Air Force Veteran Anthony Hoskins recently faced a serious health challenge when his blood sugar spiked dangerously high.
As someone living with type 2 diabetes, Hoskins relies on medication to help regulate his blood sugar levels. Without proper management, high blood sugar can lead to nerve damage, kidney damage or failure, damage to the blood vessels of the retina that could lead to blindness, feet problems caused by damaged nerves or poor blood flow that can lead to serious skin infections, ulcerations and in some severe cases, amputation and other long-term complications.
“High blood sugar, also called hyperglycemia, affects people who have diabetes,” said Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Tawana Tucker, who began her career at G. V. (Sonny) Montgomery VA Medical Center in Jackson, Mississippi, in 2005. “If it’s not treated, hyperglycemia can become severe and cause serious health problems that require emergency care, including a diabetic coma.”
When his community doctor prescribed insulin to help stabilize his condition, Hoskins was shocked to learn his insurance wouldn’t cover even the generic version. The cost for just a two-month supply was nearly $400 out of pocket, an expense that was simply not feasible. Faced with this difficult situation, Hoskins knew he needed to find another solution.
That’s when Hoskins turned to VA for help
During his enrollment in VA health care, Hoskins explained his urgent health issue to the staff and they scheduled an immediate medical appointment. Tucker ensured Hoskins received the appropriate medications without delay.
A VA employee since 2013, Hoskins has always been dedicated to serving his fellow Veterans, but this experience gave him a new perspective.
“As an employee, I’m still learning about all the benefits VA has to offer. I’m thankful to be rid of the financial burden that once seemed insurmountable. I’m grateful to be a Veteran,” he shared.
“VA remains committed to ensuring that no Veteran has to choose between their health and financial stability,” added Tucker. “Whether through life-saving medications, specialized care or critical support services, VA is always here for our nation’s heroes because they’ve earned it.”
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I am a Marine Vet. When I lived in North Cal. near Menlo Park I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes after I went to the Palo Alto VA on my own. I had begun having problems with my bladder and vision which prompted the visit. The hospital took a urine sample and after a few questions told me to return at 1pm for a blood test. I did so and after the test the nurse attending me freaked out when she looked at her computer screen. My blood sugar was 800 and I was not leaving she exclaimed. I was rushed down to emergency and thus began my battle against this (what I call) creature within. I will skip a lot of details here but I was in the hospital for 3 days, sent home with an insulin kit. I was admitted to a diabetic group for Vets as well. My doctor said to me a few days later, “change your diet and exercise.” That was and still is a no brainer. I went at it for what it was worth. That was in July 2010. By January 2011 I was taken off of the insulin and by February I was released from the group I was in. I kept going until I knew that the creature within was dead and my body was functioning as it should. There is more to the story but I’m leaving that for another time. The VA has helped me over the years and for that I am grateful.
Be well.
excellent care in Columbus
I have had both very good and very bad experiences with my health care through my local V.A. over the years. I had to use the help of a Congressman where at the old local V.A. hospital Clinic I was refused care by the clinic while suffering from a kidney stone where I was close to passing out on the floor and had to call an ambulance myself due to the denial of care. After speaking with my local congressman he ordered the clinic who refused to pay my bill saying because I used another hospital who determined I was having an emergency and had me x-rayed in an hour, an IV for the pain as soon as I entered the non V.A. hospital and the x ray proved I had a kidney stone. Later the same clinic that refused me care or even a place to lay down refused to pay the bill. The call to the Congressman changed all that! Thank God that Congressman helped me! That proved to me our government came through for me! More recently, I have had better experiences and I am getting much better overall help from the local V.A. hospital here in Columbus, Ohio! There have been other disappointments such as someone sitting on me getting my meds for COVID which again forced me to complain to my Congressman. I reported the deliberate interference to the Congressman and soon after my meds arrived. I am including my story to encourage other vets who are having a problem with getting proper medical help to reach out to their local Congressman for help if they are hitting a wall like I did back then. I have had another more recent problem when I found what looked like a tampered pill in my metformin subscription. I took the pill to the local V.A. hospital who told me there was nothing they could do about the tampered pill, that showed a division line on both sides of the pill. I said isn’t there a lab you could send the pill to for examination, the answer was a surprising NO! The next day I asked the Columbus Police to come over to my home to see the pill, they came but started treating me like I was mental. The next day 2 V.A. Police officers showed up at my home to check on me. They were at least more kind then their counterparts who at one point as I was conversing with C.P.D. who stood directly in front of me while his partner was reading a personal letter from the V.A. I had posted on my refrigerator! I asked him what he was doing and he boldly said he was reading my personal mail with no apology in his voice! They kept inferring that they believed no one could have entered my home because there was no sign of physical entry. I told them there are people who know how to defeat locks and make a living out of it. While the V.A. Police were more polite and professional in their response, I still saw a failure in care by the V.A. that even though the pharmacy staff physically saw the tampered pill they told me nothing was in place to deal with the problem! This in my opinion needs to change, there should be a lab available to every V.A. hospital to deal with tampered medicine! I haven’t yet had a chance to report this event to our local Congressman, I am sure once I do they will surely be interested in hearing about my experience. Change comes through us reporting failures in the system. My experience has always been excellent with my local Congressional representative.
Absolutely a great testimony. Myself, about a year ago went to the community clinic as a precaution due to the lack of energy, total tiredness, and having no idea what was going on. I was checked in to the clinic, and they ordered me an ambulance immediately to take me to the ER which was only 500ft away. I had a sugar glucose level of 684, and considered a high risk for serious consequences and possible death, which is the reason I had to ride in that ambulance. There was a 3-day stay in the hospital, many tests, ultimately a scary situation. I am so proud to be a veteran, and so proud that in all of that, the VA covered every cost associated with this and is still covering me to this day. I have received counselling, lost 62 pounds, weened off of all insulin, lowered my blood pressure, and living a great normal life again with an absolutely sugar-free and low carb diet. Thank you, VA for what you do, for this man, for myself, and for every veteran out there. THANK YOU!!!!!
I am a veteran, but non combat what can I get my insulin and g-7 Dexcom supplies plus omni five pods what would be my price?
I have been an employee and a veteran at the VA. I worked as a Registered Nurse in 3 VA facilities until we were so short staffed and my supervisors could not hire anyone. A lot of nurses left and I was stuck doing all their jobs and mine. I loved what I did but I had high blood pressure then chest pains and an Aneurism that got me admitted and had emergency surgery at the VA. During surgery they damaged my 2 other arteries and did not tell me or document that. I love how veterans like me are able to get healthcare at the VA and most times care is great but at times it is not. This could be life and death situation for someone. I asked for administrative duties when I could not walk with shortness of breath and too much pain but my supervisors and HR could not accommodate me so I put in for retirement. It is sad that this had to happen when we needed more nurses especially once who like to work and take care of fellow veterans. My patients loved me and asked for me to personally do their injections, allergy tests, and other procedures. My coworkers also say they miss me but I did not have any choice in it. As a patient, looking at my chart notes, some providers are not documenting every complaint, especially emergency room notes. Some also try to write that vital signs and pain, etc are normal when it’s not so they don’t have to address it which is totally wrong. As a veteran also VA Benefits is a joke. They say they have medical records from VA but it seems they are not reading. Even if I gave military records showing service connection. Even the appeals get denied. Not sure how a lot of patients and staff are getting them.
You should still be enrolled in VA Care. Take your DD214s to VA closest to you and enroll. Once enrolled, you will be given a Primary Care provider. You can register for myHealtheVet at VA.gov site. Your team will show up in drop down choose pharmacist and they can check your medications and let you know what they carry and for some non-formulary your doctors can write for approval. Pharmacist can answer all medication related questions. Hope this helps
I am a veteran, but non combat what can I get my insulin and g-7 Dexcom supplies plus omni five pods what would be my price?
According to the American Diabetes Association’s legislation tracker, a $100 cap for a 30-day supply of insulin is the highest cap of any set by the states, and 17 states have capped insulin copayments at $35 or lower (ie, $30 or $25) per 30-day supply.
In addtion Medicare Recipients are capped at $35.00 co-pay maximum.
I’m on Ozempeci wondering why VA want cover it. Out of pocket it’s 900+ dollars
Ozempic is quiet expensive and VA does not carry it but in some circumstances VA will order it for you if your primary care provider can write an NFDR (non-formulary drug request) especially if that is the only drug that is helping control your sugar, allergies to meds, etc. VA also carrying meds similar to Ozempic that the pharmacist can tell you about.
In va.gov site go to MyHealtheVet site to messages or inbox, compose a message and from drop down pick pharmacist to direct your questions to. Hope this helps. I worked as RN at 3 VA’s.
Happy to hear this story. Thankyou.
While all Vets should be able to get low cost meds, I call BS on insulin being $200/mo. When I recently only paid $35 for Lantus when I forgot to order it from the VA and nearly ran out. Federal law restricts insulin to a cost of $35 per month !!!
My wife and I pay 240.00 for her insulin she’s on basilar insulin as there are so many types some people can use one type and not the other and as insurance companies decide what they will pay for and which type of insulin they’ll pay for prices vary and state to state.
i am glad he got what he needed. but i too am a diabitic. and can not get my meds from the va. they will not cover or carry 2 of my meds. i use mounjaro 12.5 mg and kerendia 10 mg. i have too pay 571.00 for mounjaro for 3 month supply. and 47.00 for a 30 day supply for kerendia. i dont know why the do not have it. my doctor and me have tried amd tried but still cant get it. can i get any help from somebody. thank you.. james a travis vet. U.S.M.C.
Hi Jim, I am a 21yr military vet also and a former RN Care Coordinator at VA. These medications you are using are not carried at the VA. Federal Govt does not want to pay for them if they are too expensive or not well known, tested and so forth. Equivalent to that is Ozempic which is a Brand name medication, but your VA provider can submit a NFDR (request for nonformulary medication). They need to write a very good reason saying why you need it. Write a secure message thru myhealthevet to your primary care provider or better yet from the drop down choose and write to a pharmacist who can tell you if they carry your medications, what the closest medication would be and how you can get it prescribed. Hope this helps! Let me know.
I understand How this works I have been a Patient at the VA Chalmers Wylie care center for 10 plus years and I must say I have never had better care anywhere that I have been, never have I had anyone ever speak a word out of the way to Me or My wife and we have been taken care of far above what we ever Dreamed of all of the staff at this Facility are the best that you would ever want and the care is from there Heart.If there is a time that I need to see a Dr.I have always been worked in and taken care of within a tight window,I just can’t say enough about this Care center Everyone who works at the Chalmers Wylie Ambulatory Care Center from the time you drop your car at the Valet [who are the very best] until when you pick your car up no matter who you are you are treated with the upmost courtesy and respect the only thing missing is the white gloves and who knows that may happen soon.Nowhere have I ever had the staff Pray for Me like the staff at this Place like they say try it you will like it.GOD Bless all the Staff Thank You.
Republicans and Democrat’s need to remember they are working for us not Trump. Republicans need to end being afraid of him and put the people who voted for them and protecting this country first. We cannot have a dictatorship and a civil war because of this president and his billionaire friends. He needs to be reminded America has ALWAYS been great because of us who are and were in the military. He is not our boss or employer, like I said he works for us, we don’t work for him.
Get a grip Ruth, If you recall the last election proved overwhelming votes for the current President. Making a comment in here is not going to solve any of your frustrations. Write your Senators and or Congress about your concerns. Question: The President has been in office for just over 2 months and you’re referring him to a dictator and a Civil War action out of him. Please follow up with your justification on these remarks otherwise they are just opinion. The comment here is about the VA Health Care System and the cost and availability of Insulin, nothing else Ruth.
I feel your frustration Ruth! I just hope we don’t lose our VA benefits. The Union at the VA AFGE is protesting with employees and some veterans, making our voices heard.
If Congress would not have killed the bill to keep medicines lower, we would not be in this situation. If nothing else the VA should be putting pressure on Congress and the president to help not only Veterans but everyone on lowering drugs. Why do they not act in the best interests of citizens?
Great point. The idea has to get in front of Trump. Big Pharma but big money into his campaign and the same for Harris. There’s a reason for that. Price fixing by excluding generic competition.
Can’t say enough about how much I appreciate the VA helping me with my insulin and now that ivstarted kidney dialysis. Thank.you very much.
I don’t know where I would be today without the VA with all the medical problems that have arrived since I turned 75. No one takes care of us Veterans like the VA!!!!
I’ve been going to Ft. Sill, Oklahoma VA for over 23 years and have received nothing but the best care and consideration! I remain grateful for the benefits and healthcare provided to me by the VA, truly life-changing and saved me as a Veteran. Thank the Lord they are here for us! We as Veterans are Truly Blessed for our Benefits & Healthcare. Our government is trying to shut off VA health care for us Veterans, and I will continue to fight for VA even if the Government (you know who I am talking about) kills me.
The VA saved my life 10 years ago, and has cared for me since. That doesn’t mean I’m running up costly medical bills that the VA is paying; on the contrary, now that I get the routine care I need, I am not going to the ER or being hospitalized, and I have learned techniques for taking better care of myself. Now that I’m in better shape, the VA spends less money on me than it did a decade ago, when I initially enrolled. VA got me moving in the right direction, and it keeps me moving in the right direction. I am grateful, as is my family.
I can’t say enough for what the VA is doing for me with my diabetic care and now kidney dialysis. Thank you for all the help you are giving me.
I’m glad to hear he is receiving the medication he needs. The VA covers the majority of my care including most of my medication. I will note that the VA refuses to fill my name brand Cymbalta. As a result, it costs me almost $300.00 a month to fill it at a local pharmacy. I’ve been taking it for approximately 10 years so my out of pocket is about $36,000.00 over those 10 years. The generic Cymbalta caused a negative mental health reaction, which the VA refuses to accept.
Aside from that, my care is excellent and I recommend it for all Veterans.
Check out the price with Good Rx or Singlecare. Also check if Sam’s Club or Costco has a different generic manufacturer than what the VA carries. You don’t have to belong to either as a member. Federal law requires ALL pharmacies to be open to everyone.
Hi Jeff, try talking to a VA pharmacist and they can answer your questions. They can let you know the closest medication to Cymbalta and let them know your negative experience to generic. Sometimes all your primary care needs to do is write a request for NFDR with good reasoning as to why you really need the Cymbalta. Please email pharmacist from drop down box in myhealthevet va.gov site. Hope this helps.
Thanks to the VA for all my health care. I started with the Women’s Health Clinic, who assigned me a Primary Care Provider, who discovered I had type 2 diabetes. She ordered an eye exam for diabetic retinopathy, so now I also get my eye care at the VA. There are so many things that can come from diabetes, eye problems, feet problems, and GI issues. If I were to see all these doctors outside the VA I would be broke. I am so proud to be a Veteran and so very grateful the VA Hospital and all that it does for their Veterans.
Then why has it taken 4 years to get my claim reviewed?
Contact your congressman. It should not take that long.
I would recommend that you contact AMVETS.
I, too, am thankful to the VA for the full spectrum of health care I receive for every health issue I have. I’m also a diabetic on Metformin. I’d probably be in a mountain of financial debt if it weren’t for the VA. We earned. So, we deserve.
I told my doctor, the V. A. Would only give me a 30 day supply of test strips per year.
???? That’s not correct. Your VA doc must not know what he’s doing writing RX’s for diabetic supplies. I get 4 months test strips at a time. All the test strips, lancets, and blood sugar meters I need.
There’s not a limit on them. You need to clarify or speak to someone else.
I am familiar with this issue as a nurse also at the VA. The doctors I worked with were only allowed to give so many for different patients. Those on Insulin vs those on oral tablets and those on diet. We only needed those on oral tabs and diet controlled to check blood sugar only so many times a week. Most were to check only 3 times a week (Mon, Wed, Fri) so they did not get unlimited amounts of strips. If they mistakenly ordered, pharmacy made the changes. You can direct questions to pharmacist on your team thru Myhealthevet on va.gov site.
I To Am A Veteran And I Depend On The Va For My Diabetic Needs I Really Appreciate The Va
“A VA employee since 2013, Hoskins has always been dedicated to serving his fellow Veterans, but this experience gave him a new perspective.” Hoskins should have been enrolled in a medical plan offered to VA employees! Now he becomes yet another individual clogging up the VA with problems brought on by ignorance.
God bless the VA!
I don’t know where I would be today without the VA with all the medical problems that have arrived since I turned 60. Diabetes, pacemaker, interstem implant and knee replacement, now on the wait list for back surgery on 3 disc’s from L5 to S1. The three disc’s as the doctor put it need to get a roto-router job done to clear out the disc space to open up for nerves to have more space since they are so pinched.
I am actually under community care due to my distance from direct VA care where I live now. But the community care program has been top notch and gets me into a specalists in a timely manner.
No one takes care of us Veterans like the VA!!!!
I’ve been going to the Providence VA for over 50 years and have received nothing but the best of care and consideration!!!!
I Really feel for my Brothers
And Hope they get all the help
They have coming to them and And More they are the Hero’s of our Great Country America .
Thank you all and VA .
Thank you for VA support. I have not ever had a problem.
I wish they also helped with affordable Ozempic
??? I get Ozempic from the VA for $8. I’m category 5 co pays
I’m on Ozempic. Tell your primary care physician that you’d like them to submit a request to get it covered.
I Really feel for my Brothers
And Hope they get all the help they deserve it’s not an Entitlement they Deserve .
I know what it feels like being
Let down I’m a cancer survivor. God Bless us all
I remain grateful for the benefits and healthcare provided to me by the VA; truly life changing and saving for me as a Veteran.
That is great for those that are allowed the VA Benefits, there are a large number of people that do not qualify for benefits that served this great country. And I am not referring to less than honorable conditions. I served 8+ years, and I am not allowed any health benefits. I am in that “special” group that receives zero assistance. Good luck to those that do, appreciate what you receive.
Please take your DD214s and ID to VA for enrollment into the VA healthcare. You should be entitled if you served.
Glad it all worked out for Mr. Hoskins. I had to read this story 3 times. What I realized is, he’s a 12yr employee with the V.A. and even he didn’t know all the benefits V.A. has, for helping Veterans. In summary, not even V.A. employees know what all the V.A. can do to help, and a question forms: How are everyday Veterans, that don’t work at the V.A., suppose to know what all the V.A. can help with? That question makes one think doesn’t it . . .
Yeah, it makes you wonder.
As the widow of an Army veteran who served in Vietnam Nam and was exposed to Agent Orange, I can vouch for the fact that the VA does most assuredly take care of our veterans!
VA walked with us through surgeries, hospitalizations, numerous prescriptions, and home medical care. Our home was modified to be handicapped accessible, which made it possible for him to move about in his wheelchair and be as independent as possible.
I have only positive thoughts about VA!
Thank the Lord they were here for us!
VA helps with most of my medicines and I am thankful for everything they do for me. I have to be on Trelogy inhaler. It has a high co pay every month. I need this for my breathing and they keep telling me that they still are not paying for this. I have to be on oxygen all time,also. Does anyone know if they are helping with this medication yet? I have been on it now for over 4 tears and that has gotten expensive. Thank you for any info on this.
I’m grateful to the Va for the Health Care that I receive. The Va has been good to/for me. I to I’m a Diabetic and depend on Insulin for a many years to treat my Diabetes. I could order the insulin and the Va would ship it to me within 7 days. I have other issues which the VA treats and I’m most thankful. Without the VA I don’t know what I would do. Thank you Va for your service !!
I’m a Air Force veteran also. I’m blessed to have VA healthcare. I’m thankful and grateful for their help to me and all the other veterans who receive it!
As a veteran, I am thankful to the VA for my diabetic care.
thanks for the VA who takes care of my insulin
#VETERAN/VASTRONG…Great read Thank God for our country & our Strong Backing of Department of Veterans Affairs…We as Veterans are Truly Blessed for our Benefits & Healthcare.