Catch Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Win the Lottery

This news story points out that the tentacles of the welfare-blob have extended far into the military culture. 50% of our Vets are applying for disability, but don't fret, the government is only going to give it to 47.5% of them. And I'm not talking about people with battlefield injuries or training injuries. No one argues about that, but really, how does one catch Sleep Apnea? How are you disabled if you have a hysterectomy while in uniform? Is it something about having to run and do sit-ups and push-ups? Something about having to keep your weight within standards?

Why, if you 'catch' sleep apnea while you are serving does it... CHA CHING!... get you 50% disability? If you are able to get the Sleep Apnea and PTSD double-whammy then you are getting close to 100% disability. Guess what you have to do to get a PTSD diagnosis? Well, if would help to figure out what the diagnostic criteria are, and after that you fill out a piece of paper and check some boxes. That's how hard it is. Glad we are flush with cash or we wouldn't be able to pay for this.

There's not even the pretense anymore that people are not TRYING to get this diagnosis as I have 22-year-olds come in and to see me who are thin and in good shape and they tell me the most amazing list of issues..... 'Doc, I can't imagine what's wrong.... my girlfriend says I snore all the time, that I wake myself up at night, that I stop breathing for between thirty seconds and a minute every night and during the day I am very sleepy and sometimes fall asleep at the wheel of my car... Geez doc, what could it be?" Well, it's not sleep apnea, it's called fraud.

And then there's Aaron, one of my patients who was nearly killed in Afghanistan last year. An RPG round managed to partially penetrate the armored vehicle he was in and he nearly lost his leg. He was concussed and spent four months in various hospitals getting multiple surgeries and skin grafts. He has PTSD but insists he is getting better every day (he is). When he arrived back on base I was prepared to send him to the transition unit where his out-processing could be done without him having to do regular military stuff.

"No. No way doc... I'm going back to my unit. I need physical therapy and a few other things but I'm going back to my unit."

I loved that but called his command. "Hey Colonel, I know Aaron wants to rejoin the unit but it may never happen and I really think he has done his part... I want to get him to the transition unit so they can do his out-processing.....

"No. No way doc.... He's coming back to our unit." And that's exactly what happened, full thickness skin grafts and all. I love my job.