VA Vaccine Facts

FACT CHECK: Veterans Affairs, Pres. Biden Won’t Restrict Benefits For Unvaccinated

The press secretary for the Department of Veterans Affairs denied allegations circulating that President Joe Biden will withhold benefits from veterans who choose to not take the vaccine.

The allegations surfaced on what appears to be a news website DelawareOhioNews.com in an article, “Biden Orders VA To Withhold Health Benefits From Unvaccinated Veterans”.

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Given the current climate and administrative changes concerning federal employment and vaccine mandates, the article, and particularly its title, raised a lot of concerns.

The article started out:

President Joe Biden has ordered the Department of Veterans Affairs to withhold healthcare benefits from unvaccinated veterans as part of an aggressive new initiative to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

Beginning November 1st, any veteran seeking medical care at a VA facility must have had at least one shot of the vaccine to receive services under their medical benefits package. 

The executive order is one of several new rules to combat the Delta variant, including vaccine requirements for federal workers, large employers, and health care staff.

The first commenter on the article wrote, “This is the most incompetent and outrageous thing a President of the USA has ever made. President Joe Biden had proven he is certifiably nuts.”

Others questioned the validity of the news story, “I read the transcript of that Thursday night speech. I also listened to it live. I don’t think this is true. A good friend of mine is a counselor for homeless vets and she hasnt heard anything about this. Just that the healthcare workers have to be vaccinated.”

Fact Check Question

So, what is the truth?

While the website does purport to be a parody website, buried within the site’s terms, the information in the article was taken as truth by many reading. To help address the confusion, I asked the agency to provide an official response.

Here is what I asked VA Public Affairs, “Has President Joe Biden or the White House ordered the Department of Veterans Affairs to withhold health benefits or health care services from veterans who have not received a COVID-19 vaccine?”

The agency responded swiftly.

Agency Refutes Allegations

“The President has not and will not withhold benefits to Veterans who choose not to be vaccinated,” said VA press secretary Terrence Hayes in a written response to my question.

“The spread of this misinformation is extremely detrimental to our Veterans and their families and should cease immediately.”

For those unfamiliar, qualified veterans receive benefits from VA in the form of monetary benefits for certain disabilities, home loans, and educational payments. Many veterans also receive health benefits in the form of medical care.

The statement from VA appears to address all benefits, not just health benefits. Taken at face value, the denial from the press secretary suggests the president will not condition veterans’ receipt of benefits based on vaccine status.

This is good news.

The Delaware Ohio ‘News’ Website

An initial scan of the website and article made many new readers think it was a legitimate news source.

That is, until some readers located the disclaimer at the bottom of the site, “With all of that said, everything on this website is made up. Do not rely on anything said here.”

Unfortunately, the “made up” nature of the parody site was not explicitly reflected in the article’s content. This can pose a significant problem since many readers will not read beyond the headline or first couple paragraphs resulting in a false impression.

Here, the false impression was whether veterans would be able to receive access to healthcare regardless of their decision to take a COVID-19 vaccine.

And, I can tell you that at least some veterans were alarmed by its claim that President Biden would restrict health benefits from unvaccinated veterans starting November 1, 2021.

Based on the large number of comments, the article circulated widely online over the weekend.

Many of the commenters to the article were unaware that the information on the website was false and otherwise intended as “parody”.

Those who did realize the information was fake found the article to be in bad taste.

Mel wrote, “If you want to write satire, rock on. But never, under any circumstances, is it appropriate to speak so disrespectfully to our veterans – even if it’s satirically. Our veterans deserve far better than what you have written here.”

America Watch wrote, “If this is satire you will not be laughing when someone sues you for their loved ones suicide. You need to make this more clearer if it in fact it is satire or put in links to the executive order.”

Wendy Wills wrote, “Its a satire website, says so at the bottom of this page. However this is bullshit. Scare a ton of veterans like that, uncool. This is ethically wrong and immoral.”

Fishy Conclusion

In my review of the article, the language within the article seemed fishy:

“We are no longer fighting wars overseas. We are fighting a war right here at home against the stupidity of the American people,” the spokesperson said. “People die every day from myriad causes, but dying of COVID-19 when there is a vaccine available is unacceptable. Suicide, drug overdoses, homicides, fatal accidents — these are all tragedies, too, but we can deal with them  — COVID-19 deaths aren’t something we will tolerate. Government out.”

This and a few other fake quotes raised red flags for me and led to a search for information on whether the site was parody or satire in nature.

Can you spot a red flag?

Silver Lining

Yes, the publication is entirely false, but it did raise the hackles on the neck of many readers who missed the fine print or red flags within the text of the article.

But, there is a silver lining.

The parody article did result in VA affirming what America hopes to be true regardless of the circumstances.

President Biden did not and will not restrict receipt of benefits based on vaccine status of veterans.

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18 Comments

  1. Go fuck the BIG LIE!
    And the phony wannabes who
    who attacked the Halls of Congress.

    Vietnam 67-68
    Thailand 70-71

  2. I read the article and the more I read the more I realized it was satire. With that being said if you think for one minute this administration wouldn’t do or say these things along the lines of the article you are blind. I have been saying he’d do this from the beginning and this statement from the VA means nothing and I’m extremely skeptical.

  3. This was not funny at all…certainly not satire, it had my husband and I extremely upset; trying to figure out how pay our bills, cutting down on food, etc. No, this was not funny at all.
    Irresponsible to say the least.

  4. The VA is already withholding medical care. I need 3 operations and one procedure and I cannot have any done because for some odd reason I refuse having an ethelyene oxide cancer causing swab shoved as close as possible to my brain. Only to be used in a test whose inventor stated clearly that is not what the test was designed for. To determine if I have a deadly illness that one has to be rested for just to find out they have it Aannndd, one they cannot tell whether it is the flu or COVID. COVID being the common cold hyped through globalist fear porn to blue pill the sheeple into accepting sterilization as a “side effect” Just as blood clotting and death are a “side effect”.
    Name one time in history where we were coaxed chided and bribed into taking an untested “vaccine” that is not even a vaccine.
    Genocide by any means is still genocide. My own daughter is a victim.
    They can do blood tests and test spit. They do not need to jam a stick into my brain. Oh and since has never been isolated in a lab how in the eff can they tell us about “variants”?
    The Final variant is COMMUNISM.

    1. It’s interesting that most of the COVID testing companies have been purchased by GATES & SOROS. That’s real comforting. It’s all an infringement of human freedom. Get people afraid and they’ll comply easily and believe anything. Faucci convinced CDC (& the remaining alphabet soup) to change the definition of “vaccine ” as COVID didn’t meet the actual purpose. No problem, change things around to fit the narrative being pushed. Like Ivermectin. Why is it suddenly dangerous when over 5B people have used it around the world? The problem is? Big PHARMA doesn’t make enough money off it. Pennies vs thousands. It’s all about: POWER/GREED/CORRUPTION/MONEY/TYRANNY. May GOD bless.

  5. First and the most important here:

    Vaccines DO NOT cure anything at all!!! They are only a helper! It is the individual person’s immune system that is the cure for THAT individual ONLY!!!!! But, if 70 percent of the community gets vaccinated then herd immunity may prevail. But, may not.

    Second, the va CANNOT take away your care at all!!! Says so in the laws that govern them! I know because they threatened to take my care away at the cheyenne VAMC but after contacting sen. barrasso’s office they were straightened out SUPER fast!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Lastly, the supreme court rang in on the H1N1 epidemic when IDIOT schools were refusing to allow children in school if not vaccinated (I know because my children (who were vaccinated) were victims under that fiasco!). It IS against the law for government to mandate plain citizens but, IT IS NOT AGAINST THE LAW FOR THE PRESIDENT TO MANDATE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES GET THE VACCINES!!! It was mandatory when I was in the military to get the flu shot every October but I got sick EVERY EFFING TIME!!!!

    Now, I have had major surgery while active duty military for a severe tumor of the pituitary gland that nearly killed me and wrecked my endocrine system of hormones while severely damaging my Immune system. I CANNOT get any vaccines at all EVER!!!! A Navy Colonel (O-6) endocrinologist doctor advised me to NEVER get any vaccines EVER again or I could die so, THERE MUST BE EXCEPTIONS!!!!!

    I wear a mask when going out (or my daughters will kill me) and have been taking 500 mg Vitamin C with 75 mg of Rose Hips twice a day for 25 plus years now and recently for 3 years now taking Zinc with copper both to boost my immune system. I do not get sick anymore at all.

    Most people who are getting COVID-19 are probably thyroid deficient.

    So there.

    BTW, crazy elf, you are an idiot!

    John B, you have been reported to the FBI!!! for your insinuation that you are going to slaughter people!

  6. Ben, I hope the VA told the TRUTH. I also hope more vets realize the harm that fake article caused veterans.
    On the other hand. I pray that the VA isn’t hiding the truth from you. Most individuals know biden has not been the most trusted or truthful individual during his time as a politician! His lies far outdo his truthfulness!
    Anyone who doesn’t believe that, needs to remove their heads from the sand box!

  7. Satire or not, his EO mandating vaccines for the military and all federal employees is causing harm now.
    Some in the military are already being dealt with harshly. Other veterans working for the federal government will also be dealt with harshly.
    I have been trying to contact doctors to try get an exemption from the vaccine due to health issues from the Gulf War. I called doctors offices in WV, UT, CA, TX and CO. All refused to even discuss it.
    The doctor is CO told me his license is being threatened due to previously writing exemption letters.

    Looks like my service to my country means I now I will be fired because I am unable to take a vaccine, and can’t find a doctor to even glance at my medical records.

  8. Can you spot [the] red flag?

    Yes, the publication is entirely false, but it did raise the cackles on the neck of many readers who missed the fine print or red flags within the text of the article.

    Yes, it’s _hackles_, not, ho, ho, ho “cackles.”

  9. There’s fake news, and then there’s satire. This was trying to be satire. but did a poor job, and ended up being fake news.

    If I were trying to write satire, where a veteran would not be getting health Care services. You need to make it more outlandish. For example, “today President Biden has declared that all veterans who have not received the vaccine and also are uglier than him, will not receive medical care or loan services. However, veterans who have received the vaccine, President Biden will encourage attractive women to ask these veterans out on dates. When it was pointed out that not all veterans are male, President Biden responded saying that some of those women who are veterans, are probably also lesbians.”

    1. Paul…I don’t know why you are the recipient of the responses however if the last line about women being lesbians was stated by Uncle Joe….not every female made part of military life as a whore or cheap piece of a__. I worked for everything I received and I never had to make rank on my knees or my back. To think this comes whether jokingly or seriously from the POTUS he couldn’t get my dogs to follow him in a hot dog factory- . JUST because he managed to be chosen “lead puppet” it nauseates me knowing he’s purposely destroying our country. WOULD he want someone to call his Mom or wife such inappropriate names? Our country is tettering on the edge of calamity and we have to be concerned about a POTUS who has absolutely no respect for anyone. We have worried in the past about sleeperS waiting their time to begin the destruction they were intended to fulfill,it seems as though our leadership is holding hands with the wrong group of people. I voted and watched the machine.i knew my vote was cast …YET, an hour after the voting office closed I received a call/text Thanking me for voting for Joe Biden….i DID NOT Vote FOR JOE BIDEN BUT ACCORDING TO THE CALL I WAS LISTED AS VOTING DEMOCRATIC. MY VOTE WAS STOLEN.i called -no one cared,they told me it was just (1) one vote.

      1. Right, to do good satire you mix outlandish truth with plausible, but extreme, concepts.

        I mean… They’re having to cut off Biden’s mic now. I’d call it elder abuse, but I think he’s enjoying himself.

  10. The article may have been false but the nature of the beast
    Biden the puppet the DNC, Soros will stop at nothing to get their agenda enacted. This Country is now in the hands of the enemy, the enemy within. I sincerely regret that nit will not ever be corrected or repaired through words or elections. There is too much corruption, to many lies too many people in office and on the streets that are the problem. We all know the answer I am sorry to say. I for one am getting too old for this crap.

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