#Middlebury
A small home-health service in New Hampshire had to stop taking care of its 15 veterans when the Department of Veterans Affairs stopped paying the bills. Unlike major corporations, this small company was brought to its knees when unpaid invoices grew to $60,000.
The problem? Lack of complete Social Security numbers on the paperwork. For years it’s been standard in many areas of life to use only the last four digits of a Social Security number; but suddenly, without warning, the VA required complete numbers. Except there was no written notice, only a recent voicemail that, truthfully, could have come from anyone. Additionally, many of the unpaid invoices go back to last year, before the new procedure took effect.
After putting a lot of their own money into the company to pay staff, the owners had to stop services. When they phoned VA, no one could help them even learn the status of their invoices. They did learn, however, of the circuitous path the invoices take across the country before actually getting to a payment department … which cannot be reached by phone.
Where are the veterans meanwhile? Right back where they started before this home-care company came into their lives … alone, with no meal preparation, no housekeeping and in many cases unable to get to appointments. The company owners acted as responsibly as they could, giving personal notice to each veteran, and not abandoning them, yet not daring to risk the financial health of their whole business.
Meanwhile, after the story made the news, the VA jumped up and said they would hold some seminars for care-company owners. What, one wonders, would be imparted in those seminars? Hopefully, it might include the phone number of the payment department that cuts the checks.
(c) 2018 King Features Synd. Inc.
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