Veteran’s Website ‘Trump USPS Policies Slowing Down Vet’s Medications’

If you are a veteran and you get your meds through the mail, you are probably seeing a major slowdown in getting them delivered to you. A veteran's group says on their website that they are hearing from a large number of veterans who depend on the United States Post Office to get their meds because they live far from a VA facility, but they tell connectingvets.com that they can no longer depend on the USPS.

A top donor of President Trump, Louis DeJoy, is the Postmaster General. He took the reins at the USPS in June of this year. He is the first Postmaster General in two decades who has no post office experience. His policies have been controversial including one uncovered by the Washington Post that required employees to leave mail behind at distribution centers "if it would delay carriers on their routes."

The USPS is one of the U. S.'s largest employers of veterans and the head of a postal workers union says they tried to warn DeJoy that many veterans rely on the postal service to deliver vital and often life-saving medications. The union president, a veteran whose wife is also a veteran, said the policies of delaying the mail enacted by DeJoy are "borderline criminal," and something that could have gotten a postal worker fired in the past.

Up to 80% of medications prescribed to veterans at the VA are handled through the mail. El Paso is lucky because we have a VA facility here at Fort Bliss, but even though only about 20% of prescriptions are distributed at the nation's VAs, wait times at physical pharmacies can also be very long.

VA officials told connectingvets.com that their only advice is to order meds early to avoid delays in getting them. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer have called for an investigation of USPS delays of veteran's medications. They also want to see a reversal of DeJoy's recent policies.

Our veterans deserve better than to be pushed to the back of the line when they fought for our country. Hopefully the situation at the USPS can be resolved and our veterans can be treated with the respect which they deserve.