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One claim that Bill Burkett, identified by the New York Times as the source of the CBS memo, has made for years is that he contracted a deadly disease back in 1998:
 
From an article "What do you say?" by Bill Burkett in the Online Journal:

March 19, 2003—I've sat in total grief for the past three years, watching the institutions of America being spent as if they were lottery winnings.

I don't want to say it, "But I told you so."

In January of 1998 and what seems like a full lifetime ago, I was stricken by a deadly case of meningoencephalitis...

Without a single bit of help, contact and in spite of threats against my life and that of my family, I have had to relearn to walk and to live. My daily pain is far worse than anything I could have previously imagined. I suffer from extreme constant headaches, body pain and even my hair hurts. I now have a severe seizure disorder which we are starting to gain slight control over...

George W. Bush and his lieutenants were mad. They ordered that I not be accessed to emergency medical care services, healthcare benefits I earned by my official duty; and I was withheld from medical care for 154 days before I was withdrawn from Texas responsibility by the Department of the Army, by order of the White House.
 
This disease is said to sometimes cause long—lasting personality changes and disorders. According to the Texas State Department of Health Services:

Primary Amebic Meningoencephalitis
(PAM, Naegleriasis and Acanthamebiasis)

What are the symptoms of PAM? What does PAM cause?

Following an incubation period of 2—15 days, there is a relatively sudden start of severe meningitis—like symptoms, which begin with fever and headache. These are rapidly followed by sensitivity to light, nausea, projectile vomiting, stiff neck, and, in many cases, disturbances to taste and smell. Changes in behavior and seizures may also be present.

As conditions worsen the patient falls into a coma. Death usually occurs 3—7 days after the onset of symptoms.

As the above citation notes, however, the vast majority of patients die.
 
Amebic Meningoencephalitis

Mortality/Morbidity: These infections are nearly uniformly fatal. Only 5 survivors of PAM have been reported; this represents approximately 3% of reported cases. The high mortality is likely due to the difficulty of diagnosis and poor—to—marginal response to therapy. In most individuals with PAM or GAE, diagnosis is made after their deaths.

 
From the Centers For Disease Control:

Primary Amebic Meningoencephalitis

Only three survivors of PAM have been documented (9,10). Successful therapy appeared to be related to early diagnosis and administration of intravenous and intrathecal amphotericin B with intensive supportive care. One surviving patient received intravenous and intrathecal miconazole and oral amphotericin B and rifampin (10).

Burkett, however claims to have languished without any kind of health care or treatment of his illness for months——154 days. He somehow managed tp defy the odds to go on to collect a government check for his pains.
 
It's a miracle!

Steve Gilbert   9 16 04

[UPDATE] The following is purported to have been written by Bill Burkett himself:

February 18, 2004
Update on Bill Burkett

Neither am I mistaken, nor lying about any of this. The paperwork is complete and was presented with the court case against three individuals (Goodwin, Meador and Taliaferro) along with documentation including a recorded telephone call with Dan Bartlett of the governor's staff and eight letters and three phone calls to the governor's office by my wife.

My doctors — who are three of the finest neurologists in the US simply say that the reason I am incredibly lucky is that once I began severe fevors, I self prescribed procaine penicillin g — from a veterinary source at one and one—half times the recommended doseage. Even with the massive doseage, it did not kill the disease organisms within my spine, but did provide nominal control

We were undere collection lawsuit from the local hospital for a previous back injury to a child and did not have insurance of any kind other than the medical care that I was supposed to receive due to my active duty status.

Whenever I was finally admitted to medical care at Brooke Army Medical hospital, the Army doctors were unable to get a clear picture other than central nervous system damage and symptomatic problems such as severe migraine headaches, an excessively large sinus mass, tremors, vertigo, tinitus and what was alter diagnosed as neuralgia. The mistake in short term treatment was that the army doctors did not do a spinal tap. After a year and a half of mistakes and no improvement, I was referred to Dr. Leroy of Dallas, one of the country's noted neurologists who presented testimony both in the court documents and to Department of Defense doctors and inspector generals investigators. From the spinal fluids he found a mid level infection of meningo encephalitis still present even after nearly two years.

Did I lie about Geroge W. Bush's records. No.

Of the files that I saw within the 15 gallon waste can were numerous documents which detailed why 1LT George Bush was grounded from flying including a two—page counseling statement signed by LTC Jerry Killian.

Mr. George Conn in no way refuted any portion of my illness or the base facts of my testimony. In fact, if you will read only one statement reported by the Boston Globe of a 45 minute interview, he said that he would have been surprised if this had happened. He tried to walk a very fine line because he was under considerable pressure on his defense department job in Germany. His wife was also under pressure on her job with a Dallas based law firm.

Mr. Conn and I communicate even today, by the way. I do not blame him for protecting his life, family and ability to support his daughter.

Posted by: Bill Burkett on August 14, 2004 04:27 PM