Support for LAist comes from
Local and national news, NPR, things to do, food recommendations and guides to Los Angeles, Orange County and the Inland Empire
Stay Connected
Listen

Share This

NPR News

Veterans Urge Changes Before Expansion Of VA Caregivers Program

Retired Staff Sgt. Matt Lammers holds the hand of his wife, Alicia, before the swimming competition at the 2019 Department of Defense Warrior Games in Clearwater, Fla. Alicia has been Matt's official caregiver for nearly eight years, but she was cut from the Department of Veterans Affairs' caregiver program last December.
Retired Staff Sgt. Matt Lammers holds the hand of his wife, Alicia, before the swimming competition at the 2019 Department of Defense Warrior Games in Clearwater, Fla. Alicia has been Matt's official caregiver for nearly eight years, but she was cut from the Department of Veterans Affairs' caregiver program last December.
(
Eve Edelheit for NPR
)

Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.

There are times when retired Staff Sgt. Matt Lammers doesn't look like he needs anyone's help — like when he was competing, and winning, races at the Department of Defense Warrior Games in Tampa, Fla., this summer.

"We don't like to say the word 'can't' in our family," says Matt, who lost both his legs above the knee and his left arm to an explosion during his second deployment to Iraq in 2007.

Matt and Alicia hug at the edge of the pool. She says the VA's assessment that he hasn't improved hurt because Matt is doing better now than he has in years.
Matt and Alicia hug at the edge of the pool. She says the VA's assessment that he hasn't improved hurt because Matt is doing better now than he has in years.
(
Eve Edelheit for NPR
)

Then he goes on to list all the things he just can't do without help from his wife, Alicia.

Support for LAist comes from

"She helps me shower. ... She helps me transfer in my wheelchair, drives me to my appointments," says Matt, while on a break between events at the games. "I'd honestly say, not to be smart, but the question is, What she doesn't do?"

Matt swims during the Warrior Games. He and Alicia live in North Carolina and traveled to the Tampa Bay area so he could compete in several athletic events throughout the week. He competed in sitting volleyball, swimming and indoor rowing.
Matt swims during the Warrior Games. He and Alicia live in North Carolina and traveled to the Tampa Bay area so he could compete in several athletic events throughout the week. He competed in sitting volleyball, swimming and indoor rowing.
(
Eve Edelheit for NPR
)

Matt won medals at the games in Tampa for sitting volleyball, swimming and indoor rowing. At the end of the games, the U.S. Army gave him the "heart of the team" award. But he and his wife almost didn't attend, because they were short on cash to make the trip after Alicia was cut from the Department of Veterans Affairs' caregiver program last December because Matt had not "consistently engaged in treatment," according to a letter from the VA. Alicia had been Matt's official caregiver for most of eight years.

"It felt like a stab in the back, like what I do is not worth it in their opinion, like I'm not part of their team like I thought I was," she says.

Uneven standards and implementation

The VA program provides support and a stipend to caregivers for post-Sept. 11 veterans, usually a wife or parent. It got going in 2011 and was instantly popular among vets as recognition of the billions of dollars worth of labor performed by family members for disabled veterans through the decades. The program was prepared for only a small number of applications and was overwhelmed by the tens of thousands of veterans who applied.

Matt shakes hands with members of the Warrior Games community after his race. "I got a letter saying that I was out of the [caregivers] program because the veteran hasn't shown any progress since 2011," Alicia said. "I asked them, 'What do you mean by progress?' "
Matt shakes hands with members of the Warrior Games community after his race. "I got a letter saying that I was out of the [caregivers] program because the veteran hasn't shown any progress since 2011," Alicia said. "I asked them, 'What do you mean by progress?' "
(
Eve Edelheit for NPR
)
Support for LAist comes from

Almost from the start, that meant problems with uneven standards and implementation around the United States. NPR has reported on hundreds of caregivers being arbitrarily cut from the program; so has the Government Accountability Office and the VA's inspector general. Twice in two years, the VA has frozen the process of discharging people from the caregiver program, most recently last Dec. 20.

"It is essential that we get this right," VA Secretary Robert Wilkie said at the time. "This affects one of our most vulnerable veteran populations, and we need to make sure we have consistency on how we process and evaluate benefit applications across VA."

Unfortunately for Matt and Alicia, that freeze came six days after a letter from the VA in Fayetteville, N.C., on Dec. 14.

"I got a letter saying that I was out of the program because the veteran hasn't shown any progress since 2011," said Alicia. "I asked them, 'What do you mean by progress?' "

That question is at the heart of a fundamental problem with the way the VA caregiver program was created. Originally it was intended as a temporary intervention.

Alicia adjusts Matt's goggles before his race. He lost both of his legs and his left arm while serving in the Army in Iraq during his second deployment in 2007.
Alicia adjusts Matt's goggles before his race. He lost both of his legs and his left arm while serving in the Army in Iraq during his second deployment in 2007.
(
Eve Edelheit for NPR
)

"Well, amputations and paralysis are permanent conditions," says Sherman Gillums, a former Marine who is paraplegic. "It's not about recovery. It's about sustaining your life. Even if they're cut off from the program, they're still needing that care."

Support for LAist comes from

Gillums is with the group AMVETS, but he's also on the VA's caregiver advisory committee. He's concerned that the VA needs to change the "recovery based" model now, before a planned expansion to older vets that could double or even triple the number of caregivers enrolled. And he says the program should be permanent for catastrophically injured vets such as Matt.

"No significant improvement"

Not that Matt's case is without its complications. Besides his missing limbs, Matt has PTSD and brain injuries.

"Not just the physical but the mental disabilities too — that is very challenging. It's every day. It's a constant change," says Alicia.

Matt gets out of the pool after his race.
Matt gets out of the pool after his race.
(
Eve Edelheit for NPR
)

She says that's why the VA's assessment that Matt hasn't improved hurt. He's doing better now than he has in years. He has struggled in the past with drug abuse and even ended up homeless. He has been abusive to his wife and others, sometimes physically.

"He has progress daily," says Alicia. "But sometimes he has bad days or weeks. ... Life is like that."

Support for LAist comes from
Matt helps Alicia up from sitting. "He has progress daily," she says. "But sometimes he has bad days or weeks. ... Life is like that."
Matt helps Alicia up from sitting. "He has progress daily," she says. "But sometimes he has bad days or weeks. ... Life is like that."
(
Eve Edelheit for NPR
)

The Fayetteville VA told the couple in the Dec. 14 letter that "there has been no significant improvement" since Matt entered the program in 2011 and that he "has not consistently engaged in treatment."

In response to a query from NPR, the Fayetteville VA said that for Matt, the program "was no longer in his best interest. He refused to follow his care plan, seriously endangering his health and that of those around him."

The VA was alluding to his abusive behavior in the past. But Alicia says she has stuck with him through that.

"I'm not leaving. I'm still with him, and I'm still gonna do what I do," she says. "I still have to help him. I still have to drive him. I still have to take him to appointments. I'm still gonna do this if you pay me or not."

Alicia and Matt kiss after he competed in a relay event. "I wouldn't change anything for the world. I'm not complaining. I don't get hung up on injuries," he says.
Alicia and Matt kiss after he competed in a relay event. "I wouldn't change anything for the world. I'm not complaining. I don't get hung up on injuries," he says.
(
Eve Edelheit for NPR
)

The VA also reached out to the couple and encouraged them to follow the VA's care plan and then reapply for the caregiver program in six months. They say they will, but Matt says he's still stung by the assessment that he hasn't made progress since 2011.

"All three of my limbs are still amputated, as they were June, 10 June 2007. Those have not grown back," says Matt. "I wouldn't change anything for the world. I'm not complaining. I don't get hung up on injuries, but what they exactly expect from us triple amputees, single amputees, paras ... I don't, I can't really comprehend that."

Copyright 2024 NPR

As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.

Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.

We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.

No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.

Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.

Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.

Chip in now to fund your local journalism
A row of graphics payment types: Visa, MasterCard, Apple Pay and PayPal, and  below a lock with Secure Payment text to the right
(
LAist
)

Trending on LAist