I don't know if you're being sarcastic there, seems like maybe? No offense to your step dad but I think the VA is terrible. Just knowing what I know about it from the care a family member has gotten there.
I don't trust the govt to do what's best for me, I've become very cynical about govt. But I do believe in universal/affordable health care. MA has had it for years, including a mandate, and it seems to be working fairly well.
What matters is that all people that work for the VA work very hard and care very much. He told me that the govt could give us the best health care in the world based on the model he worked with. From what I understood, it was a solvent healthy program that could easily be translated into a nation wide institiution. I don't care what it costs because the government will figure out how to spend our money wisely, it always does. If the people in office don't give us what we all want, we simply vote them out and start from scratch. I hate that the supreme court is deciding parts of this. It should just be Congress's decesion. They are the real voice of the people.