This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Park City resident Claudio Vianello is a Vietnam War veteran, having served as a Marine pilot who flew 203 combat missions and was shot down twice.
About three years ago, a doctor advised him that he needed knee surgery, a procedure Veterans Affairs was unable to provide and refused to pay for outsourcing.
During a VA consultation, Vianello says, an administrator told him, "We're broke."
Vianello complained in an email to Sen. Orrin Hatch's office. A Hatch aide followed up, and soon the VA authorized payment of an outsourced operation.
Vianello again sought Hatch's help last month, saying he was suffering from excruciating pain that shot from his right hip down to his foot.
The VA's solution: painkillers and physical therapy.
His physician friend told him to get an MRI to find the source of his pain, but he couldn't get the VA to OK it.
On Christmas Day, his pain was so great his wife took him to an Intermountain Healthcare clinic in Park City, which referred him to Heber Valley Medical Center. The sources of the pain are two slipped discs, and he is undergoing radio-frequency treatment, all at his own expense because the VA won't approve it.
He since has heard back rom Hatch's aide, who said he will try to help. This month, Vianello also contacted Rep. Rob Bishop's office. A staffer there had him sign a consent form so the VA can share his medical records with the office.
So Hatch and Bishop are trying to intervene. The VA still hasn't come through. Maybe he should call Donald Trump.
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Better late than never? • Eric Wilson, a disabled Vietnam vet, was a student at the University of Utah in the early 1970s and received a reminder of his college days in the mail this week.
The letter came from a collection agency demanding payment of a $146.79 administration fee he owed in 1973. It was the first time he received a notice that he owed the U. anything.
He also was ordered to pay $689 in late fees, for a total of $835.79.
Not wanting to get into a big legal fight, he sent a check for that amount the day he got the notice, but he is reconsidering his earlier decision to leave some money to his alma mater in his will.
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Can't be too careful • As Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski continues to put together her administration, the maintenance folks at Salt Lake City Hall are busy changing locks, beginning with the mayor's suites.
Biskupski spokesman Matthew Rojas said the project was not ordered by the mayor; it had been scheduled before she took office and is standard practice with a new administration. Longtime employees remember it being done a couple of times before, but not every time a new mayor takes over.
When Biskupski was the mayor-elect and was given space in the building for her transition team, the locks for the two conference rooms she used were changed at least twice, according to building employees.
Rojas, who was on the transition team, said he remembered only one time the locks were changed, and it was because the keys didn't work well for those doors.
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Honoring the Titans • As a proud Skyline High graduate, I've had some fun over the years poking fun at my alma mater's fierce rival, Olympus.
When Karl Rove, then-President George W. Bush's senior political adviser, was viewed as an unindicted co-conspirator in the outing of a CIA agent, I couldn't help pointing out he was an Olympus alum.
I then got an email from an Olympus grad, saying I should at least give his school credit for David Zabriskie, the world-class cyclist.
I acknowledged that, but I noted: "You also had [infamous 'Mormon bomber'] Mark Hofmann."
So with that teasing, it is only fitting I give Olympus the praise it now is due.
Taylor Randall, dean of the University of Utah's business school, and Natalie Gochnour, associate dean, who also distinguished herself as a top aide to former Gov. Mike Leavitt and as an executive at the Salt Lake Chamber, are both Olympus grads.
They will be honored with Distinguished Alumni Awards on Friday during halftime of — wouldn't you know it? — the Olympus-Skyline boys basketball game. So, as also a proud U. alum, I humbly admit the business school of my alma mater is truly run by Titans.