitter Sign up for our free Hearing Life e-News
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Re: Video Forward from Jim Rau
NO!!!! The VA Vet Centers provide special mental health services to combat veterans, apart from the VA medical centers.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608 Phone (562) 947-2258
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 On Sat, Feb 18, 2023 at 6:56 PM Jim Rau < jimrau@...> wrote: By “Vet Centers “ do you mean VA Medical Centers? What makes it even more tragic is the fact that the Vet Centers have closed captioning available for Southern California veterans.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608 Phone (562) 947-2258
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 On Sat, Feb 18, 2023 at 1:51 PM Michael Ricklefs < outnaround@...> wrote: I have to agree with you Steve on a vote for no confidence… I must say though that this morning I thought I was going to pop if I did not say something and emailed both section508@... and Senator Bob Casey as to how appalling it is that in fifty years they have not gotten the job done. As well as how in the heck you can come out with new applications on iPhone and Android platforms, yet they still do not offer captioning abilities. I do not believe that they can hide behind the old “aging Infrastructure” lies. Kindest Regards, Michael Ricklefs Sent from Mail for Windows I have very little faith in my Congressional Representative and my Senators. Instead, I have filed a complaint with the FCC and plan to file an EEOC complaint if I don't hear back from those that I spoke with yesterday.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608
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<dummyfile.0.part> On Sat, Feb 18, 2023 at 5:42 AM Jim Rau <jimrau@...> wrote: Steve, that sounds. The supervisor of audiology at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center knows about it too as does the Washington office. My local outreach clinic knows too. The patient advocate knows me by name. VA is well aware of the issue (but not at all levels). They simply are putting us off intentionally. I recommend contacting your US Senator and Congressman. I had the dubious pleasure of participating in a telehealth event gone bad. The van that I drive went into the shop for an extended period of time because my transmission needed repair and rebuilding. I chose, therefore, to convert my primary care appointment to a televideo event. Normally, I can deal pretty well with telehealth appointments because of the headset that I normally use. However, in this particular case, there was a cacophony of background sounds that I was subjected to, and there was no obvious close captioning that I could rely upon to help me in this noisy background environment. I contacted the patient advocate at the Long Beach V A who was practically useless. She insisted that my doctor was responsible for the lack of closed captioning while I insisted that my doctor had nothing to do with it. I emphatically told her not to contact the doctor, and if she needed to contact anybody, it should be the EEO Officer at the Medical Center. She ignored me, and all of a sudden I had the doctor and his nurse apologizing for whatever wrong was done to me by them. I finally ended up talking with the Chief of the Audiology Department and the Patient Advocate Supervisor who now understand my dilemma and have promised to work together to find out what can be done to develop a local solution to this issue. The Audiology Department Chief went even so far to admit that many people with cochlear implants are forced to conduct their audiology business over the secure messaging service, because Telehealth does not include closed captioning. The Patient Advocate supervisor was not aware that the VA and other federal government agencies (except for Congress) were not covered by ADA but relied, instead, upon the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 for their rules and regulations. I don't know how far this is going to go, but I will keep you informed.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608
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<446935D81F2C45E7B6050A82E0A2B96C.gif> On Fri, Feb 17, 2023 at 10:25 AM Michael Ricklefs <outnaround@...> wrote: Thankyou for the link to this YouTube video. It had some good information. I must say however that I am greatly disappointed in Cindi Trueharts’ statements that there are absolutely no negative comments by veterans regarding telehealth and VVC. Really? No captions, no recognition of this issue… and that if there are any video issues we just call them by telephone. Sorry for the dark side comment, I do appreciate your relaying this to me and for Jim’s desire to share it. Looking forward to our next visit. Kindest Regards, Michael Ricklefs Sent from Mail for Windows Hi VAAVC members, Jim Rau found this video to share with Michael Ricklefs and I thought it might be good to share with you all, too. This is a great video about getting a CI through VA. Can you forward this to Michael Ricklefs, please?” Jim https://youtu.be/gqGWDRxUD-0 Best regards, Carla Beyer-Smolin Chapter and Membership Coordinator Hearing Loss Association of America 6116 Executive Blvd, Suite 320 │Rockville, MD 20852 301.657.2248 ext. 101 | cbeyer-smolin@...│www.hearingloss.org “Like” us on Facebook│“Follow” us on Twitter Sign up for our free Hearing Life e-News
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Re: Video Forward from Jim Rau
By “Vet Centers “ do you mean VA Medical Centers?
On Feb 18, 2023, at 6:59 PM, Steve Sterry <steve.sterry@...> wrote:
What makes it even more tragic is the fact that the Vet Centers have closed captioning available for Southern California veterans.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608 Phone (562) 947-2258
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On Sat, Feb 18, 2023 at 1:51 PM Michael Ricklefs < outnaround@...> wrote: I have to agree with you Steve on a vote for no confidence… I must say though that this morning I thought I was going to pop if I did not say something and emailed both section508@... and Senator Bob Casey as to how appalling it is that in fifty years they have not gotten the job done. As well as how in the heck you can come out with new applications on iPhone and Android platforms, yet they still do not offer captioning abilities. I do not believe that they can hide behind the old “aging Infrastructure” lies. Kindest Regards, Michael Ricklefs Sent from Mail for Windows I have very little faith in my Congressional Representative and my Senators. Instead, I have filed a complaint with the FCC and plan to file an EEOC complaint if I don't hear back from those that I spoke with yesterday.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608
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<dummyfile.0.part> On Sat, Feb 18, 2023 at 5:42 AM Jim Rau <jimrau@...> wrote: Steve, that sounds. The supervisor of audiology at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center knows about it too as does the Washington office. My local outreach clinic knows too. The patient advocate knows me by name. VA is well aware of the issue (but not at all levels). They simply are putting us off intentionally. I recommend contacting your US Senator and Congressman. I had the dubious pleasure of participating in a telehealth event gone bad. The van that I drive went into the shop for an extended period of time because my transmission needed repair and rebuilding. I chose, therefore, to convert my primary care appointment to a televideo event. Normally, I can deal pretty well with telehealth appointments because of the headset that I normally use. However, in this particular case, there was a cacophony of background sounds that I was subjected to, and there was no obvious close captioning that I could rely upon to help me in this noisy background environment. I contacted the patient advocate at the Long Beach V A who was practically useless. She insisted that my doctor was responsible for the lack of closed captioning while I insisted that my doctor had nothing to do with it. I emphatically told her not to contact the doctor, and if she needed to contact anybody, it should be the EEO Officer at the Medical Center. She ignored me, and all of a sudden I had the doctor and his nurse apologizing for whatever wrong was done to me by them. I finally ended up talking with the Chief of the Audiology Department and the Patient Advocate Supervisor who now understand my dilemma and have promised to work together to find out what can be done to develop a local solution to this issue. The Audiology Department Chief went even so far to admit that many people with cochlear implants are forced to conduct their audiology business over the secure messaging service, because Telehealth does not include closed captioning. The Patient Advocate supervisor was not aware that the VA and other federal government agencies (except for Congress) were not covered by ADA but relied, instead, upon the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 for their rules and regulations. I don't know how far this is going to go, but I will keep you informed.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608
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Mailtrack | 02/18/23, 04:30:00 AM | |
<446935D81F2C45E7B6050A82E0A2B96C.gif> On Fri, Feb 17, 2023 at 10:25 AM Michael Ricklefs <outnaround@...> wrote: Thankyou for the link to this YouTube video. It had some good information. I must say however that I am greatly disappointed in Cindi Trueharts’ statements that there are absolutely no negative comments by veterans regarding telehealth and VVC. Really? No captions, no recognition of this issue… and that if there are any video issues we just call them by telephone. Sorry for the dark side comment, I do appreciate your relaying this to me and for Jim’s desire to share it. Looking forward to our next visit. Kindest Regards, Michael Ricklefs Sent from Mail for Windows Hi VAAVC members, Jim Rau found this video to share with Michael Ricklefs and I thought it might be good to share with you all, too. This is a great video about getting a CI through VA. Can you forward this to Michael Ricklefs, please?” Jim https://youtu.be/gqGWDRxUD-0 Best regards, Carla Beyer-Smolin Chapter and Membership Coordinator Hearing Loss Association of America 6116 Executive Blvd, Suite 320 │Rockville, MD 20852 301.657.2248 ext. 101 | cbeyer-smolin@...│www.hearingloss.org “Like” us on Facebook│“Follow” us on Twitter Sign up for our free Hearing Life e-News
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Re: Video Forward from Jim Rau
What makes it even more tragic is the fact that the Vet Centers have closed captioning available for Southern California veterans.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608 Phone (562) 947-2258
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| 02/18/23, 04:57:56 PM |
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On Sat, Feb 18, 2023 at 1:51 PM Michael Ricklefs < outnaround@...> wrote: I have to agree with you Steve on a vote for no confidence… I must say though that this morning I thought I was going to pop if I did not say something and emailed both section508@... and Senator Bob Casey as to how appalling it is that in fifty years they have not gotten the job done. As well as how in the heck you can come out with new applications on iPhone and Android platforms, yet they still do not offer captioning abilities. I do not believe that they can hide behind the old “aging Infrastructure” lies. Kindest Regards, Michael Ricklefs Sent from Mail for Windows I have very little faith in my Congressional Representative and my Senators. Instead, I have filed a complaint with the FCC and plan to file an EEOC complaint if I don't hear back from those that I spoke with yesterday.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608
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Mailtrack | 02/18/23, 12:18:49 PM | |
On Sat, Feb 18, 2023 at 5:42 AM Jim Rau <jimrau@...> wrote: Steve, that sounds. The supervisor of audiology at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center knows about it too as does the Washington office. My local outreach clinic knows too. The patient advocate knows me by name. VA is well aware of the issue (but not at all levels). They simply are putting us off intentionally. I recommend contacting your US Senator and Congressman. I had the dubious pleasure of participating in a telehealth event gone bad. The van that I drive went into the shop for an extended period of time because my transmission needed repair and rebuilding. I chose, therefore, to convert my primary care appointment to a televideo event. Normally, I can deal pretty well with telehealth appointments because of the headset that I normally use. However, in this particular case, there was a cacophony of background sounds that I was subjected to, and there was no obvious close captioning that I could rely upon to help me in this noisy background environment. I contacted the patient advocate at the Long Beach V A who was practically useless. She insisted that my doctor was responsible for the lack of closed captioning while I insisted that my doctor had nothing to do with it. I emphatically told her not to contact the doctor, and if she needed to contact anybody, it should be the EEO Officer at the Medical Center. She ignored me, and all of a sudden I had the doctor and his nurse apologizing for whatever wrong was done to me by them. I finally ended up talking with the Chief of the Audiology Department and the Patient Advocate Supervisor who now understand my dilemma and have promised to work together to find out what can be done to develop a local solution to this issue. The Audiology Department Chief went even so far to admit that many people with cochlear implants are forced to conduct their audiology business over the secure messaging service, because Telehealth does not include closed captioning. The Patient Advocate supervisor was not aware that the VA and other federal government agencies (except for Congress) were not covered by ADA but relied, instead, upon the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 for their rules and regulations. I don't know how far this is going to go, but I will keep you informed.
InHis Service, The Rev. Steven C. Sterry, M.A./M.B.A./USCoCF 10149 Grayling AV. – Whittier, CA 90603-2608
| Sender notified by
Mailtrack | 02/18/23, 04:30:00 AM | |
On Fri, Feb 17, 2023 at 10:25 AM Michael Ricklefs <outnaround@...> wrote: Thankyou for the link to this YouTube video. It had some good information. I must say however that I am greatly disappointed in Cindi Trueharts’ statements that there are absolutely no negative comments by veterans regarding telehealth and VVC. Really? No captions, no recognition of this issue… and that if there are any video issues we just call them by telephone. Sorry for the dark side comment, I do appreciate your relaying this to me and for Jim’s desire to share it. Looking forward to our next visit. Kindest Regards, Michael Ricklefs Sent from Mail for Windows Hi VAAVC members, Jim Rau found this video to share with Michael Ricklefs and I thought it might be good to share with you all, too. This is a great video about getting a CI through VA. Can you forward this to Michael Ricklefs, please?” Jim https://youtu.be/gqGWDRxUD-0 Best regards, Carla Beyer-Smolin Chapter and Membership Coordinator Hearing Loss Association of America 6116 Executive Blvd, Suite 320 │Rockville, MD 20852 301.657.2248 ext. 101 | cbeyer-smolin@...│www.hearingloss.org “Like” us on Facebook│“Follow” us on Twitter Sign up for our free Hearing Life e-News
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