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RAO BULLETIN

15 March 2009


 

Note: Anyone receiving this who does not want it request click on the automatic delete tab at the bottom of the Bulletin cover sheet or hit reply and place the word "Remove" in the subject line!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


 

THIS BULLETIN CONTAINS THE FOLLOWING ARTICLES


 

== VA Secretary [13] --------------------------- (Open ltr to Vets)

== ECS 2009 [06] -------------------------------------- (Eligibility)

== SSA Trust Fund [01] --------------------- (Time Running Out)

== SSA COLA 2010 ---------------------------- (None Predicted)

== Medicare Private Health Plans ---------- (Higher Standards)

== Mobilized Reserve 10 MAR 09] ------------- (751 Decrease)

== VA Claims Processing ----------------------- (Pilot Programs)

== VA Office of Survivors Assistance --- (Established Dec 08)

== Tricare Prime Allotment [03] -------------- (2010 Payments)

== GI Bill [41] ------------------------------------ (Living Stipend)

== VA Nursing Homes [02] ------------- (2 yr Payment Delay)

== VA Museum or Medical Center [01] ------ (Decision Final)

== Food Packaging ------------------- (Less Content Same Price)

== VA Third Party Insurers [01] --------- (Collection Proposal)

== Federal Student Aid --------------------- (CCRAA Vet Impact)

== TSP [15] -------------------------- (Automatic Enrollment Bill)

== TSP [16] ------------------------------------- (Slide Tax Impact)

== Vet Toxic Exposure – TCE ---------- (Presumption Needed)

== VA Vocational Rehabilitation [02] -------- (Benefit Inc Bill)

== Traumatic Brain Injury [07] --- (180,000 Screened Positive)

== Tricare & OHI ----------------------------- (Claim Processing)

== VA Women Vet Programs [02] ----------- (Health Care Bill)

== VA Claims Backlog [24] ---------- (Hidden Unopened Mail)

== VA Claims Backlog [25] --------------- (HVAC Discussions)

== Medical Imaging ---------------------------- (Good or Useless)

== Commissary Gift Certificate ----------- (Supplier Goes Bust)

== Vet Job Training ---------------------------------- (5 New Bills)

== Camp Lejeune Toxic Exposure [04] ----------- (Registration)

== Arrears of Pay [01] --------------------- (Death Month Policy)

== Military Credit Unions ------------ (NCUA Wants $5 billion)

== Military Credit Unions [01] ----------- ($5B Forfeiture Q&A)

== Physician Reimbursements [01] -------- (Up Front Payment)

== SBP DIC Offset [13] ------------ (S.535 Survivor Equity Act)

== MTF Tricare Use [01] ------------------------- (Cost Increase)

== Tricare Beneficiary Rights & Responsibilities -- (Overview)

== Military History Anniversaries ------ (March 1-15 Summary)

== Veteran Resource [01] ---- (Retired Military Personnel Hbk)

== Veteran Legislation Status 13 MAR 09--- (Where we Stand)

== Have You Heard ----------------------------- (Andy Rooney #2)


 

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VA SECRETARY UPDATE 13: Following is an open letter to Veterans from Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki:


 

“My name is Ric Shinseki, and I am a Veteran. For me, serving as Secretary of Veterans Affairs is a noble calling. It provides me the opportunity to give back to those who served with and for me during my 38 years in uniform and those on whose shoulders we all stood as we grew up in the profession of arms. “The Department of Veterans Affairs has a solemn responsibility to all of you, today and in the future, as more Veterans join our ranks and enroll to secure the benefits and services they have earned. I am fully committed to fulfilling President Obama’s vision for transforming our department so that it will be well-positioned to perform this duty even better during the 21st Century. We welcome the assistance and advice of our Veterans Service Organizations, other government departments and agencies, Congress, and all VA stakeholders as we move forward, ethically and transparently, so that Veterans and citizens can understand our efforts.


 

“Creating that vision for transforming the VA into a 21st Century organization requires a comprehensive review of our department. We approach that review understanding that Veterans are central to everything VA does. We know that results count, that the department will be measured by what we do, not what we promise, and that our best days as an organization supporting Veterans are ahead of us. We will fulfill President Lincoln’s charge to care for “. . . him, who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan . . .” by redesigning and reengineering ourselves for the future. “Transforming any institution is supremely challenging; I know this from my own experience in leading large, proud, complex, and high-performing organizations through change. But the best organizations must be prepared to meet the challenging times, evolving technology and, most importantly, evolving needs of clients. Historically, organizations that are unwilling or unable to change soon find themselves irrelevant. You and your needs are not irrelevant.


 

“Veterans are our clients, and delivering the highest quality care and services in a timely, consistent and fair manner is a VA responsibility. I take that responsibility seriously and have charged all of the department’s employees for their best efforts and support every day to meet our obligations to you. Our path forward is challenging, but the President and Congress support us. They have asked us to do this well—for you. Veterans are our sole reason for existence and our number one priority—bar none. I look forward to working together with all VA employees to transform our department into an organization that reflects the change and commitment our country expects and our Veterans deserve.

“Thank you, and God bless our military, our Veterans, and our Nation.”


 

Signed: Eric K. Shinseki

[Source: VA Press Release 13 Mar 09 ++]


 

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ECS 2009 UPDATE 06: The new economic stimulus plan includes one-time cash payments and/or tax-credits for millions of Americans whether they are working or retired. The plan is complicated, and controversial. Some say it is the only way to pull the nation out of recession. Others say we are mortgaging our children's future. Time will tell. Regardless, here is how the one-time cash payments and/or tax-credits will apply to you:

 

Wage-earners: The "Make Work Pay" provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (stimulus bill) will provide a refundable tax credit of up to $400 for working individuals and $800 for married taxpayers filing joint returns in both 2009 and 2010. For most employees (who receive a W-2 from an employer), the employer will automatically make the withholding changes this spring, thereby increasing take-home pay. Taxpayers who do not have taxes withheld by an employer during the year will be able to claim this credit on their 2009 and 2010 tax returns. This tax credit is not available to all as it has income limits (phases out for individuals with adjusted gross income (AGI) in excess of $75,000, or $150,000 for married couples filing jointly). However, employers do not have access to an individual's entire income, and so individuals with multiple jobs or married couples who file jointly and whose total AGI income is higher than the above income limits, will likely want to submit an updated W-4 form to their employer to ensure high enough withholding-or their "stimulus" when they file their 2009 and 2010 taxes will be to send more money back to the IRS. Anyone with additional questions should contact the IRS.


 

Retirees: Most seniors - that is retirees who receive Social Security (regular Social Security, disability Social Security and SSI), Veterans' or Railroad Retirement benefits - will receive a one-time $250 payment (just once, not once in 2009 and once in 2010). It will be sent automatically to these individuals, they do not need to apply for this payment. There is no income limits for this payment, so all eligible individuals are to receive it, no matter their income. As of now, SSA is saying all payments will be distributed by May. Anyone with additional questions should contact SSA, VA, or Railroad Retirement Board (whichever agency they receive regular payments from).


 

Non-Social Security Retirees: Government retirees, including some federal Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) retirees do not receive any Social Security. In addition to federal retirees, there are also state and local government retirees who work outside of Social Security. The Senate Finance Committee, included a refundable $250 tax credit for these individuals. This tax credit is to be referred to as the "Refundable Tax Credit for Certain Federal and State Pensioners, and is for tax year 2009. At this time, we are waiting for further guidance from the IRS on how it is to be implemented.

[Source: NARFE Legislative Department Jill Crissman comments 2 Mar 09 ++]


 

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SSA TRUST FUND UPDATE 01: We will soon learn how the Social Security and Medicare Trust Funds are faring in what economists say is the worst economic recession since the end of World War II. The 2009 Social Security and Medicare Trustees annual reports are due. Last year the Social Security Trustees reported that the year in which annual benefit costs exceed tax income would be 2017. But a recent article appearing in The Washington Post says the Trustees now estimate that we may be within three years of that happening in 2011. The recession is speeding us out of the frying pan and into the fire, without a doubt. But the way in which the government accounts for the Medicare hospital insurance and Social Security trust funds has lured Congress into putting off the highly contentious task of fixing the programs.


 

Consider: under current law, when the government receives more in payroll taxes than required to pay benefits, the excess is accounted for by means of a bookkeeping entry, and the money promptly used for other government spending. Uncle Sam then issues a special “non-marketable” bond, or IOU, to the trust funds. Those bonds earn “interest.” This makes it appear like the programs are fully funded on the books. But the interest earned by those bonds is also just a bookkeeping entry. No real cash revenues exist in a CD or bank somewhere to pay future benefits. When revenues are insufficient to cover benefits, the government is supposed to pay benefits using the “interest” earned by the IOUs, and then the IOUs themselves would be repaid. In order to do this, though, the government would have to transfer trillions of dollars from the general budget revenues. Except for very short periods in the 1970’s and 1980’s funding crisis, Congress has never chosen to fund Social Security benefits from general revenues. And today it would be enormously difficult to do so for very long, without making our economy even worse.


 

And here’s something nobody is talking about. If we exclude the so-called interest and IOUs in the Trust Funds, and we only count the cold cash, the Social Security Disability and Medicare Part A Hospital Insurance Trust Funds are already paying out more in benefits than they have coming in. We may well be within three years of a cash shortfall in the Social Security retirement program. Where will the government get the cash to pay Medicare and Social Security benefits? How long can we reasonably expect to borrow the trillions needed to keep the programs afloat without making the economy even worse? Social Security and Medicare may become our next Troubled Asset Relief Program. If lawmakers drag their feet on fixing the funding problems, a cash crisis could force abrupt cuts and higher taxes. The Senior Citizens League (TSCL) recently urged Congress not to use Social Security payroll taxes to provide a refundable work credit, because it would drain money out of the system that’s need to provide benefits for today’s seniors. Congress should provide tax credits out of the general federal revenues. In addition, TSCL strongly supports measures that would provide better protection for excess Social Security payroll taxes, such as the Social Security Lock Box Act (S.86) introduced by Senator David Vitter (LA). The proposed legislation would prohibit the government from using surplus Social Security revenues for anything other than to pay benefits. [Source: TSCL Social Security & Medicare Advisor Mar 09 ++]


 

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SSA COLA 2010: Social Security beneficiaries face a grim dilemma next January, if predictions from the latest economic report of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) prove correct, — no cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) in 2010. But if that were to happen, and Medicare Part B premiums continue to increase, it would set off an unprecedented test of a little-known provision of law that protects the Social Security benefits of tens of millions of seniors. Under current law, when the Medicare Part B premium increases more than the amount of a person’s Social Security COLA, the government is required to adjust the Medicare premium so that the person’s Social Security check is not reduced from one year to the next. With only a few exceptions, this provision protects most people who have Medicare. According to the Congressional Budget Office’s (CBO) 2009 annual Budget and Economic Outlook, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) is expected to drop because of easing gasoline and other prices, a characteristic of recessions. By the third quarter, when the government determines the annual COLA payable 1 JSN 10 the CPI may be close to, or at, zero, the CBO said. And according to the 12 month CPI data through DEC 08, the index used to determine COLAs isn’t just zero, it’s minus 0.5%.


 

If this were to happen, it would be the first time since Congress made the Social Security COLA automatic in 1975 that beneficiaries would fail to get an increase. Since the automatic COLA was established, the lowest ever paid was 1.3% in 1986 and 1998. Should inflation come down to zero, or even near zero, and Medicare Part B premiums increase even modestly, the federal government could be on the hook for potentially billions in unanticipated Medicare Part B premium costs that normally are automatically deducted from beneficiaries’ Social Security checks. “The situation would just add to the exploding deficit,” says Shannon Benton, the Senior Citizens League's (TSCL) Executive Director. The prospect of no COLA is particularly galling, because seniors are experiencing stiff increases in out-of-pocket Medicare drug costs in 2009. According to a national survey, the average beneficiary will see a 24% increase in his or her monthly premiums. And many drug and other Medicare plans also steeply increased co-pays and other out-of-pocket costs. “Clearly, the method that the government uses to determine senior COLAs is not adequately accounting for the costs that seniors actually have,” Benton notes.


 

TSCL believes the COLA does not fairly reflect the portion of income seniors spend on health care and other costs, and is lobbying Congress to pass legislation ensuring that COLAs will be more representative and adequate in the future. TSCL also is calling on Congress to take steps immediately to constrain the rise in Part B spending. There’s well documented evidence of a considerable amount of waste in the Medicare system that Congress needs to get under control. “These are anxious times for seniors, and every one is dealing with bad financial news daily,” says Benton. “We call on Congress to take action in weeding out wasteful Medicare spending, and to weigh the consequences of a Medicare Part B premium increase, in a year when COLAs may increase very little or not at all.” [Source: TSCL Social Security & Medicare Advisor Mar 09 ++]

 

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MEDICARE PRIVATE HEALTH PLANS: With its revision of the draft 2010 Call Letter setting, contract terms for Medicare health and drug plans, the Obama administration has proposed new criteria for approving the benefit packages of Medicare private health plans. In the draft 2010 Call Letter issued 23 FEB, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) said it wanted to eliminate plan offerings that had very low enrollment or that had benefit packages that were very similar to other plans offered by the same company. CMS also set a higher bar for approving benefit packages offered by Medicare private health plans. Plans that provided a comprehensive out-of-pocket limit on medical services of $3,400 or less and did not charge more than Original Medicare for kidney dialysis, psychiatric hospitalization, chemotherapy and other Part B drugs, or skilled nursing facility care will generally not be considered to have a benefit design that discriminates against less healthy, higher-cost enrollees, CMS said. To be considered comprehensive, the plan's out-of-pocket limit must not exclude any services covered under Medicare's inpatient (Part A) and outpatient (Part B) benefit.


 

Consumer advocates, including the Medicare Rights Center, applauded the move toward higher standards for approving benefit designs offered by Medicare private health plans. However, advocates argued that CMS should require plans to set a lower annual out-of-pocket limit. Only 15% of people with Medicare have out-of-pocket spending greater than $3,400. An out-of-pocket limit set at $2,250 would provide greater protection, since it is roughly pegged at 10% of the median annual income of people with Medicare (half earn more, half earn less). Advocates also argued that Medicare private health plans should not be allowed to charge more than Original Medicare for home health, durable medical equipment or hospital care. [Source: Medicare Watch 11 Mar 09 ++]


 

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MOBILIZED RESERVE 10 MAR 09: The Department of Defense announced the current number of reservists on active duty as of 10 MAR 09. The net collective result is 751 fewer reservists mobilized than last reported in the Bulletin for 1 MAR 09. At any given time, services may mobilize some units and individuals while demobilizing others, making it possible for these figures to either increase or decrease. The total number currently on active duty in support of the partial mobilization of the Army National Guard and Army Reserve is 94,454; Navy Reserve, 6,455; Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve, 14,981; Marine Corps Reserve, 7,286; and the Coast Guard Reserve, 667. This brings the total National Guard and Reserve personnel who have been activated to 123,843, including both units and individual augmentees. A cumulative roster of all National Guard and Reserve personnel who are currently activated can be found at http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Mar2009/d20090310ngr.pdf .[Source: DoD News Release No. 159-09 11 MAR 09 ++]


 

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VA CLAIMS PROCESSING: The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is piloting two new programs for Claims Processing. The first involves a comprehensive checklist that lays out information and evidence veterans and families need to support their disability compensation and pension benefits claims. Four regional offices were selected for the pilot. They are: Cleveland, OH; Boise, ID; Waco, TX; and Louisville, KY. The second pilot is designed to help reduce the claims processing time. The VA will accept certified, fully developed claims and place them into a separate process. This alternative process is expected to provide results within 90 days after the claim was submitted. According to the VA, the definition of “fully developed” is when the veteran submits a certified statement that he or she does not intend to submit any additional information or evidence in support of their claim, and it will not require any assistance. The 10 regional offices selected for the one-year pilot are: Montgomery, AL; Columbia, SC; Boston, MA; Manchester, NH; Providence, RI; Chicago, IL; Milwaukee, WI; Boise, ID; Denver CO; and Portland, OR. [Source: NMFA Government and You E-News f10 Mar 09 ++]


 

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VA OFFICE of SURVIVORS ASSISTANCE: Survivors of veterans have a new voice. VA’s Office of Survivors Assistance will advise the Secretary of Veterans Affairs on all matters pertaining to policies, programs, legislation and issues affecting the survivors of veterans. Established in DEC 08 under public law, the office will serve as an advocate for survivors, develop outreach programs to keep them informed and serve as VA liaison with agencies inside and outside of government on survivor issues. The Office will serve as a primary advisor to the Secretary on all matters relating to the policies, programs, legislative issues and other initiatives affecting survivors. Though it will not process or handle individual claims inquiries, the new office will regularly monitor the delivery of benefits and services of the Department. It will explore innovative opportunities to reach those survivors who are eligible for but not currently receiving VA benefits. Input will be sought from interested stakeholders. Though not fully staffed, the office is already busy gathering survivor data and identifying programs and benefits currently available to veterans’ survivors. For more information, contact the office at 202-461-5159. [Source: CFL News & Chat 10 Mar 09 ++]


 

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TRICARE PRIME ALLOTMENT UPDATE 03: Beginning in 2010, Tricare Prime beneficiaries who pay enrollment fees may need to make their fee payments via electronic means. If you are enrolled in Tricare Prime as a retired service member, the family of a retired service member, a survivor or an eligible former spouse, an electronic payment or allotment may be required. These changes mean that those Tricare enrollees who pay enrollment fees could be required to pay them by either an allotment from the sponsor's retired military pay, an electronic funds transfer from your financial institution, or a recurring credit card charge. To get a head start, and change to a more convenient payment option, visit the Web site of your Tricare regional managed care support contractor:

[Source: NAUS Weekly Update 6 Mar 09 ++]


 

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GI BILL UPDATE 41: The question of whether the new Post-9/11 GI Bill should pay living stipends to people who take online college classes through distance learning programs pits the Veterans Affairs Department against a key lawmaker, and poses a challenge for Congress as it considers whether to change the law in advance of the program’s 1 AUG launch date. Under current law, the new GI Bill will not pay living stipends to distance-learning students. To qualify for the stipend, a person must have at least one class in a regular classroom and carry a credit load that makes him at least a half-time student. Rep. Bob Filner (D-CA 51st), chairman of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, said that approach “penalizes hard-working veterans.” Filner is sponsoring a bill (H.R.950) that would make distance learning students eligible for the stipend, just like other college students. “I truly believe we will be doing a disservice to our rural veterans, injured veterans and veterans with family commitments by providing a distinction between those who attend a brick-and-mortar classroom versus those who study at home and take their tests on a computer,” Filner said at a 4 MAR hearing of his committee’s economic opportunity panel.


 

Under Filner’s bill, distance learning students would receive a living stipend based on the military’s basic allowance for housing in the ZIP code where the distance learning school is based. Living stipends for people attending a regular college or university would be based on the BAH for the ZIP code of the school they attend. VA opposes Filner’s bill. Keith Wilson, director of VA’s education service, said giving a housing allowance to someone who is training at home or work “does not seem to meet the intent of a housing subsidy for veterans who travel to attend an institution of higher learning.” Wilson said such a change also would add an estimated $20 million in 2010 and $1.5 billion over 10 years to the cost of the Post-9/11 GI Bill. “In view of this cost and because BAH rates based on the location of a school bear no relationship to the cost of living associated with the locality where an individual may reside, VA opposes this bill,” Wilson told lawmakers.


 

About 70% of active-duty members using the Defense Department’s tuition assistance program are receiving credit through distance learning courses, with a similar shift likely to come in veterans’ education benefits. The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), the nation’s largest group of combat veterans, sides with VA. Justin Brown, a legislative associate with VFW’s National Legislative Service, said Filner’s bill would create an inequity by paying living stipends that are not based on actual costs that veterans would face while going to school. “This would over compensate veterans living in areas more affordable than the ZIP code of their school, while under compensating veterans that live in more expensive areas relative to their school,” he said. It had been widely reported and published that the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) and the American Legion were among groups considering asking lawmakers to place a cap on tuition aid for veterans. $13,000 per year had allegedly been suggested by the IAVA. At a meeting of various military and veterans associations held by the Senate Democratic Steering and Outreach Committee Paul Rieckhoff, the IAVA Executive Director and the American Legion National Commander, Paul Rehbein were asked for an explanation of their reported support of a cap on Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits. Both stated that the reports were wrong and they support the provisions of the Bill and do not want a cap on benefits.


 

Starting in AUG 09 there will be veterans using their GI Bill that will be eligible for both the old and new GI Bills. They will have to choose which one, and the choice is irrevocable. The link below will help determine what choice is best for the individual. One may give the veteran more money; each case is different. The new GI Bill is good for 15 years, the old one 10. The veterans should study this too, before making a blind decision. https://www.gibill.va.gov/GI_Bill_Info/CH33/Benefit_Comparison_Chart.htm. [Source: NavyTimes Rick Maze 4 Mar 09 ++]

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VA NURSING HOMES UPDATE 02: The Department of Veterans Affairs, stung by criticism that its slow action has forced some severely disabled veterans to spend themselves into poverty, has moved to implement a two-year-old law requiring it to reimburse such veterans for the cost of care at state-run nursing homes. The VA sent letters to the nation's 137 state veterans nursing homes - including ones in Stony Brook and St. Albans, Queens - saying they expect to begin processing reimbursements within 90 days. A bill signed into law by President George W. Bush in 2006 required the VA to reimburse the full cost for veterans with a 70% or greater service-connected disability who require nursing home care. But although Congress specified that the law be implemented by 21 MAR 07, the VA still has not begun issuing payments. A VA spokesman said no one was available to explain the two-year delay.


 

The holdup has forced some elderly veterans to spend away their life savings before they could qualify for Medicaid payments to cover the $250-per-day cost of care at the Long Island State Veterans Home at Stony Brook University. At least eight patients at Long Island State Veterans Home who would have been covered under the law have been forced to pay for some or all of their care out of pocket, according to Sen. Charles Schumer, who visited the nursing home last month. Two of the veterans have died while waiting for the law to come into effect. About 80% of patients at the nursing home are on Medicaid, a hospital official said. Some 4,800 Long Island veterans are more than 70% disabled and become increasingly likely to require nursing home care as they get into their 80s and 90s. Long Island State Veterans Home director Fred Sganga said he was encouraged, but remains cautious. "We've been promised this won't take more than 90 days," he said. "But it's not over until it's over." [Source: Newsday.com Martin Evans article 3 Mar 09 ++]


 

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VA MUSEUM or MEDICAL CENTER UPDATE 01: The Indianapolis Department of Veterans Affairs says the controversy over a World War II-era newspaper is settled, but a group of former Marines vows to keep fighting. Members of the local Marine Corps League, angry that a framed front page from 1945 was removed from a hallway at the Roudebush Veterans Affairs Medical Center, are considering picketing the hospital. We're talking about some demonstrations out there," said Ronald "Bud" Albright, the group's leader. "We don't intend to let this thing drop." The group wants restored a page from The Indianapolis Times with the headline "Japs Surrender." Albright says its removal is akin to "whitewashing history." The VA announced 4 MAR that the historic page was gone for good and would be replaced by a front page from The Indianapolis Star bearing the same news but expressed as: "WAR IS OVER -- Truman." The VA's National Center for Ethics suggested the replacement article.


 

The front page from The Times had hung for a decade or more at the VA Medical Center, but last month it caught the eye of a new employee who considered it a racial slur and complained to hospital Director Tom Mattice. Mattice ordered the newspaper removed. When local Marine Corps League members learned of the newspaper's removal, they met with Mattice and urged him to put it back. In the two weeks since, Mattice said, he'd received more than 100 letters, e-mails and phone messages, almost all of them urging the newspaper be put back on display. But he was not swayed. Mattice met again with the former Marines and told them he would not reconsider. "We want to honor our veterans and their accomplishments in a positive way," Mattice said later. "It was not good," Albright said of the meeting. "We shook hands, but we told him we'd do what we had to do, which is get more involved in this thing." Besides pickets, Albright said, his group may hand out facsimiles of the expelled page to hospital visitors and urge those who are like-minded to bombard Mattice with letters. A framed copy of the "WAR IS OVER -- Truman" front page has been placed put the wall; the original is being framed and is expected to replace the copy later this month. Hospital officials are also in the process of re-evaluating the rest of their memorabilia to ensure it doesn't offend anyone.


 

Floyd Mori, executive director of the Japanese American Citizens League, the nation's largest and oldest Asian-American advocacy group, said Mattice did the right thing. "Even though this was a World War II newspaper, it sends the wrong message to today's generation," Mori said. "To have it displayed sends a message to today's (citizens) that it's OK. And it's not OK." Mori, 69, said anti-Japanese sentiment is alive and well. He wrote a letter to NBC this week to complain about a "Saturday Night Live" skit; recently he was alerted to a South Carolina car dealer who, in a TV ad, urged viewers to buy his American-made cars because "our cars don't smell like rice." The former Marines at odds with the local VA hospital director say they have no ill feeling toward the Japanese but simply want to honor history and not to shrink from showing the prejudice that existed during the war. "I think in a historical sense those are good lessons," said Mori, "and in a museum that would be appropriate and educational and helpful -- in a place where a lesson is being taught. "But in a hospital, it might be better taking it down." [Source: Indianapolis Star Will Higgins article 5 Mar 09 ++]


 

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FOOD PACKAGING: It’s a trick worthy of a magician: Make a supermarket product look the same but actually contain less. That’s the kind of move that many companies are using to shrink popular grocery items like mayonnaise, ice cream, peanut butter and toilet paper, while keeping the price and packaging the same. The result: Consumers are getting less for their money. Approximately one-third of items at the grocery store have lost content since 2007, according to the Nielsen Co., which tracks market trends. Meanwhile, consumers last year saw food prices rise some 7 percent, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Companies argue that, like consumers, they’re also trying to stretch a dollar; their manufacturing costs have gone up, explains food marketing expert Phil Lempert, editor of www.SupermarketGuru.com. Factors like hurricanes, record cold weather and the rising cost of energy have driven up the cost of producing packaged goods. "When you're a food manufacturer, you either raise your prices even further or you take a look at putting less in the package and keep the price the same," Lempert says. Still, he agrees that "some packages are blatant rip-offs." For instance, he notes that coffee packages that may appear to be the same size "can have anything from 7.5 to 16 oz. of coffee, depending on the brand, and that's just not fair."


 

Content downsizing cuts across the grocery spectrum, influencing private labels and even organic products. "You especially see this with products like chips-organic or otherwise-especially when they're packed in airtight bags," says financial writer Jill Westfall, a contributor to Money magazine. Part of the problem, says longtime consumer advocate Edgar Dworsky, is that most consumers "aren't net weight-conscious, they're price-conscious, and the manufacturers know that. That's how manufacturers take advantage of customers. They do these tricks." Dworsky, a lawyer who's worked in the field of consumer protection for 31 years, monitors consumer news on his website www.ConsumerWorld.org, and recently started a blog, www.Mouseprint.org, hat is focused on the fine print of advertising. "Manufacturers know that customers know the size [of a product] in the relative sense-when you pick up a large tub of margarine, which used to be 3 pounds but is now 45 oz.," you can't really feel the missing three ounces, he says. Some examples of downsizing are:


 


 

Dworsky says that if shoppers spot a leading brand shortchanging them and it’s a recent development, they should check the other competing brands. Chances are, those brands haven’t changed yet and shoppers will get more for their money. He also encourages consumers to voice their feelings to manufacturers of their favorite brands. “Send a letter and let them know you’re not happy about them changing the product. Maybe at least they’ll send you some discount coupons.” He also recommends that consumers “shop by unit”—that is, check the price per unit posted on the shelf to see what they’re really paying for. Ultimately, though, once the top brands resize their packaging or contents, the other brands—even the private-label store brands—likely will change as well. And nothing seems safe. Even dog food has downsized. At the rate packages are being downsized stand by for the 11 egg cartoon. [Source: AARP Geoff Williams article 17 Feb 09 ++]


 

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VA THIRD PARTY INSURERS UPDATE 01: The National Commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. wants the Obama administration to kill a controversial budget proposal that would bill veterans with private health insurance for the care they receive for their service-connected disabilities and wounds. "It is unconscionable to pass along the costs of war to wounded and disabled veterans," said the VFW's Glen M. Gardner Jr., a Vietnam veteran from Round Rock, Texas. "This is one policy proposal that the VFW will work hard to defeat because it breaks a sacred trust that veterans have with their government." The administration proposed 5 MAR that the Department of Veterans Affairs would receive $55.9 billion in discretionary funding in fiscal year 2010, an amount that exceeds the current year budget by $5.5 billion.


 

Gardner said the proposal includes good initiatives, such as additional funding to enable more veterans to enroll into the VA system, to expand the concurrent receipt of disability compensation and retirement pay for medically-retired veterans, and to target access to care issues, especially for rural veterans. But the VFW national commander stopped short of applauding the budget when it was confirmed that VA would increase third party collections by billing for service-connected disability treatments. Gardner said the administration's budget proposal for the VA will get a much closer examination once details are released in April. He fears that collections would result in:


 

On 27 FEB, the VFW and 10 other major veterans' and military organizations wrote President Obama to voice their objections to the budget proposal. "The VFW adamantly opposes this proposal, and I am asking every VFW and auxiliary member, as well as every American, to urge their congressional delegations to block this move," said Gardner. "Charging veterans for the VA care they receive for service-connected disabilities and combat wounds is not how a grateful nation takes care of her warriors." If you agree with VFW's position on this issue you can contact your legislators by going to http://capwiz.com/vfw/dbq/officials/, enter your zip code, click on the VFW Action alert, complete your contact data which will allow you to forward a message which asks your legislators to reject this proposal when it is presented to Congress. [Source: VFW Action Alert 4 Mar 09 ++]


 

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FEDERAL STUDENT AID: There is now a significant benefit offered by the Department of Education to both active duty and veterans that has been enhanced by the College Cost Reduction and Access Act (CCRAA). This is completely separate from the GI Bill and will also benefit those who do not qualify for the GI Bill or who did not elect the GI Bill when they entered the service. Any servicemember on active duty is entitled to student loan deferment (or even forbearance if the case merits it) while on active duty and now for 180 days after leaving active duty. In addition, all interest paid on subsidized loans will be paid by the federal government during the time on active duty. Applicability has been extended to ALL National Guard, Reserve and Active Duty members. It is retroactive for all loans or higher education for those serving in the War on Terror regardless of application date (although some of the savings may be different for retroactive deferments). This benefit presents a significant cost savings to servicemembers pursuing higher education. Students and servicemembers only have to fill out a one page form and send it to the servicing agency that handles their student loans with copies of their orders to receive the deferment/forbearance and 180 day automatic extension. For additional info refer to http://studentaid.ed.gov/PORTALSWebApp/students/english/difficulty.jsp. [Source: Army AAUW News Mar 09 ++]


 

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TSP UPDATE 15: Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA 9th) has introduced legislation H.R.1263 that would automatically enroll new federal employees and members of the military in the Thrift Savings Plan and assign their investments to the government securities fund. "Currently, 14% of the eligible federal civilian and 75% of uniformed service members are not participating in TSP," Lynch, the new chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Federal Workforce Subcommittee, said in a statement. "Therefore they are less likely than participants to be financially self-sufficient." Automatic enrollment is supported by both the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board and a range of federal employee groups, all of which argue the practice makes it easier for workers to save for retirement. The thrift board met with congressional leaders in FEB 09 to discuss what the automatic enrollment legislation might entail. The contribution for employees who are enrolled automatically in the TSP would be set at 3% of basic pay, although the thrift board would have the authority to reduce it to as low as 2%, or to raise it as high as 5%.

Putting new enrollees' money in the government securities, or G Fund, is a safe option, proponents say, because the fund is the most conservative offering in the TSP. The G Fund has made small gains even as other funds have been roiled by the financial crisis. If employees who are enrolled automatically in the TSP eventually decide that they do not want to invest in the TSP and choose to withdraw the money that was invested for them, they are least likely to suffer losses if their money is invested in the G Fund. The legislation also requires the thrift board to design a Roth Individual Retirement Account option and include it in the plan. Similar legislation passed the House last summer, but the Senate did not take it up. The bill also addresses a number of issues for federal retirees. It would allow Federal Employee Retirement System enrollees to cash out their unused sick days when they retire, and would allow annuitants to buy health insurance through the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program with pre-tax dollars.[Source": GOVExec.com Alyssa Rosenberg article 4 Mar 09 ++]


 

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TSP UPDATE 16: The thrift savings Plan (TSP) is a long-term retirement savings plan, which is an ideal supplement to military and civilian retirement plans. Investment money is deposited directly from each paycheck which makes it easy to 'pay yourself first' while only investing what you deem appropriate. Due to the economy the plan has suffered significant losses which will impact those retiring in the near future or those who decide to for whatever reason to withdraw their funds ast this time. A common question from those who have suffered a loss is whether or not they can get any tax relief because of these losses. The answer is "NO". All contributions to the TSP are made on a pre-tax basis. Any earnings in the TSP grow tax-deferred. That means that all withdrawals from the TSP are fully taxable. Also, because the TSP is a retirement plan, any losses incurred in the TSP are not deductible


 

In February the TSP weathered another difficult month with every fund, except the government securities option, losing ground. Following is the status of each fund at the close of FEB:


 

[Source: GOVExec.com Brittany Ballenstedt article 3 Mar 09 ++]


 

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VET TOXIC EXPOSURE – TCE: Trichloroethylene (TCE) is an excellent metal degreaser which was used by both industry and the military for many years without regard to sound environmental disposal practices. As a result an unknown number of veterans have been exposed to TCE, a known carcinogen. In 2003 the Air Force reported 1,400 military sites contaminated with TCE. The Marine Corps Times reported 22 military bases with contaminated TCE water in JUN 07. To confront this problem then Senator Hillary Clinton introduced in the Senate S.1911The TCE Reduction Act of 2008 (or the Toxic Chemical Exposure Reduction Act of 2008) in 2007. The bill never became law. Congressional sessions last two years, and at the end of each session all proposed bills that haven't passed are cleared from the books. Never reaching the floor for a vote, S.1911 expired at the end of the Congressional session. The Act would have amended the Safe Drinking Water Act to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to:


 


 

An effort is presently underway by The Veterans-For-Change (VFC) to get this bill reintroduced with an additional provision to make honorable discharged veterans who served at any military base on the EPA Superfund list (133 bases as of the latest count) eligible for the DVA “Presumptive Disability” umbrella when applying for VA disability compensation from exposure to TCE. There is medical support of the health effects of TCE exposure (including the EPA and the National Academy of Sciences). The VA presently denies disability claims of veterans without substantial supporting documentation, including an opinion from a medical doctor that the illness was “at least as likely as not” due to exposure to TCE in the military. For many veterans this is a "catch twenty-two situation." The military base they were stationed at was reported as having high levels of TCE. Their illness is one that can be caused by exposure to TCE. They can't work because of their disability. The VA requires "proof" that their disability including a medical opinion or nexus statement that links the illness to military service. A disabled and often unemployed veteran is unlikely to pay for a medical opinion and nexus statement from an expert medical specialist because of cost. A telephone call to a Southern California medical doctor and toxicologist showed that a short opinion letter (one typed page) would cost approximately $3,000.


 

The VA currently has four groups of veterans under the Presumptive Disability category. These include former POWs, Vietnam veterans (exposed to Agent Orange); atomic veterans (exposed to ionizing radiation); and Gulf War veterans. The addition of Presumptive Disability for diseases linked to TCE contamination would seem to fit the criteria of these existing Presumptive Disability categories. Veterans are encouraged to contact their legislators’ regarding reintroduction of a TCE Reduction Act and eliminate the need for an expensive medical nexus statement.. [Source: http://www.salem-news.com/articles/february222009/tce_vets_2-22-09.php 22 Mar 09 ++]


 

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VA VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION UPDATE 02: Concerned that disabled veterans in an independent living program for vocational rehabilitation training may feel left out when new GI Bill benefits take effect 1 AUG, a key lawmaker proposes to increase rehabilitation benefits so veterans with service-connected disabilities will keep using the program, which offers specially tailored counseling and job-placement assistance. Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-HI), chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, proposes to raise the $520 monthly stipend paid to vocational rehabilitation program participants to equal the military housing allowance for an E-5, which would make the payment similar to the living stipend that will be paid under the Post-9/11 GI Bill. There would be just one difference: The GI Bill living stipend will equal the basic allowance for housing for an E-5 with dependents for the ZIP code of the school a student-veteran attends. Akaka proposes that the living stipend for vocational rehabilitation be equal to the national average of BAH for an E-5 based on the marital status of the participant, which means location would not make a difference and that single veterans would receive less than married veterans.


 

Akaka’s bill to improve benefits, S.514, also would reimburse some incidental expenses such as fees, equipment and supplies that are not currently covered by the Veterans Affairs Department. “An example could be that of a single young mother of young children who, in order to attend classes, needs child care,” Akaka said. “Another example might be a veteran who lost both legs in service and needs a new suit in order to make the most favorable impression at the interview with a prospective employer.” Akaka, who introduced the bill Tuesday, said he worries that the new tuition-plus-fees GI Bill will attract people who may be better off receiving help under the independent-living program that helps disabled veterans prepare for a job. The higher living allowance of the GI Bill would be a big draw for that program, he said, but those who decide to go to college instead of the job training program may not get the help best suited to their needs. “Those who would make such an election might forgo valuable counseling, employment and placement, and other assistance from which they might benefit,” Akaka said.


 

Akaka is not the only lawmaker suggesting benefits increases. In February, Rep. Steve Buyer (R-IN 4th), former chairman and now ranking Republican on the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, proposed adding more than $300 million to the economic stimulus package to support higher monthly payments for vocational rehabilitation participants. Buyer proposed monthly payments of $1,200 to $1,800, depending on the number of family members a veteran has. That proposal did not make it into the economic recovery package, but his bill, HR 297, is pending before the House Veterans’ Affairs economic opportunity subcommittee. Aides to Akaka said S.514 will be considered by the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee in an upcoming hearing. [Source: NavyTimes Rick Maze article 4 Mar 09 ++]


 

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TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY UPDATE 07: As Army officials announced the beginning of Brain Injury Awareness Month, they offered up figures that makes it hard to believe anyone in the military could be unaware of the problem: Between 45,000 and 90,000 troops have been treated for traumatic brain injury symptoms ranging from headaches to vision problems to an inability to function beyond a coma state. Brig. Gen. Loree Sutton, director of the Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury, said between 10% and 20% of soldiers and Marines — about 180,000 people — have screened positive for TBI. Pentagon officials estimated for the first time 4 MAR that up to 360,000 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans may have suffered brain injuries. Sutton's estimate is similar to a RAND Corp. study last year that said 320,000 may have suffered a brain injury. Following direction from Congress, the U.S. military began to screen all troops returning from the war zones for brain injury last year. The Pentagon’s official figure for U.S. military war casualties of all kinds in Iraq and Afghanistan is about 33,000. Sutton said at least 9,100 troops have been diagnosed with brain injuries since the war began. The Department of Veterans Affairs reports that it has treated about 8,000 former servicemembers for brain injury after their return from Iraq and Afghanistan.


 

Military doctors still fight a culture in which some troops believe they can head right back into the fight after being exposed to a blast — even though high school football players know better than to play again for a few days — and commanders may decide to risk sending someone outside the wire after an injury because there aren’t enough people to make up a patrol team. Experts at the U.S. Military Academy have said it’s important for someone who has suffered even mild TBI to avoid the risk of re-injuring the brain — especially the not-yet-fully-grown brain of someone younger than 24 — because a second injury can lead to permanent damage or even death. Declaring March as Brain Injury Awareness Month serves as a reminder to troops to watch out for themselves and each other. A brain injury results from a blow to the head or from the waves of a blast from an explosive device. Any altered state — passing out for a few seconds or minutes, dizziness or a foggy memory — constitutes an injury, and they range from mild, or a concussion, to severe. Symptoms that can last hours, days or years include loss of balance, short-term memory loss, vision problems, tinnitus or ringing in the ears, headaches, seizures, irritability, sleep problems, or an inability to concentrate.


 

Sutton said the symptoms usually go away on their own, especially if troops “allow themselves to get the rest that they need.” If the problems don’t go away, doctors can treat the symptoms with medications and therapy. Sutton stressed that 80 to 85% of TBIs are categorized as “mild,” but even mild TBI can cause headaches, vision problems and short-term memory loss. However, she said people are much more likely to quickly recover from a mild injury. More than half of such injuries come from explosions. About half the service members who screen positively for TBI recover on their own, while one-fourth recover with the help of treatment and one-fourth need specialty care. Over the past year, Sutton said the military has begun doing a better job of screening service members in the field so exposures to blasts or blows can be recorded and treated.


 

The Defense and Veterans’ Brain Injury Center has increased its network of civilian and military doctors and therapists to come up with better treatments and screening methods. Troops also have begun taking the Automated Neuropsychological Assessment Metric, which gives doctors baseline information on a person’s cognitive skills before an injury occurs. The new National Intrepid Center of Excellence, which is expected to open next year in Bethesda, Md., will specialize in TBI and psychological health issues. Last year, the Army spent $242 million on care for TBI, according to Lt. Col. Lynn Lowe, chief of the operations branch proponency office for rehabilitation and reintegration in the office of the Army Surgeon General. Hotline phone numbers available for troops concerned about symptoms that might be related to a brain injury are, at the Centers of Excellence, 866-966-1020; and at the Defense and Veterans Brain Injury Center, 800-870-9244. [Source: NavyTimes Kelly Kennedy article 4 Mar 09 ++]


 

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TRICARE & OHI: All beneficiaries should understand their Tricare benefit, which includes how Tricare pays claims for beneficiaries who have other health insurance (OHI). Understanding how the two work together is necessary for ensuring timely and accurate claims processing. Basically, other health insurance or health care coverage beneficiaries have in addition to Tricare. Beneficiaries may be eligible for OHI through an employer, private insurer, school health care coverage or entitlement programs such as Medicare. Navigating two health care plans can be quite confusing at first. The most important thing to remember if you have OHI is that, by law, your OHI is the primary payer, and Tricare is secondary. You or your provider must file health care claims with your primary health insurance before you file with Tricare. Check with your OHI provider and your regional contractor to find out the appropriate steps to take to ensure your claims are paid. Refer to Tricare’s OHI page http://tricare.mil/mybenefit/ProfileFilter.do;jsessionid=JskfQ7npWSdJlNT25Hn131GyQ1pnHpm6q9vrJSGp8SQBhBQ3r48L%21570404219?puri=%2Fhome%2FMedical%2FOHI or OHI Claims Flyer for more information. You may also want to visit the Tricare Web site on working with Tricare and Medicare at www.military.com/benefits/tricare/tricare-and-medicare for specific information.


 

A key to managing more than one plan is to keep Tricare in the loop. Denials or delays in processing are likely if a beneficiary does not inform their appropriate Tricare contacts about their OHI. First of all, make sure your doctor knows that you have OHI. If your doctor fills out your claim incorrectly, this may delay processing. Secondly, for your pharmacy benefit, let Tricare know about your OHI by calling the Tricare pharmacy contractor, Express Scripts, Inc. (ESI) at 1-866-DoD-TRRx (1-866-363-8779). Lastly, each Tricare region has an OHI Questionnaire to help you communicate any changes which can be accessed at:


 

For Tricare For Life (TFL) beneficiaries, Medicare pays first, then your OHI, then Tricare. In most cases, you will need to file the claim with Tricare and include your explanation of benefits after your OHI pays its share. You can find more information on how OHI and TFL work together at http://tricare.mil/mybenefit/home/overview/Plans/ForLife/OtherHealthInsurance?. Remember to notify TFL that you have OHI with the TFL OHI Questionnaire.

 

National Health Insurance Programs - These overseas programs are considered OHI. If you are enrolled in such programs, seek guidance from your appropriate overseas Tricare Service Center (TSC) before obtaining health care from a host nation provider at:


 

Supplemental Insurance Programs - Keep in mind that “supplemental” insurance programs are different than OHI plans. “Supplemental” plans are offered for purchase by some military associations and private companies, and do not fall under OHI rules. Visit the Tricare Web site http://tricare.mil/mybenefit to learn more about “supplemental” plans. For questions about Tricare benefits and services refer to www.tricare.mil/contactus. [Source: Tricare Blog www.health.mil/tmablog/default.aspx 2 Mar 098 ++]


 

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VA WOMEN VET PROGRAMS UPDATE 02: Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D-SD at large district) on 26 FEB introduced The Women Veterans Health Care Improvement Act H.R.1211. Her concern is the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are producing a large number of women veterans who will return with disabilities as well as difficulties resuming their civilian lives and that VA needs more preparation and better programs to treat women who rely on VA health care and other services. This bill would:

 


 

Women veterans are a small but dramatically growing segment of the veteran population, and the current number of women serving in active military service and its Reserve and Guard components has never been larger. They are serving in military occupational specialties that take them into combat theaters and expose them to some of the harshest environments imaginable, including service in the military police, artillery, as medics and corpsmen, as fixed and rotary wing aircraft pilots and crew, and as truck drivers. VA must be better prepared to receive this new population of women veterans, now and in the future. Readers are encouraged to contact their representative and ask that they cosponsor this bill. One way to do this is to utilize USDR's Action alert at http://capwiz.com/usdr/issues/alert/?alertid=12833716&queueid=[capwiz:queue_id] by entering your zip code to transmit either an already prepared text message or one of your own editing. [Source: USDR Action Alert 3 Mar 09 ++]


 


 

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VA CLAIMS BACKLOG UPDATE 24: A new report about Veterans Affairs Department employees squirreling away tens of thousands of unopened letters related to benefits claims is sparking fresh concerns that veterans and their survivors are being cheated out of money. VA officials acknowledge further credibility problems based on a new report of a previously undisclosed 2007 incident in which workers at a Detroit regional office turned in 16,000 pieces of unprocessed mail and 717 documents turned up in New York in December during amnesty periods in which workers were promised no one would be penalized. “Veterans have lost trust in VA,” Michael Walcoff, VA’s under secretary for benefits, said at a hearing 3 MAR. “That loss of trust is understandable, and winning back that trust will not be easy.” Unprocessed and unopened mail was just one problem in VA claims processing mentioned by Belinda Finn, VA’s assistant inspector general for auditing, in testimony before the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee. Auditors also found that the dates recorded for receiving claims, which in many cases determine the effective date for benefits payments, are wrong in many cases because of intentional and unintentional errors, Finn said. The worst case uncovered by auditors involved the New York regional office, where employees testified that managers told staff to put later dates on claims to make it appear claims were being processed faster. A review found that 56% of claims had incorrect dates, although no evidence was found of incorrect or delayed benefits payments. Finn said workers reported that this practice had been used for years.


 

The new report comes as VA is trying to resolve an earlier controversy involving documents essential to the claims process that were discovered in bins awaiting shredding at several regional offices, which raised questions about how many past claims had been delayed or denied because of intentional or unintentional destruction of documentation. Kathryn Witt of Gold Star Wives of America said survivors trying to receive VA benefits have long complained about problems getting accurate information and missing claims. “When they call to check on the status of the claim, they are often told that the VA has no record of their claim and that they should resubmit their paperwork,” she said. In one case, a woman claimed she had to submit paperwork to VA three times to prove she was married and had three children, Witt said. And having to resubmit the same claim, she added, does nothing to reduce the backlog that already forces survivors to wait six to nine months for simple claims to be approved. It is unclear whether there is any short-term fix. A permanent solution is to have a fully electronic claims process to establish a record of when documents are received and their status as they move through the process. A fully electronic system will not be in place before 2011, VA officials said.


 

Kerry Baker of Disabled American Veterans said a short-term answer could be to scan all documents related to claims into computer systems. Baker, DAV’s assistant national legislative director, said this could be done at one or more large-scale imaging centers that would transform paper into electronic records. Baker said, “A large section of the veterans community and representatives of the community have long felt that the Veterans Benefits Administration operates in such a way that stalls the claims process until frustrated claimants either give up or die”. He said that although he doesn’t believe that is true, something must be done. “Denying earned benefits by illegally destroying records should serve as the proverbial wake-up call that signals the urgency of this overdue transformation,” he said. Geneva Moore, a senior veterans service representative from Winston-Salem, N.C., who testified on behalf of the American Federation of Government Employees, a union that counts about 160,000 VA workers among its members, said backdating claims and document shredding are signs of a claims system under stress. “Clearly, if the disability claims process were already paperless, many of the problems being considered at this hearing today would no longer exist,” she said. [Source: NavyTimes Rick Maze article 3 Mar 09 ++]


 

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VA CLAIMS BACKLOG UPDATE 25: On 3 MAR 09, the House Veterans' Affairs Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee, led by Chairman John Hall (D-NY), and the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, led by Chairman Harry Mitchell (D-AZ), conducted a joint hearing on "Document Tampering and Mishandling at the Veterans Benefits Administration." Since OCT 08, the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has come under fire for three specific problems: misdating of claims at the New York Regional Office, shredding documents wrongly placed in shredder bins, and denying widows survivor benefits. The hearing focused on the changes put in place by VA to address these problems, return integrity to the disability claims processing system, and regain the trust of veterans.


 

Chairman Hall said, "In the last few months, we have tracked a problem brought to our attention with misdating of claims information at the New York Regional Office. This situation was a clear attempt by managers to fudge performance numbers. The incorrectly entered data made the regional office look like it took fewer days to process claims than in actuality - yet still beyond acceptable levels to me, or to most veterans. Although veterans were not directly harmed by this practice, since the effective date of a claim was logged correctly in a different system, perpetrators of this kind of dishonestly impact the entire veteran community's ability to trust the institution charged with its welfare. This is shameful! After conducting site visits to several other regional offices, the VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued a report on 27 FRB 09, entitled 'Review of VA Regional Office Compensation and Pension Benefits Claim Receipt Dates,' which is available at this link: OIG Report. The OIG found 'that the claim date inaccuracies were mostly unintentional errors' at the other regional offices. Assistant Inspector General for Auditing Belinda Finn stated that the 'errors we reviewed did not cause any veterans or their beneficiaries to receive incorrect or delayed benefit payments'."


 

The Subcommittees also addressed the OIG mail room audit which found documents inappropriately placed in shredder bins - documents necessary to process claims as well as documents that should have been returned to the veteran. Deputy Under Secretary for Benefits Michael Walcoff testified that VA took immediate actions in response to preliminary reports, which included a temporary cessation of shredding until it was able to relocate all shred bins and equipment to VBA management offices and inventory all claims-related mail or original supporting documents. Additionally, VA instituted new policies on shredding that require two signatures on papers to be destroyed. Walcoff said, "This effort identified 474 documents affecting benefit entitlement inappropriately placed in shred bins for disposal. These 474 documents and the 45 documents indentified by the OIG were found at 41 of our 57 regional offices and centers." VBA also developed an 8-point plan of action to strengthen policies and procedures to safeguard veterans' paper records. That plan is detailed here: VBA 8-Point Plan of Action


 

Assistant IG Finn testified that the extent of the inappropriate claim-related shredding cannot be determined and also noted that lack of controls at the various VBA regional offices (VAROs) contributed to the mishandling of claims. Finn further stated, "VBA officials also said that some VAROs held 'mail amnesty' periods to encourage employees to turn in unprocessed mail and other documents without penalty or repercussions. During an amnesty period in JUL 07 at VARO Detroit, VARO employees turned in almost 16,000 pieces of unprocessed mail including 700 claims and 2,700 medical records and/or pieces of medical information. The VARO determined that none of these claims or documents were in VBA information systems or associated claim files. VBA management told us of similar amnesties at other VAROs, such as an amnesty at VARO New York in DEC 08 that recovered 717 documents from VARO employees."


 

Chairman Mitchell expressed his strong reaction to this news. "Obviously we are going to have to get complete information from VA about these amnesties, but it is impossible not to be shocked by the numbers from Detroit. Shredding documents, or burying them in the bottom drawer, are a breach of trust by VA. Whether that breach of trust comes as a consequence of inadequate training or negligent or deliberate behavior, Congress much not and will not tolerate it." Chairman Hall indicated that staff for the Subcommittees would be following up on this information and Deputy Under Secretary Walcoff promised the VA's full cooperation.


 

The Subcommittees also discussed survivors' benefits for widows. Over the last twelve years, VA's mistaken interpretation of the law resulted in approximately 50,000 surviving spouses losing millions of dollars in benefits or having the Department of the Treasury seek restitution from them for an overpayment. The VA has developed an action plan to correct this series of errors and produced a timeline for this action plan, which should be finalized by APR 09. "The misdating, shredding, and glitches that the media recently reported are only the tip of the iceberg," concluded Chairman Hall. "I have heard too many accounts from veterans and their survivors about missing, lost, or destroyed file, and VA sending them multiple requests for information and still not knowing the location of a file. A lot of VA employees touch a claim folder, but rarely is anyone held accountable or responsible when it is lost or destroyed. This is absolutely unacceptable. I have been on a track to modernize the VBA's out of date claims processing system. I envision VA as an Agency that we as a nation are proud of in the way that it serves the welfare of our disabled veterans. When it comes to discharging those responsibilities, shameful acts are what should be archaic practices.


 

Bob Filner, Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs commented, "I understand the confusion and the anger in the veterans’ community after hearing that more than 16,000 documents turned up in 'mail amnesty' at a single regional office! Today is a new day at VA, with a new President and new leadership. I am confident that Secretary Shinseki is committed to helping our veterans and will take immediate action to address the record-keeping problems raised today! This is where new approaches to leadership are crucial and accountability, along with proper oversight, is essential." [Source: VVA Government Affairs News 5 Mar 09 ++]


 

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MEDICAL IMAGING: More than 95 million high-tech scans are done each year, and medical imaging, including CT, M.R.I. and PET scans, has ballooned into a $100-billion-a-year industry in the United States, with Medicare paying for $14 billion of that. But recent studies show that as many as 20% to 50% of the procedures should never have been done because their results did not help diagnose ailments or treat patients. “The system is just totally, totally broken,” said Dr. Vijay Rao, the chairwoman of the radiology department at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, in Philadelphia. Bad scans, medical experts say, are part of a growing problem with medical imaging. Many factors contribute. Insurers pay the same for a scan done on a 10-year-old machine as one on the latest model, though the differences in the images can be significant. Insurers do not distinguish between scans that are done poorly or done well or read by less- or more-qualified doctors. Aside from mammography, whose standards were established by a law that went into effect more than a decade ago, the field is largely unregulated. And increasingly, doctors refer patients to scanning centers they own and profit from.


 

Ten years ago, the age of a scanner might not have mattered so much. Now, said Dr. Gary Glazer, the chairman of radiology at Stanford, technology has advanced so much that the older scanner “is not the same machine. I can tell you from my experience that between those extremes the gap is huge,” Dr. Glazer said. Yet, he added, many scanning machines used today are a decade old. Imaging centers can, if they choose, become accredited by the American College of Radiology. That requires, among other things, scanning a phantom, a device that simulates a body part. Technologists must also be certified, and there are standards for supervising physicians. And the scanners must be regularly assessed to ensure they are properly functioning. But many centers are not accredited, although the percentage is not known because there is no national registry of imaging centers. Accrediting will be partly addressed by a little noticed aspect of a wide-ranging Medicare law passed last year. After it goes into effect in 2012, Medicare will pay only for scans done at accredited centers. But imaging experts say the law fixes only part of the problem. High-tech scanning is complicated, and there is no consensus on objective measures to ensure quality. Even with the new law, there is still little assurance that scans will be appropriately ordered and interpreted or that a scanner will be up to date.


 

Radiologists are struck by the wide variation in the quality of scans, and they say there is little patients can do other than to ask why the scan is necessary and, if it is, to ask about accreditation, the credentials of the person reading the scan and the age of the scanner. “The studies I see coming from the outside vary from marginal quality to very good quality,” said Dr. Chris Beaulieu, a Stanford radiology professor. “Some of it is related to equipment, and some is related to people with very good equipment who don’t know how to use it right. And on the interpretation side, there is also a very wide range of quality or accuracy, in my opinion.” Interpretation can be crucial, Dr. Beaulieu added. “A good radiologist can sometimes accurately read scans off of a lower-quality scanner,” he said. “I see that all the time. A good radiologist and a lower-quality scan could be better than a bad radiologist and a good scan.” But logical as it might seem to pay more for a better scan, there are problems. Health insurers have no way of knowing whether scans are good, said Susan Pisano, a spokeswoman for America’s Health Insurance Plans, a trade group. Doctors, not insurers, receive the images and reports, and all insurers can do is notice if there are frequent requests to redo scans from a particular center.


 

Another concern is the growing number of doctors who refer patients for imaging done by scanners they own and profit from. Studies have found that up to 3.2 times as many scans are ordered in such cases In a recent report, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) said nearly two-thirds of the money Medicare paid for imaging was for scans in doctors’ offices. And, the report added, doctors were receiving an ever larger part of their income from providing scanning services. Not only were patients more likely to have scans if a doctor did this, but the quality of some of the scans was questioned. “No comprehensive national standards exist for services delivered in physician offices other than a requirement that imaging services are to be provided under at least general physician supervision,” the GAO wrote. Private health insurers were concerned, too. “These are alarming patterns that have also been observed in the private sector,” America’s Health Insurance Plans wrote in a response to the GAO. It is clear why self-referral can be tempting, said Dr. Bruce Hillman, a radiology professor at the University of Virginia, adding that a group of doctors can make an extra $500,000 to $1 million a year simply by acquiring a scanner. [Source: New York Times Gina Kolata article 1 Mar 09 ++]


 

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COMMISSARY GIFT CERTIFICATE: Defense Commissary Agency officials announced 6 MAR that defense officials will allow the commissaries to continue to accept customers’ gift certificates, known as CertifiChecks, for groceries. Customers must redeem them by 31 JUL 09. The company that ran the program ceased operations 26 FEB, rendering the gift certificates worthless. “I am happy to report that DeCA and DoD have found a way that we can honor our customers’ unredeemed CertifiChecks,” DeCA Director Philip E. Sakowitz Jr. said in the announcement. “We have been deeply concerned about how this situation has impacted our customers worldwide, and we’re happy that we’ve been able to find a solution.” Commissary store managers have been notified of the policy change. CertifiChecks Inc., of Dayton, Ohio, posted a notice on its Web site 26 FEB that it had ceased operations, citing a difficult economic environment. The notice said the company is in the process of filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. It warned merchants not to present any CertifiChecks to a bank, because they would be returned.


 

Initially, commissaries could not accept the worthless gift certificates, for legal reasons, because they are funded by taxpayer dollars. CertifiChecks officials could not be reached for comment, and commissary officials also have been unable to reach CertifiChecks officials. Since 26 FEB, DeCA officials have been working with defense officials to settle on a legal recourse to help customers left holding the worthless CertifiChecks, according to the announcement. DeCA will be allowed to absorb losses incurred honoring the certificates from its retail stocks account in the Defense Working Capital Fund. Customers or donors have bought more than $20 million of these gift certificates since 2002, including more than $3.9 million in fiscal 2008, officials said. It has not yet been determined how many are unredeemed. A number of the CertifiChecks were given to non-profit organizations like Operation Homefront and Fisher House Foundation to give to military families in need.


 

The military exchange systems also used a CertifiChecks program, as did hundreds of other retailers and entities across the country. The Army and Air Force Exchange System, Navy Exchange Service Command and Coast Guard Exchange Service said earlier this week that they will continue to accept the CertifiChecks. Information was not available from Marine Corps Exchange officials about whether they will accept the CertifiChecks. Anyone holding CertifiCheck certificates who wish to submit their certificates for "potential reimbursement" can send them to: CertifiChecks, Inc., Attn: Redemption Dept., P.O. Box 13603, Dayton, OH 4541. It is uncertain at this time whether customers should send copies of the gift certificates and retain the originals in order to protect their money. There is no guarantee the company will provide reimbursement. [Source: Navy Times Karen Jowers article 7 May 09 ++]


 

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VET JOB TRAINING: A key member of a House panel responsible for helping veterans find a job has introduced five bills to enhance job training and placement. Rep. John Boozman of Arkansas, ranking Republican on the House Veterans’ Affairs subcommittee on economic opportunity, said he hopes the bills provide some ideas about things Congress can do to help veterans make the transition from military to civilian life. And, he noted, that does not necessarily mean spending a lot of tax dollars. However, he is not against spending any money on veterans' programs. All five of his bills were referred to the economic opportunity subcommittee. and are likely to be discussed during upcoming hearings on veterans’ transition issues. The bills are:


 


 


 

On 4 MAR the House Veterans’ Affairs Economic Opportunity Subcommittee (Chairman Herseth Sandlin D-S.D.) held a hearing on H.R.1171 plus the following pending veteran legislation:

[Source: NavyTimes Rick Maze article 2 Mar 09 ++]


 

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CAMP LEJEUNE TOXIC EXPOSURE UPDATE 04: In the early 1980’s, two solvents, trichloroethylene (TCE) and perchloroethylene (PCE), both unregulated at the time, were found in two water systems serving the Tarawa Terrace and Hadnot Point areas of Camp Lejeune. Certain drinking water wells were identified as the source of the chemicals and were taken out of service in 1984 and 1985. If you lived or worked at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in 1987 or before, you should register with the Marine Corps by visiting www.marines.mil/clsurvey or by calling the Camp Lejeune Historic Drinking Water Call Center at 877-261-9782, M-F, 0830 - 1700 EST. The Department of the Navy is funding two independent research initiatives. The Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry (ATSDR) is determining if there is an association between exposure to the water and certain adverse health effects. The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is evaluating specific health risks associated with exposure. Upon completion of the research, the Marine Corps will directly notify those on the registry through direct mail and email. Currently, Camp Lejeune water meets or exceeds all environmental standards. Drinking water wells at Camp Lejeune are tested four times a year for volatile organic compounds (VOCs), in addition to monthly drinking water sampling. The base is in compliance with all federal and state laws and regulations to ensure safe drinking water. [Source: CA DVA Press release 27 Feb 09 ++]


 

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ARREARS of PAY UPDATE 01: Rep. Walter Jones (R-NC 3rd) has introduced The Military Survivor Comfort Act H.R.613 into the 111th Congress. The bill would allow a survivor to keep the entire retired pay for the month in which a servicemember dies. HR 613 would authorize the retention of the full final month's retired pay by the surviving spouse (or other designated survivor) for the month in which the member was alive for at least 24 hours. Current practice requires the government to recoup the money and pro-rate it based on the date of death. It is current practice of the Department of Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) to immediately recover the last month's retired pay upon notification of the death. Most surviving spouses are unaware of this practice and will likely have already obligated some of that month's pay to the funeral expenses. Obviously such action could easily clear the account of any funds remaining whether they were retirement payments or money from other sources. DFAS then sends back a pro-rated portion of the payment based on when the retiree died. Cosponsors are needed to bring this legislation to the floor of the house for as vote. Readers are encouraged to contact their representatives to sign on to this bill. This can easily be done through the USDR’s action alert website http://capwiz.com/usdr/issues/alert/?alertid=12489731&queueid=[capwiz:queue_id] [Source: USDR Action Alert Feb 09 ++]

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MILITARY CREDIT UNIONS: Credit unions play a particularly crucial role in the military community, giving hard-pressed families much-needed options for financial literacy and alternatives to usurious payday lenders. America's military credit unions may be forced by the National Credit Union Administration to forfeit nearly $5 billion. This unfair requirement would force almost half of the nation's 90 military credit unions into the red and reduce loan opportunities, reduce savings return, and mean higher loan rates for millions of military families and veterans who depend on their local credit unions for essential financial services. Now is the time to email the President and encourage him to stand up for America's military credit unions. This can be easily done by referring to MOAA's Action alert http://capwiz.com/moaa/issues/alert/?alertid=12795846 or TREA’s www.capwiz.com/trea/issues/alert/?alertid=12797526 and entering your contact info so a message of your choosing can be automatically sent to President Obama. [Source: MOAA Action Alert 28 Feb ++]


 

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MILITARY CREDIT UNIONS UPDATE 01: MOAA's Action alert on 28 FEB requesting MOAA members to email the President to ease financial burdens on military credit unions prompted numerous inquiries seeking additional details. Following covers additional information provided to answer the most frequently asked questions:


 

Q: Are you saying that my credit union/military credit unions engaged in sub-prime or other risky loan activities?

A: No, it was not the member-based credit unions that did that. A group of 28 "corporate" credit unions (these are, in effect, the "credit unions for the 7800+ member-based credit unions") invested in mortgage-backed securities that ended up getting them into financial trouble. And now the individual credit unions are being assessed billions of dollars to bail out the corporate ones.


 

Q: Is my credit union at risk of becoming insolvent because of this problem?

A: Likely not. Military credit unions, as well as the credit union community as a whole, remain safe and sound. You should, however, ensure that your credit union is federally insured. If so, your deposits are insured up to $250,000 and backed by the full faith and credit of the United States Government. To verify that your credit union is federally insured, look for a blue NCUA official insurance sign posted at the credit union.


 

Q: How can they make the member-based credit unions pay for the mistakes of the corporate ones?

A: The National Credit Union Administration is to credit unions what the Federal Reserve and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation are to banks. Just as banks are being assessed extra money to ensure the FDIC can cover any potential bank failures, the NCUA has the power to assess all credit unions a "replenishment fee" to make up for the losses of a few. In this case, the replenishment fees are so large that they will wipe out a large share of many credit unions’ earnings for the year. And just as we keep getting follow-up reports that it will take more and more money to bail out the financial industry in general, the concern is that there may be more bad news in the future on the corporate credit unions, with the potential for additional assessments to member-based credit unions.


 

Q: Is this unique to military credit unions?

A: No, the assessments are being made on all member-based credit unions, proportional to their resources. The MOAA alert focused on military credit unions because those are the ones of interest to their members.


 

Q: Does this affect Navy Federal Credit Union or the Pentagon Federal Credit Union?

A: Yes, the assessment for PFCU would be more than $80 million; for NFCU, it would be more than $200 million. These assessments wouldn't put them at risk of going out of business by any means, but would wipe out more than half these two large credit unions’ earnings for the year. MOAA thinks that's not right, and felt an obligation to try to protect the interests of members of these and other credit unions.


 

Q: What would it take to fix this inequity?

A: Congress could change the law and bar the assessment, but there is no consensus on the Hill that that would be a good idea. And as the NCUA is still pushing ahead with its current authority to impose the assessment in a relatively short time frame, there's no time to try to educate and work the issue through Congress. The fastest means of relief is to persuade the Secretary of the Treasury or the President to intercede, since they have authority over the NCUA. Because no email address is available for the Secretary of the Treasury, MOAA urged those concerned to email the President last week.


 

Q: What are the chances that member-based credit unions can be exempted from this replenishment fee?

A: The National Association of Federal Credit Unions (the advocacy group for member-based federal credit unions that brought this problem to our attention) indicates it is very unlikely they'll be exempted. The hope is that the President and Secretary of the Treasury will assist in easing the terms to let the member-based credit unions replenish the fund over an extended period of time so they don’t have to take the financial hit all at once

[Source: MOAA Leg Up 6 Mar 09 ++]


 

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PHYSICIAN REIMBURSEMENTS UPDATE 01: Red Gillen, a San Francisco-based analyst with consulting firm Celent, who last month published a report on doctors seeking upfront payment from their patients said it's a paradigm shift from what most consumers are used to at their doctor's office. Gillen says that until recently, insurers paid so much of the cost of medical care that medical providers, including doctors, labs and hospitals, focused their fee recovery efforts on the companies. But in the past few years employers and insurers have shifted more costs to consumers in the form of higher co-pays, higher co-insurance and higher deductibles, making those payments an increasingly large share of doctors' incomes. Consumer out-of-pocket spending as a percentage of all health-care spending rose to 12% last year, and is expected to continue rising. A survey published by the Kaiser Family Foundation in SEP 08, found that 18% of people who responded were covered by insurance plans with deductibles of at least $1,000, up from 12% the year before. Until now," Gillen says, "insured patients would see a doctor, leave a co-pay and then watch a series of insurance and physician envelopes come through the mail over weeks to months, until finally one detailed the actual amount, if any, to be paid by the patient." Now, largely through new software programs that assess both a patient's insurance coverage and the day's charges, those weeks to months are often collapsed into just minutes for an estimate, or even a full adjudication of the bill.


 

Few providers let patients head home these days without either some payment or a definitive plan for how to pay their share of the bill. Increasingly, patients get a printout sometimes before but more likely after the medical visit detailing the full cost and the patient's share, including any outstanding deductible. The estimate software has been created by some private firms, but also by a growing number of insurers including some Blue Cross plans, UnitedHealthcare and Humana. In April, Cigna, which has half a million beneficiaries in the Washington area, will be rolling out "The Estimator," software that estimates a patient's financial responsibility, usually by the time he or she has changed into street clothes. Cigna's forms suggest that a doctor ask for no more than half of a patient's estimated bill at the time of care, but every practice can set its own rules. "Most firms rely on estimates, rather than definitive bills, because there could be additional charges related to the visit that can't be anticipated, such as an extra lab test on a biopsy, for example, and there can be a lag in communicating deductible payments between other physicians and the insurer, says Lori Logan, head of new products for Cigna.


 

Mark Rukavina, executive director of the Access Project, a health-care advocacy group in Boston, says finding out how much patients owe right away, rather than hanging in limbo for weeks to months, is a positive. What's bad, he says, is that not all providers have let their patients know that payment, or payment arrangements, are expected at the time of care. "That's usually not a pleasant surprise in this economy," says Rukavina, who worries that subtle intimidation could push some people to put bills on an already weighed-down credit card or even avoid care altogether. A Kaiser Family Foundation tracking poll of more than 1,200 adults, completed in mid-February, found that 53% surveyed had put off some form of medical care, including physician visits, because of cost concerns. William Dolan, a trustee of the American Medical Association, and an orthopedic surgeon in Rochester, N.Y., says the AMA has no policy on patients being asked for payment at the time of care but suggests that doctors give patients warning weeks before implementing a new payment policy and that providers be "fair and reasonable" in helping patients make payment arrangements.


 

Celent's Gillen says that as consumer share of medical expenses increases, he expects banks to issue interest-free health-care-specific credit that might be linked to payrolls for deductions and even offer discounts for users. (Some health-care-only cards exist now but are generally intended for elective health expenses such as Lasik and plastic surgery. They generally start with 0% interest but trigger a percentage increase if payment is late or missed.). One bright note for people who use credit cards to pay their medical expenses: The Federal Reserve has issued rules prohibiting excessive fees or interest rates on credit cards, effective next year. Similar legislation is to be introduced in Congress within the next few months and, if passed, could take effect before the Federal Reserve's rules. The AMA's Dolan suggests asking about payment practices when you make your appointment, so that you know what to expect. Increasingly, though, billing staff won't be waiting for you to bring up the subject. [Source: Washington Post Francesca Lunzer Kritz article 3 Mar 09 ++]


 

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SBP DIC OFFSET UPDATE 13: Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL) sent a letter to President Obama, which indicated that he would soon reintroduce his bill to eliminate the SBP/DIC offset. He reminded the President that he had supported the legislation as a Senator and Sen. To see the text of the letter refer to http://www.naus.org/news/documents/SenNelsonLtrtoPres2-09.pdf. On 5 Mar Nelson introduced his bipartisan bill, "The Military Retiree Survivor Equity Act" (S.535), which would repeal the law (commonly known as the Widows Tax) that requires deduction of VA survivor benefits from military Survivor Benefit Plan annuities. The reduction can be up to $1,154 per month and impacts some 57,000 widows and widowers whose spouses died of service-related causes. Under current law, the surviving spouse of a military member who dies from a service connected disability is entitled to Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) paid by the Veteran's Administration. If the military retiree was also enrolled in the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP), the surviving spouse's benefits are offset by the amount of DIC ($1154 per month). If military service causes a veteran's death, the indemnity payment from the VA should be added to normal SBP benefits, not subtracted from them. The House companion bill is (H.R.775) sponsored by Reps. Solomon Ortiz (D-TX) and Henry Brown (R-SC).


 

In a press release Sen. Nelson noted that for years he has fought to repeal this law and take care of survivors who have lost a loved one to combat or service-connected injuries. In 2005, Congress took a step in the right direction and passed by 92-6 an amendment to repeal the unjust "SBP-DIC offset." And in the fiscal year 2008 National Defense Authorization Act, they took another step when the Senate led with a provision to the NDAA to eliminate the offset. In conference that year, in negotiations with the House, some progress was made and the law was changed to get the survivors a "special payment" of $50 per month. This coming year, Nelson plans to build on the ground gained in 2008. In the president’s speech to Congress he vowed to expand benefits veterans have earned, sending a strong signal that Congress should fully and finally correct the SBP-DIC injustice. Nelson, who was previously the insurance commissioner of the State of Florida, said he had never heard of any other purchased insurance annuity program that justifies refusing to pay the insured their benefits because they receive a different benefit somewhere else. Through this legislation, the Senate has an opportunity to right this wrong, and he is hopeful that this will be the year to finally get this fixed.


 

This is the eighth consecutive year this legislation had been introduced in Congress and with veterans support it will be the last. You are encouraged to contact your legislators and encourage them to support his bill. One easy way to do that is to access MOAA's http://capwiz.com/moaa/issues/alert/?alertid=12848666&type=CO site, complete your contact data if you have never used one of their legislative Alert sites before, and foreword a preformatted message to your legislators by clicking on the appropriate tab. [Source: NAUS Weekly Update 27 Feb & MOAA Legislative Alert 6 Mar 09 ++]


 

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TRICARE MTF USE UPDATE 01: The cost for inpatient care provided at a military treatment facility (MTF) has increased from $15.15 to $15.65 per day for active duty family members and retiree family members using Tricare Standard or Tricare Extra and for retiree family members enrolled in Tricare Prime. There are no costs for MTF inpatient care for active duty service members, retirees and Tricare Prime active duty family members. [Source: NAUS Weekly Update 27 Feb 09 ++]

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TRICARE BENEFICIARY RIGHTS & RESPONSIBILITIES: In an effort to achieve the best possible health care outcomes and support quality improvement and a cost-conscious environment, the Military Health System (MHS) established a bill of rights and responsibilities to guide Tricare beneficiaries. You have the right to:


 


 

You are also expected and encouraged to assume reasonable responsibility for your health by making an effort to:


 

[Source: www.tricare.mil/mybenefit/home/Medical/RightsAndResponsibilities Mar 09 ++]


 

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VETERAN RESOURCE UPDATE 01: The 2009 Retired Military Personnel Handbook is specifically written for all military personnel and retirees and their families and is designed to guide them through every aspect of your retirement, explaining what benefits they may qualify for and how to get them, as well as providing a context for making many of the important decisions that lie ahead. Some of what's NEW in the 2009 edition are:


 


 

Plus, Completely Revised Information on:


 

The Handbook book, in its tenth year, is updated annually. It can be ordered online at www.fedweek.com/pubs/index.php, via telephone at (888) 333-9335, or by writing FEDweek, PO Box 5519, Glen Allen, VA 23058 with a payment of $15.70 to cover S&H. [Source: Don Mace, Publisher of Armed Forces News 17 Feb 09 ++]


 

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MILITARY HISTORY ANNIVERSARIES 1-15 March:

Mar 07 1951 - Korean War: U.N. forces in Korea under General Matthew Ridgeway launch Operation Ripper an offensive to straighten out the U.N. front lines against the Chinese.

[Source: Various Mar 09 ++]


 

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Where we Stand

VETERAN LEGISLATION STATUS 13 MAR 09: Refer to the Bulletin’s Veteran Legislation attachment for or a listing of Congressional bills of interest to the veteran community that have been introduced in the 111th Congress. Support of these bills through cosponsorship by other legislators is critical if they are ever going to move through the legislative process for a floor vote to become law. A good indication on that likelihood is the number of cosponsors who have signed onto the bill. Any number of members may cosponsor a bill in the House or Senate. At http://thomas.loc.gov you can review a copy of each bill’s content, determine its current status, the committee it has been assigned to, and if your legislator is a sponsor or cosponsor of it. To determine what bills, amendments your representative has sponsored, cosponsored, or dropped sponsorship on refer to http://thomas.loc.gov/bss/d111/sponlst.html. The key to increasing cosponsorship on veteran related bills and subsequent passage into law is letting our representatives know of veteran’s feelings on issues. You can reach their Washington office via the Capital Operator direct at (866) 272-6622, (800) 828-0498, or (866) 340-9281 to express your views. Otherwise, you can locate on http://thomas.loc.gov your representative and his/her phone number, mailing address, or email/website to communicate with a message or letter of your own making. Refer to http://www.thecapitol.net/FAQ/cong_schedule.html for dates that you can access your representatives on their home turf. [Source: RAO Bulletin Attachment 13 Mar 09 ++]


 

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Andy Rooney #2

Have You Heard: Andrew Aitken "Andy" Rooney is an American radio and television writer. He became most famous as a humorist and political commentator with his weekly broadcast ‘A Few Minutes With Andy Rooney’, a part of the CBS News program 60 Minutes since 1978. Following is his opinion on issues that allegedly aired on CBS. As a fan of 60 Minutes I remember hearing him say a number of them:


 


 

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Lt. James “EMO” Tichacek, USN (Ret)

Director, Retiree Assistance Office, U.S. Embassy Warden & IRS VITA Baguio City RP

PSC 517 Box RCB, FPO AP 96517

Tel: (951) 238-1246 in U.S. or Cell: 0915-361-3503 in the Philippines.

Email: raoemo@sbcglobal.net Web: http://post_119_gulfport_ms.tripod.com/rao1.html

AL/AMVETS/DAV/FRA/NAUS/NCOA/MOAA/USDR/VFW/VVA/CG33/DD890/AD37 member


 

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VETERAN LEGISLATION


 

13 March 2009


 

Of the 1508 House and 584 Senate pieces of legislation introduced in the 111th Congress to date by your legislators, the following are of interest to the non-active duty veteran community. A good indication on the likelihood a bill of being forwarded to the House for passage and subsequently being signed into law by the President is the number of cosponsors who have signed onto the bill. Any number of members may cosponsor a bill in the House or Senate. At http://thomas.loc.gov you can review a copy of each bill’s text, determine its current status, the committee it has been assigned to, who your representative is and his/her phone number, mailing address, or email/website to communicate with a message or letter of your own making, and if your legislator is a sponsor or cosponsor of it. To separately determine what bills, amendments your representative has sponsored, cosponsored, or dropped sponsorship on refer to http://thomas.loc.gov/bss/d111/sponlst.html. To review a numerical list of all bills introduced refer to http://thomas.loc.gov/bss/111search.html. The key to increasing cosponsorship is letting your legislator know of veterans feelings on issues.


 

House


 

 

H.R.23 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish the Merchant Mariner Equity Compensation Fund to provide benefits to certain individuals who served in the United States merchant marine (including the Army Transport Service and the Naval Transport Service) during World War II.
Sponsor: Rep Filner, Bob [CA-51] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (45)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/6/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.


 

 

H.R.32 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the outreach activities of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes. Companion Bill S.315
Sponsor: Rep McIntyre, Mike [NC-7] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (3)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/6/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.33 : To amend title II of the Social Security Act to eliminate the 5-month waiting period for entitlement to disability benefits and to eliminate reconsideration as an intervening step between initial benefit entitlement decisions and subsequent hearings on the record on such decisions.
Sponsor: Rep McIntyre, Mike [NC-7] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 1/6/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

H.R.82 : To expand retroactive eligibility of the Army Combat Action Badge to include members of the Army who participated in combat during which they personally engaged, or were personally engaged by, the enemy at any time on or after December 7, 1941.
Sponsor: Rep Brown-Waite, Ginny [FL-5] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (3)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 1/30/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

 

H.R.84 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish standards of access to care for veterans seeking health care from the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Brown-Waite, Ginny [FL-5] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/6/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.108 : To amend title 10, United States Code, to extend military commissary and exchange store privileges to veterans with a compensable service-connected disability and to their dependents.
Sponsor: Rep Fortenberry, Jeff [NE-1] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 1/30/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

 

H.R.114 : To allow veterans to elect to use, with the approval of the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, certain financial educational assistance to establish and operate certain business, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Fortenberry, Jeff [NE-1] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/6/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.147 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow taxpayers to designate a portion of their income tax payment to provide assistance to homeless veterans, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Israel, Steve [NY-2] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (42)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs; House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 3/4/2009 House committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Subcommittee Hearings Held.

 

H.R.161 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to repeal the 1993 increase in taxes on Social Security benefits.
Sponsor: Rep Paul, Ron [TX-14] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (6)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 1/6/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

H.R.162 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to repeal the inclusion in gross income of Social Security benefits.
Sponsor: Rep Paul, Ron [TX-14] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (2)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 1/6/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

H.R.174 : To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a national cemetery for veterans in the southern Colorado region.
Sponsor: Rep Salazar, John T. [CO-3] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (6)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs; House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 1/6/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 

H.R.177 : To provide for identification of members of the Armed Forces exposed during military service to depleted uranium, to provide for health testing of such members, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Serrano, Jose E. [NY-16] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 1/30/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

 

H.R.190 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to ensure that veterans in each of the 48 contiguous States are able to receive services in at least one full-service hospital of the Veterans Health Administration in the State or receive comparable services provided by contract in the State. Companion Bill S.239.
Sponsor: Rep Shea-Porter, Carol [NH-1] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/6/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.198 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow a deduction for amounts paid for health insurance and prescription drug costs of individuals.
Sponsor: Rep Stearns, Cliff [FL-6] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 1/6/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

H.R.208 : To amend title 10, United States Code, to ensure that members of the reserve components of the Armed Forces who have served on active duty or performed active service since September 11, 2001, in support of a contingency operation or in other emergency situations receive credit for such service in determining eligibility for early receipt of non-regular service retired pay, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Wilson, Joe [SC-2] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (26)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 1/30/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

 

H.R.210 : To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to conduct a study on the acquisition of a parcel of land adjacent to Beaufort National Cemetery, Beaufort, South Carolina.
Sponsor: Rep Wilson, Joe [SC-2] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/6/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.217 : To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to acquire a parcel of land adjacent to Beaufort National Cemetery, Beaufort, South Carolina.
Sponsor: Rep Wilson, Joe [SC-2] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs; House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 1/6/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 

H.R.228 : To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a scholarship program for students seeking a degree or certificate in the areas of visual impairment and orientation and mobility.
Sponsor: Rep Jackson-Lee, Sheila [TX-18] (introduced 1/7/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/4/2009 House committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Subcommittee Hearings Held.

 

H.R.237 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow a refundable credit to military retirees for premiums paid for coverage under Medicare Part B.
Sponsor: Rep Emerson, Jo Ann [MO-8] (introduced 1/7/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 1/7/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 


 

H.R.247 : To amend section 1369 of title 18, United States Code, to extend Federal jurisdiction over destruction of veterans' memorials on State or local government property.
Sponsor: Rep Green, Gene [TX-29] (introduced 1/7/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Judiciary
Latest Major Action: 2/9/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.


 

 

H.R.270 : To amend title 10, United States Code, to provide for continuity of TRICARE Standard coverage for certain members of the Retired Reserve.
Sponsor: Rep Latta, Robert E. [OH-5] (introduced 1/7/2009)      Cosponsors (25)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 1/30/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

 

293. H.R.293 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Labor to carry out a grant program to provide reintegration services through programs and facilities that emphasize services for homeless women veterans and homeless veterans with children.
Sponsor: Rep Buyer, Steve [IN-4] (introduced 1/8/2009)      Cosponsors (10)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/8/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

 

H.R.294 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for the reauthorization of the Department of Veterans Affairs small business loan program, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Buyer, Steve [IN-4] (introduced 1/8/2009)      Cosponsors (12)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/8/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity.

 


 

H.R.295 : To authorize appropriations for the veterans' workforce investment programs.
Sponsor: Rep Buyer, Steve [IN-4] (introduced 1/8/2009)      Cosponsors (9)
Committees: House Education and Labor
Latest Major Action: 1/8/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor.

 

H.R.296 : To amend title 10, United States Code, to revise the process by which a member of the Armed Forces is retired for disability and becomes eligible for retirement pay, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Buyer, Steve [IN-4] (introduced 1/8/2009)      Cosponsors (6)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 1/30/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

 

H.R.297 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for an increase in the amount of subsistence allowance payable by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to veterans participating in vocational rehabilitation programs, and for other purposes. Companion Bill S.514
Sponsor: Rep Buyer, Steve [IN-4] (introduced 1/8/2009)      Cosponsors (6)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/4/2009 House committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Subcommittee Hearings Held.

 


 

H.R.303 : To amend title 10, United States Code, to permit additional retired members of the Armed Forces who have a service-connected disability to receive both disability compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs for their disability and either retired pay by reason of their years of military service or Combat-Related Special Compensation and to eliminate the phase-in period under current law with respect to such concurrent receipt.
Sponsor: Rep Bilirakis, Gus M. [FL-9] (introduced 1/8/2009)      Cosponsors (36)
Committees: House Armed Services; House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/30/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.


 

 

H.R.309 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow certain current and former service members to receive a refundable credit for the purchase of a principal residence.
Sponsor: Rep Bilirakis, Gus M. [FL-9] (introduced 1/8/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 1/8/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

H.R.333 : To amend title 10, United States Code, to permit retired members of the Armed Forces who have a service-connected disability rated less than 50 percent to receive concurrent payment of both retired pay and veterans' disability compensation, to eliminate the phase-in period for concurrent receipt, to extend eligibility for concurrent receipt to chapter 61 disability retirees with less than 20 years of service, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Marshall, Jim [GA-8] (introduced 1/8/2009)      Cosponsors (51)
Committees: House Armed Services; House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/6/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

 

H.R.341 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to suspend the running of periods of limitation for credit or refund of overpayment of Federal income tax by veterans while their service-connected compensation determinations are pending with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
Sponsor: Rep Platts, Todd Russell [PA-19] (introduced 1/8/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 1/8/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

H.R.347 : To grant the congressional gold medal, collectively, to the 100th Infantry Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team, United States Army, in recognition of their dedicated service during World War II.
Sponsor: Rep Schiff, Adam B. [CA-29] (introduced 1/8/2009)      Cosponsors (153)
Committees: House Financial Services; House Administration
Latest Major Action: 1/8/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committee on House Administration, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 

H.R.379 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to ensure that all taxpayers have the ability to deduct State and local general sales taxes. Companion Bill S.35.
Sponsor: Rep Blackburn, Marsha [TN-7] (introduced 1/9/2009)      Cosponsors (26)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 1/9/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 


 

H.R.394 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to increase the amount of the Medal of Honor special pension provided under that title by up to $1,000.
Sponsor: Rep Brown, Henry E., Jr. [SC-1] (introduced 1/9/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/9/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs.


 

 

H.R.403 : To provide housing assistance for very low-income veterans.
Sponsor: Rep Green, Al [TX-9] (introduced 1/9/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Financial Services; House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 1/9/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 

H.R.403 : To provide housing assistance for very low-income veterans.
Sponsor: Rep Green, Al [TX-9] (introduced 1/9/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Financial Services; House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 1/9/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 

H.R.423 : To provide compensation for certain World War II veterans who survived the Bataan Death March and were held as prisoners of war by the Japanese.
Sponsor: Rep Mica, John L. [FL-7] (introduced 1/9/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/6/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

 

H.R.433 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow employers a credit against income tax equal to 50 percent of the compensation paid to employees while they are performing active duty service as members of the Ready Reserve or the National Guard and of the compensation paid to temporary replacement employees.
Sponsor: Rep Poe, Ted [TX-2] (introduced 1/9/2009)      Cosponsors (18)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 1/9/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

H.R.442 : To provide an amnesty period during which veterans and their family members can register certain firearms in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Rehberg, Denny [MT] (introduced 1/9/2009)      Cosponsors (25)
Committees: House Judiciary; House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 2/9/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.

 

H.R.449 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to expand the availability of health care provided by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs by adjusting the income level for certain priority veterans.
Sponsor: Rep Sestak, Joe [PA-7] (introduced 1/9/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/9/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.456 : To amend the Small Business Act to make service-disabled veterans eligible under the 8(a) business development program.
Sponsor: Rep Wittman, Robert J. [VA-1] (introduced 1/9/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Small Business
Latest Major Action: 1/9/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Small Business.

 

H.R.466 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to prohibit discrimination and acts of reprisal against persons who receive treatment for illnesses, injuries, and disabilities incurred in or aggravated by service in the uniformed services.
Sponsor: Rep Doggett, Lloyd [TX-25] (introduced 1/13/2009)      Cosponsors (6)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/13/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.482 : To authorize the rededication of the District of Columbia War Memorial as a National and District of Columbia World War I Memorial to honor the sacrifices made by American veterans of World War I.
Sponsor: Rep Poe, Ted [TX-2] (introduced 1/13/2009)      Cosponsors (16)
Committees: House Natural Resources
Latest Major Action: 2/4/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands.

 

H.R.484 : To require the Secretary of Defense to develop and implement a plan to provide chiropractic health care services and benefits for certain new beneficiaries as part of the TRICARE program.
Sponsor: Rep Rogers, Mike D. [AL-3] (introduced 1/13/2009)      Cosponsors (20)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/6/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

 

H.R.531 : To amend title II of the Social Security Act to require that the Commissioner of Social Security notify individuals of improper use of their Social Security account numbers.
Sponsor: Rep Myrick, Sue Wilkins [NC-9] (introduced 1/14/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 1/14/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

H.R.568 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the quality of care provided to veterans in Department of Veterans Affairs medical facilities, to encourage highly qualified doctors to serve in hard-to-fill positions in such medical facilities, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Costello, Jerry F. [IL-12] (introduced 1/15/2009)      Cosponsors (3)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs; House Oversight and Government Reform
Latest Major Action: 1/15/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 

H.R.584 : To provide for coverage of hormone replacement therapy for treatment of menopausal symptoms, and for coverage of an alternative therapy for hormone replacement therapy for such symptoms, under the Medicare and Medicaid Programs, group health plans and individual health insurance coverage, and other Federal health insurance programs.
Sponsor: Rep Lee, Barbara [CA-9] (introduced 1/15/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Energy and Commerce; House Ways and Means; House Education and Labor; House Oversight and Government Reform; House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/15/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, Education and Labor, Oversight and Government Reform, and Veterans' Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 

H.R.593 : To amend title 10, United States Code, to expand the authorized concurrent receipt of disability severance pay from the Department of Defense and compensation for the same disability under any law administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs to cover all veterans who have a combat-related disability, as defined under section 1413a of such title.
Sponsor: Rep Smith, Adam [WA-9] (introduced 1/15/2009)      Cosponsors (34)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/6/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

 

H.R.612 : To amend section 1922A of title 38, United States Code, to increase the amount of supplemental insurance available for totally disabled veterans.
Sponsor: Rep Jones, Walter B., Jr. [NC-3] (introduced 1/21/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/21/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.613 : To amend title 10, United States Code, to provide for forgiveness of certain overpayments of retired pay paid to deceased retired members of the Armed Forces following their death.
Sponsor: Rep Jones, Walter B., Jr. [NC-3] (introduced 1/21/2009)      Cosponsors (37)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/6/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

 

H.R.620 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow an increased work opportunity credit with respect to recent veterans.
Sponsor: Rep King, Peter T. [NY-3] (introduced 1/21/2009)      Cosponsors (10)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 1/21/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

H.R.656 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow certain individuals who have attained age 50 and who are unemployed to receive distributions from qualified retirement plans without incurring a 10 percent additional tax.
Sponsor: Rep Platts, Todd Russell [PA-19] (introduced 1/22/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 1/22/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

H.R.667 : To improve the diagnosis and treatment of traumatic brain injury in members and former members of the Armed Forces, to review and expand telehealth and telemental health programs of the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Salazar, John T. [CO-3] (introduced 1/23/2009)      Cosponsors (30)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs; House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/6/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

 

668. H.R.668 : To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide flexibility in the manner in which beds are counted for purposes of determining whether a hospital may be designated as a critical access hospital under the Medicare Program and to exempt from the critical access hospital inpatient bed limitation the number of beds provided for certain veterans. Companion Bill S.307

Sponsor: Rep Walden, Greg [OR-2] (introduced 1/23/2009)      Cosponsors (2)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 1/23/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

671. H.R.671 : To direct the Secretary of Defense to issue a medal to certain veterans who died after their service in the Vietnam War as a direct result of that service.
Sponsor: Rep Filner, Bob [CA-51] (introduced 1/26/2009)      Cosponsors (3)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/6/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

 

731. H.R.731 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to exclude individuals who have been convicted of committing certain sex offenses from receiving certain burial-related benefits and funeral honors which are otherwise available to certain veterans, members of the Armed Forces, and related individuals, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Shadegg, John B. [AZ-3] (introduced 1/27/2009)      Cosponsors (13)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/27/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

746. H.R.746 : To provide for economic recovery payments to recipients of Social Security, railroad retirement, and veterans disability benefits.
Sponsor: Rep Adler, John H. [NJ-3] (introduced 1/28/2009)      Cosponsors (9)
Committees: House Ways and Means; House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/28/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 

761. H.R.761 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for the eligibility of parents of certain deceased veterans for interment in national cemeteries.
Sponsor: Rep Frank, Barney [MA-4] (introduced 1/28/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/28/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.775 : To repeal the requirement for reduction of survivor annuities under the Survivor Benefit Plan to offset the receipt of veterans dependency and indemnity compensation. Companion Bill S.535
Sponsor: Rep Ortiz, Solomon P. [TX-27] (introduced 1/28/2009)      Cosponsors (151)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/17/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

 

H.R.784 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to submit to Congress quarterly reports on vacancies in mental health professional positions in Department of Veterans Affairs medical facilities.
Sponsor: Rep Tsongas, Niki [MA-5] (introduced 1/28/2009)      Cosponsors (2)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/3/2009 House committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Subcommittee Hearings Held.

 

H.R.785 : To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a pilot program to provide outreach and training to certain college and university mental health centers relating to the mental health of veterans of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom, and for other purposes. Companion Bill S.543
Sponsor: Rep Tsongas, Niki [MA-5] (introduced 1/28/2009)      Cosponsors (2)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/3/2009 House committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Subcommittee Hearings Held.

 

H.R.806 : To establish a mail-order pharmacy pilot program for TRICARE beneficiaries.
Sponsor: Rep Bilirakis, Gus M. [FL-9] (introduced 2/3/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/24/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

 

H.R.809 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to reduce from age 57 to age 55 the age after which the remarriage of the surviving spouse of a deceased veteran shall not result in termination of dependency and indemnity compensation otherwise payable to that surviving spouse.
Sponsor: Rep Bilirakis, Gus M. [FL-9] (introduced 2/3/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/3/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.811 : To amend title 10, United States Code, to permit certain retired members of the uniformed services who have a service-connected disability to receive both disability compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs for their disability and either retired pay by reason of their years of military service or Combat-Related Special Compensation. Companion Bill S.546
Sponsor: Rep Bilirakis, Gus M. [FL-9] (introduced 2/3/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Armed Services; House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/24/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

 

H.R.816 : To amend title 10, United States Code, to prohibit certain increases in fees for military health care.
Sponsor: Rep Edwards, Chet [TX-17] (introduced 2/3/2009)      Cosponsors (71)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/24/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

 

H.R.819 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for the payment of dependency and indemnity compensation to the survivors of former prisoners of war who died on or before September 30, 1999, under the same eligibility conditions as apply to payment of dependency and indemnity compensation to the survivors of former prisoners of war who die after that date.
Sponsor: Rep Holden, Tim [PA-17] (introduced 2/3/2009)      Cosponsors (14)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/3/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.870 : To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for coverage under part B for medically necessary dental procedures.
Sponsor: Rep Cohen, Steve [TN-9] (introduced 2/4/2009)      Cosponsors (12)
Committees: House Energy and Commerce; House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 2/4/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 

H.R.879 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow individuals a refundable credit against income tax for the purchase of private health insurance.
Sponsor: Rep Granger, Kay [TX-12] (introduced 2/4/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 2/4/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

H.R.883 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to repeal the 1993 increase in income taxes on Social Security benefits.
Sponsor: Rep King, Peter T. [NY-3] (introduced 2/4/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 2/4/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

H.R.917 : To increase the health benefits of dependents of members of the Armed Forces who die because of a combat-related injury.
Sponsor: Rep Guthrie, Brett [KY-2] (introduced 2/9/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/9/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Armed Services.

 

H.R.919 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to enhance the capacity of the Department of Veterans Affairs to recruit and retain nurses and other critical health-care professionals, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Johnson, Eddie Bernice [TX-30] (introduced 2/9/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/9/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.929 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a program of training to provide eligible veterans with skills relevant to the job market, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Welch, Peter [VT] (introduced 2/9/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/4/2009 House committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Subcommittee Hearings Held.

 

H.R.931 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow the work opportunity credit with respect to certain unemployed veterans.
Sponsor: Rep Nye, Glenn C., III [VA-2] (introduced 2/10/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 2/10/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

H.R.942 : To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to conduct a pilot project on the use of educational assistance under programs of the Department of Veterans Affairs to defray training costs associated with the purchase of certain franchise enterprises.
Sponsor: Rep Alexander, Rodney [LA-5] (introduced 2/10/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs; House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/10/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 

H.R.944 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide improved benefits for veterans who are former prisoners of war.
Sponsor: Rep Bilirakis, Gus M. [FL-9] (introduced 2/10/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/10/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.950 : To amend chapter 33 of title 38, United States Code, to increase educational assistance for certain veterans pursuing a program of education offered through distance learning.
Sponsor: Rep Filner, Bob [CA-51] (introduced 2/10/2009)      Cosponsors (5)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/4/2009 House committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Subcommittee Hearings Held.

 

H.R.952 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to clarify the meaning of "combat with the enemy" for purposes of service-connection of disabilities.
Sponsor: Rep Hall, John J. [NY-19] (introduced 2/10/2009)      Cosponsors (34)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/10/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.953 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide for a deduction for travel expenses to medical centers of the Department of Veterans Affairs in connection with examinations or treatments relating to service-connected disabilities.
Sponsor: Rep Heller, Dean [NV-2] (introduced 2/10/2009)      Cosponsors (13)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 2/10/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

H.R.954 : To amend title II of the Social Security Act to provide that a monthly insurance benefit thereunder shall be paid for the month in which the recipient dies, subject to a reduction of 50 percent if the recipient dies during the first 15 days of such month, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Holden, Tim [PA-17] (introduced 2/10/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 2/10/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

H.R.972 : To amend title 10, United States Code, to eliminate the requirement that certain former members of the reserve components of the Armed Forces be at least 60 years of age in order to be eligible to receive health care benefits.
Sponsor: Rep Wilson, Joe [SC-2] (introduced 2/10/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/10/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Armed Services.

 

H.R.1004 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide an enhanced funding process to ensure an adequate level of funding for veterans health care programs of the Department of Veterans Affairs, to establish standards of access to care for veterans seeking health care from the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Smith, Christopher H. [NJ-4] (introduced 2/11/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/11/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.1016 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide advance appropriations authority for certain medical care accounts of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Filner, Bob [CA-51] (introduced 2/12/2009)      Cosponsors (52)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/12/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.1017 : To amend the Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Programs Enhancement Act of 2001 and title 38, United States Code, to require the provision of chiropractic care and services to veterans at all Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers and to expand access to such care and services.
Sponsor: Rep Filner, Bob [CA-51] (introduced 2/12/2009)      Cosponsors (9)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/12/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.1036 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish the position of Director of Physical Therapy Service within the Veterans Health Administration and to establish a fellowship program for physical therapists in the areas of geriatrics, amputee rehabilitation, polytrauma care, and rehabilitation research.
Sponsor: Rep Herseth Sandlin, Stephanie [SD] (introduced 2/12/2009)      Cosponsors (6)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/12/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.1037 : To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to conduct a five-year pilot project to test the feasibility and advisability of expanding the scope of certain qualifying work-study activities under title 38, United States Code.
Sponsor: Rep Herseth Sandlin, Stephanie [SD] (introduced 2/12/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/12/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.1038 : To amend part B of title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide coverage for the shingles vaccine under the Medicare Program.
Sponsor: Rep Hirono, Mazie K. [HI-2] (introduced 2/12/2009)      Cosponsors (11)
Committees: House Energy and Commerce; House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 2/12/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 

H.R.1042 : To prohibit the provision of medical treatment to enemy combatants detained by the United States at Naval Station, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in the same facility as a member of the Armed Forces or Department of Veterans Affairs medical facility.
Sponsor: Rep Miller, Jeff [FL-1] (introduced 2/12/2009)      Cosponsors (8)
Committees: House Armed Services; House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/12/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Armed Services, and in addition to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 

H.R.1075 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to expand access to hospital care for veterans in major disaster areas, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Scalise, Steve [LA-1] (introduced 2/13/2009)      Cosponsors (11)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/13/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

1088. H.R.1088 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for a one-year period for the training of new disabled veterans' outreach program specialists and local veterans' employment representatives by National Veterans' Employment and Training Services Institute.
Sponsor: Rep Herseth Sandlin, Stephanie [SD] (introduced 2/13/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/4/2009 House committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Subcommittee Hearings Held.

 

1089. H.R.1089 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for the enforcement through the Office of Special Counsel of the employment and unemployment rights of veterans and members of the Armed Forces employed by Federal executive agencies, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Herseth Sandlin, Stephanie [SD] (introduced 2/13/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/4/2009 House committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Subcommittee Hearings Held.

 

1098. H.R.1098 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to increase the amount of educational assistance payable by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to certain individuals pursuing internships or on-job training.
Sponsor: Rep Perriello, Thomas S.P. [VA-5] (introduced 2/13/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs; House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/13/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity.

 

1106. H.R.1106 : To prevent mortgage foreclosures and enhance mortgage credit availability.
Sponsor: Rep Conyers, John, Jr. [MI-14] (introduced 2/23/2009)      Cosponsors (24)
Committees: House Financial Services; House Judiciary; House Veterans' Affairs; Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/11/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.

 

H.R.1114 : To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a process for determining whether a geographic area is sufficiently served by the national cemeteries located in that geographic area.
Sponsor: Rep Rehberg, Denny [MT] (introduced 2/23/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/23/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.1163 : To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a national cemetery in the Sarpy County region to serve veterans in eastern Nebraska, western Iowa, and northwest Missouri.
Sponsor: Rep Terry, Lee [NE-2] (introduced 2/24/2009)      Cosponsors (3)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs; House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 2/24/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 

H.R.1168 : To amend chapter 42 of title 38, United States Code, to provide certain veterans with employment training assistance.
Sponsor: Rep Boozman, John [AR-3] (introduced 2/25/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/25/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.1169 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to increase the amount of assistance provided by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to disabled veterans for specially adapted housing and automobiles and adapted equipment.
Sponsor: Rep Boozman, John [AR-3] (introduced 2/25/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/25/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.1170 : To amend chapter 21 of title 38, United States Code, to establish a grant program to encourage the development of new assistive technologies for specially adapted housing.
Sponsor: Rep Boozman, John [AR-3] (introduced 2/25/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/25/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.1171 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to reauthorize the Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program for fiscal years 2010 through 2014.
Sponsor: Rep Boozman, John [AR-3] (introduced 2/25/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/25/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.1172 : To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to include on the Internet website of the Department of Veterans Affairs a list of organizations that provide scholarships to veterans and their survivors.
Sponsor: Rep Boozman, John [AR-3] (introduced 2/25/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/25/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.1182 : To amend the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to guarantee the equity of spouses of military personnel with regard to matters of residency, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Carter, John R. [TX-31] (introduced 2/25/2009)      Cosponsors (82)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/25/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.1197 : To assign a higher priority status for hospital care and medical services provided through the Department of Veterans Affairs to certain veterans who are recipients of the medal of honor.
Sponsor: Rep Mitchell, Harry E. [AZ-5] (introduced 2/25/2009)      Cosponsors (11)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/25/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.1203 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow Federal civilian and military retirees to pay health insurance premiums on a pretax basis and to allow a deduction for TRICARE supplemental premiums. Companion Bill S.491
Sponsor: Rep Van Hollen, Chris [MD-8] (introduced 2/25/2009)      Cosponsors (57)
Committees: House Ways and Means; House Oversight and Government Reform; House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 2/25/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committees on Oversight and Government Reform, and Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 

H.R.1232 : To authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to construct a full service hospital in Far South Texas.
Sponsor: Rep Ortiz, Solomon P. [TX-27] (introduced 2/26/2009)      Cosponsors (4)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/26/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

 

H.R.1263 : To amend title 5, United States Code, to provide for the automatic enrollment of new participants in the Thrift Savings Plan, and to clarify the method for computing certain annuities based on part-time service; to allow certain employees of the District of Columbia to have certain periods of service credited for purposes relating to retirement eligibility; and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Lynch, Stephen F. [MA-9] (introduced 3/3/2009)      Cosponsors (5)
Committees: House Oversight and Government Reform; House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 3/3/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 

H.R.1289 : To amend title II of the Social Security Act to eliminate the five-month waiting period in the disability insurance program, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Wilson, Charles A. [OH-6] (introduced 3/3/2009)      Cosponsors (3)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 3/3/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

H.R.1293 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for an increase in the amount payable by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to veterans for improvements and structural alterations furnished as part of home health services.
Sponsor: Rep Buyer, Steve [IN-4] (introduced 3/4/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/6/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity.

 

H.R.1305 : To provide for the issuance of a forever stamp to honor the sacrifices of the brave men and women of the armed forces who have been awarded the Purple Heart. Companion Bill S.572
Sponsor: Rep King, Peter T. [NY-3] (introduced 3/4/2009)      Cosponsors (68)
Committees: House Oversight and Government Reform
Latest Major Action: 3/4/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

 

H.R.1317 : To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide a tax credit to individuals who pay their mortgages on time.
Sponsor: Rep Shuster, Bill [PA-9] (introduced 3/4/2009)      Cosponsors (10)
Committees: House Ways and Means
Latest Major Action: 3/4/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.

 

H.R.1335 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to prohibit the Secretary of Veterans Affairs from collecting certain copayments from veterans who are catastrophically disabled.
Sponsor: Rep Halvorson, Deborah L. [IL-11] (introduced 3/5/2009)      Cosponsors (17)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/6/2009 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

 

H.R.1336 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to make certain improvements in the basic educational assistance program administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Herseth Sandlin, Stephanie [SD] (introduced 3/5/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs; House Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 3/5/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

 

H.R.1377 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to expand veteran eligibility for reimbursement by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for emergency treatment furnished in a non-Department facility, and for other purposes. Companion Bill S.404.
Sponsor: Rep Filner, Bob [CA-51] (introduced 3/6/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/6/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.1401 : To create a service corps of veterans called Veterans Engaged for Tomorrow (VET) Corps focused on promoting and improving the service opportunities for veterans and retired members of the military by engaging such veterans and retired members in projects designed to meet identifiable public needs with a specific emphasis on projects to support veterans, including disabled and older veterans and retired members of the military.
Sponsor: Rep Sarbanes, John P. [MD-3] (introduced 3/9/2009)      Cosponsors (13)
Committees: House Education and Labor
Latest Major Action: 3/9/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor.

 

H.R.1416 : To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to expand the capability of the Department of Veterans Affairs to provide for the medical-care needs of veterans in southern New Jersey.
Sponsor: Rep LoBiondo, Frank A. [NJ-2] (introduced 3/10/2009)      Cosponsors (3)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/10/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

H.R.1428 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide wartime disability compensation for certain veterans with Parkinson's disease.
Sponsor: Rep Filner, Bob [CA-51] (introduced 3/11/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/11/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 


 

H.R.1474 : To amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the enforcement of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994, and for other purposes. Companion Bill S.263.
Sponsor: Rep Davis, Artur [AL-7] (introduced 3/12/2009)      Cosponsors (3)
Committees: House Veterans' Affairs; House Armed Services; House Oversight and Government Reform
Latest Major Action: 3/12/2009 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on Armed Services, and Oversight and Government Reform, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.


 

 


 


 


 


 


 


 


 

Senate


 


 

: A bill to provide a permanent deduction for State and local general sales taxes. Companion Bill H.R.369.
Sponsor: Sen Hutchison, Kay Bailey [TX] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (6)
Committees: Senate Finance S.35
Latest Major Action: 1/6/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

 

S.66 : A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to permit former members of the Armed Forces who have a service-connected disability rated as total to travel on military aircraft in the same manner and to the same extent as retired members of the Armed Forces are entitled to travel on such aircraft.
Sponsor: Sen Inouye, Daniel K. [HI] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (2)
Committees: Senate Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 1/6/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services.

 

S.67 : A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to authorize certain disabled former prisoners of war to use Department of Defense commissary and exchange stores.
Sponsor: Sen Inouye, Daniel K. [HI] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 1/6/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services.

 

S.68 : A bill to require the Secretary of the Army to determine the validity of the claims of certain Filipinos that they performed military service on behalf of the United States during World War II.
Sponsor: Sen Inouye, Daniel K. [HI] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/6/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

S.94 : A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide for a nonrefundable tax credit for long-term care insurance premiums.
Sponsor: Sen Vitter, David [LA] (introduced 1/6/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Finance
Latest Major Action: 1/6/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

Major Action: 1/13/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 


 

S.239 : A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to ensure that veterans in each of the 48 contiguous States are able to receive services in at least one full-service hospital of the Veterans Health Administration in the State or receive comparable services provided by contract in the State. Companion Bill H.R.190.
Sponsor: Sen Shaheen, Jeanne [NH] (introduced 1/14/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: Senate Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/14/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.


 

 

S.246 : A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the quality of care provided to veterans in Department of Veterans Affairs medical facilities, to encourage highly qualified doctors to serve in hard-to-fill positions in such medical facilities, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Durbin, Richard [IL] (introduced 1/14/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/14/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

S.252 : A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to enhance the capacity of the Department of Veterans Affairs to recruit and retain nurses and other critical health-care professionals, to improve the provision of health care veterans, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Akaka, Daniel K. [HI] (introduced 1/15/2009)      Cosponsors (5)
Committees: Senate Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/15/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

S.263 : A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the enforcement of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994, and for other purposes. Companion Bill H.R.1474.
Sponsor: Sen Casey, Robert P., Jr. [PA] (introduced 1/15/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: Senate Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/15/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 


 

S.274 : A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide an incentive to hire unemployed veterans.
Sponsor: Sen Baucus, Max [MT] (introduced 1/16/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: Senate Finance
Latest Major Action: 1/16/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.


 

 

S.296 : A bill to promote freedom, fairness, and economic opportunity by repealing the income tax and other taxes, abolishing the Internal Revenue Service, and enacting a national sales tax to be administered primarily by the States.
Sponsor: Sen Chambliss, Saxby [GA] (introduced 1/22/2009)      Cosponsors (3)
Committees: Senate Finance
Latest Major Action: 1/22/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

 

S.307 : A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide flexibility in the manner in which beds are counted for purposes of determining whether a hospital may be designated as a critical access hospital under the Medicare program and to exempt from the critical access hospital inpatient bed limitation the number of beds provided for certain veterans. Companion Bill H.R.668
Sponsor: Sen Wyden, Ron [OR] (introduced 1/22/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: Senate Finance
Latest Major Action: 1/22/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

 

S.315 : A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the outreach activities of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes. Companion Bill H.R.32
Sponsor: Sen Feingold, Russell D. [WI] (introduced 1/26/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: Senate Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/26/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

S.347 : A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to allow the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to distinguish between the severity of a qualifying loss of a dominant hand and a qualifying loss of a non-dominant hand for purposes of traumatic injury protection under Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Ensign, John [NV] (introduced 1/29/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: Senate Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 1/29/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

S.402 : A bill to improve the lives of our Nation's veterans and their families and provide them with the opportunity to achieve the American dream.
Sponsor: Sen Snowe, Olympia J. [ME] (introduced 2/10/2009)      Cosponsors (4)
Committees: Senate Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/10/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

S.404 : A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to expand veteran eligibility for reimbursement by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for emergency treatment furnished in a non-Department facility, and for other purposes. Companion Bill H.R.1377.
Sponsor: Sen Akaka, Daniel K. [HI] (introduced 2/10/2009)      Cosponsors (1)
Committees: Senate Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/10/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

S.407 : A bill to increase, effective as of December 1, 2009, the rates of compensation for veterans with service-connected disabilities and the rates of dependency and indemnity compensation for the survivors of certain disabled veterans, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Akaka, Daniel K. [HI] (introduced 2/10/2009)      Cosponsors (15)
Committees: Senate Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/10/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

S.423 : A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize advance appropriations for certain medical care accounts of the Department of Veterans Affairs by providing two-fiscal year budget authority, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Akaka, Daniel K. [HI] (introduced 2/12/2009)      Cosponsors (19)
Committees: Senate Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/12/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

S.491 : A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow Federal civilian and military retirees to pay health insurance premiums on a pretax basis and to allow a deduction for TRICARE supplemental premiums. Companion Bill H.R.1203.
Sponsor: Sen Webb, Jim [VA] (introduced 2/26/2009)      Cosponsors (12)
Committees: Senate Finance
Latest Major Action: 2/26/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

 

S.498 : A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize dental insurance for veterans and survivors and dependents of veterans, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Burr, Richard [NC] (introduced 2/26/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/26/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

S.514 : A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to enhance vocational rehabilitation benefits for veterans, and for other purposes. Companion Bill H.R.297.
Sponsor: Sen Akaka, Daniel K. [HI] (introduced 3/3/2009)      Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/3/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

S.535 : A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to repeal requirement for reduction of survivor annuities under the Survivor Benefit Plan by veterans' dependency and indemnity compensation, and for other purposes. Companion Bill H.775.
Sponsor: Sen Nelson, Bill [FL] (introduced 3/5/2009)      Cosponsors (13)
Committees: Senate Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 3/5/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services.

 

S.543 : A bill to require a pilot program on training, certification, and support for family caregivers of seriously disabled veterans and members of the Armed Forces to provide caregiver services to such veterans and members, and for other purposes. Companion Bill H.R.785.
Sponsor: Sen Durbin, Richard [IL] (introduced 3/6/2009)      Cosponsors (3)
Committees: Senate Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/6/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

 

S.546 : A bill to amend title 10, United States Code, to permit certain retired members of the uniformed services who have a service-connected disability to receive both disability compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs for their disability and either retired pay by reason of their years of military service of Combat-Related Special Compensation. Companion Bill H.R.811.
Sponsor: Sen Reid, Harry [NV] (introduced 3/9/2009)      Cosponsors (15)
Committees: Senate Armed Services
Latest Major Action: 3/9/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services.

 

S.572 : A bill to provide for the issuance of a "forever stamp" to honor the sacrifices of the brave men and women of the armed forces who have been awarded the Purple Heart. Companion Bill H.R.1305.
Sponsor: Sen Webb, Jim [VA] (introduced 3/11/2009)      Cosponsors (6)
Committees: Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/11/2009 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

 

[Source: http://thomas.loc.gov/bss/111search.html 13 Mar 09 ++]


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

RAO BULLETIN

1 March 2009


 

Note: Anyone receiving this who does not want it request click on the automatic delete tab at the end of the Bulletin or hit reply and place the word "Remove" in the subject line!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


 

THIS BULLETIN CONTAINS THE FOLLOWING ARTICLES


 

== Mobilized Reserve 24 FEB 09 --------------- (2867 Increase)

== VA Budget 2010 ----------------------- (Proposed by Obama)

== VA Medical Foster Home ------ (Expanding Elder Program)

== HASC [03] -------------------------- (New Vet on Committee)

== Tricare Tax Free Premiums [03] -------- (Bill Reintroduced)

== Blood Donation & vCJD ----------------- (Ineligible Donors)

== VA Museum or Medical Center ----- (History Controversy)

== Filipino Vet Inequities [14] ----------- (Payment Guidelines)

== COBRA [02] ------------------------------ (ECS 65% Subsidy)

== Mojave Desert Vet Memorial [01] -------- (Supreme Court)

== Blood Thinners [01] ---------------------------- (Gene Testing)

== USFSPA & Divorce [04] ----------------- (TDRL Precedent)

== Tricare Physician Availability [01] --- (Nurse Practitioners)

== Peanut Butter/Paste Recall ----------- (Products & Liability)

== Tricare User Fee [32] -------- (Pentagon Committee Report)

== Tricare User Fee [33] ------------------- (TFL Rumored Cuts)

== COLA 2010 [03] ------------------------ (0.5% JAN Increase)

== Veteran's Pensions [01] ------------- (Eligibility/Rates 2009)

== TSP [14] --------------------------- (Designating Beneficiaries)

== VA Benefits Delivery at Discharge ---- (Paperless Program)

== Medicare Reimbursement Rates 2010 -- (Physician Impact)

== CA Vet Legislation [01] ----------------------- (Budget Woes)

== CT Soldiers’, Sailors’ & Marines’ Fund ----- (Cuts Pending)

== AFRH Washington [05] ------------------- (Expansion Frozen)

== Basra Toxic Exposure ------------------- (NG Unit CO Dying)

== GI Bill [38] ---------------------------- (Preliminary Costs List)

== GI Bill [39] ------------------------- (On-Campus Attendance)

== GI Bill [40] ------------------------------------- (Proposed Cap)

== Burn Pit Toxic Emissions [05] -------- (Questionable Death)

== VA Nursing Homes [01] ------------------- (Unpaid Benefits)

== Heartland Data Breach ------------------------------- (Massive)

== Funeral Honors [04] ----------------------------------- (Florida)

== Tricare ECHO --------------------------------------- (Overview)

== Tricare ECHO [01] ----------------------------- (Cap Increase)

== VA Vet Contaminant Exposure --------- (Tennessee Clinics)

== ECS 2009 [02] ------------------------- (Not Enough for Vets)

== ECS 2009 [03] ---------------------------------- (CSRS retirees)

== ECS 2009 [04] ---------------------------------- (Vet/DIC Pmt)

== ECS 2009 [05] --------------------------------- (SSA Payment)

== Tricare/CHAMPUS Fraud [13] ---- (Indictments Dismissed)

== USFSPA & Divorce [04] --------------------- (Iowa Bill 170)

== Vet Resource ---------------------------------- (Survival Guide)

== Vitamin Supplements [01] -------- (Prevention Trial Results)

== Military History Anniversaries -------- (Feb 1-15 Summary)

== Veteran Legislation Status 26 FEB 09 --- (Where we Stand)


 

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MOBILIZED RESERVE 24 FEB 09: The Department of Defense announced the current number of reservists on active duty as of 24 FEB 09. The net collective result is 2867 more reservists mobilized than last reported in the Bulletin for 15 FEB 09. At any given time, services may mobilize some units and individuals while demobilizing others, making it possible for these figures to either increase or decrease. The total number currently on active duty in support of the partial mobilization of the Army National Guard and Army Reserve is 94,696; Navy Reserve, 6,382; Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve, 15,489; Marine Corps Reserve, 7,299; and the Coast Guard Reserve, 728. This brings the total National Guard and Reserve personnel who have been activated to 124,594, including both units and individual augmentees. A cumulative roster of all National Guard and Reserve personnel who are currently activated can be found at http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Feb2009/d20090224ngr.pdf. [Source: DoD News Release 122-09 25 Feb 09 ++]


 

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VA BUDGET 2010: President Obama's first proposed budget for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) expands eligibility for health care to an additional 500,000 deserving Veterans over the next five years, meets the need for continued growth in programs for the combat Veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan, and provides the resources to deliver quality health care for the Nation's 5.5 million Veteran patients. The 2010 budget request is a significant step toward realizing a vision shared by the President and Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki to transform VA into an organization that is people-centric, results-driven and forward-looking. If accepted by Congress, the President's budget proposal would increase VA's budget from $97.7 billion this fiscal year to $112.8 billion for the fiscal year beginning 1 OCT 09. This is in addition to the $1.4 billion provided for VA projects in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The 2010 budget:


 

[Source: VA News Release 26 Feb 09 ++]


 

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VA MEDICAL FOSTER HOME: VA’s new medical foster home (MFH) program is helping veterans with home care and assistive devices when they are too old or infirm to live alone. It has been implemented at a number VA facilities and VHA plans to expand their program to 31 more sites. MFH is a unique partnership of adult foster home and Home Based Primary Care (HBPC), or Spinal Cord Injury Home Care (SCI-HC) serving those veterans that are in need of greater care. The program is designed to help veterans when they no longer can live alone. The veteran can choose to live in a home-like environment while they continue to receive their primary healthcare through the VA. In the past, many veterans living alone with no family support would have had to be placed into a nursing home. MFH offers a safe, favorable, and less costly alternative. MFH finds a caregiver in the community who is willing to take a veteran into their home and provide 24-hour supervision as well as needed personal assistance. The expectation is that this is a long-term commitment, where the veteran may live for the remainder of his/her life. Veterans who enter MFH are enrolled for VA healthcare and all meet one or more criteria for nursing home as well as HBPC criteria and must be enrolled in that program.


 

The cost of the MFH is the responsibility of the veteran who pays for his care using his own personal funds that may include a monthly benefit check from the VA; the veteran may receive concurrent home hospice care. All homes will be required to meet VA guidelines and any applicable state requirements. The benefits of this program are that sponsors are able to give back to our Nation’s veterans, augment their income, and gain companionship while veterans are able to live in a compassionate and home-like environment, with needed supervision and support. The caregivers are paid on average $1200 to $2400 per month to provide this care. This includes room and board, 24-hour supervision, assistance with medications, and whatever personal care is needed. MFH is a very cost-effective alternative to nursing home placement and an opportunity for the caregiver to work from home. More than 400 veterans have been placed in MFH homes thus far. This program has been very successful at VA Medical Centers across the country and is currently implemented in:


 


 

If you have questions, know of community members who might be interesting in serving as a caregiver, or of a veteran in need of MFH assistance contact the MFH Coordinator at your local VA Medical Center. For veterans in need of any other services, contact the nearest VA Medical Center and ask for the Social Work Service: http://vaww1.va.gov/directory/guide/home.asp?isFlash=1 . To determine availability of MFH in your area, contact (813) 610-0859 (east of the Mississippi) or (612) 396-8666 (west of the Mississippi). [Source: VA Public Relations Office 26 Feb 09 ++]


 

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HASC Update 03: A freshman lawmaker just assigned to the House Armed Services military personnel and readiness subcommittees hopes to use his experience as a military doctor to help shape legislation. Freshman republican John Fleming, elected in December after Hurricane Gustav delayed voting, represents Louisiana’s fourth congressional district, which includes Fort Polk and Barksdale Air Force Base. A family physician in Minden LA for more than 25 years and the author of a book about substance abuse, Fleming used a Navy scholarship he received in 1972 to help pay for medical school. His Navy career began as a family doctor at Camp Pendleton, Calif., treating the families of Marines. His service included stops in Long Beach, Calif., where he worked on an alcohol and drug treatment program, and on Guam, where he headed a Navy family advocacy committee. Although Fleming has been out of the Navy since 1982, his private practice accepted military patients using the Tricare program until about five years ago, because of low reimbursement rates and slow payments. “I’m told that things are much better now with Tricare, but that is one of the things I want to see,” Fleming said.


 

As a new congressman he has little seniority on the Armed Services Committee, but his subcommittee assignments put him in the middle of the debate about military health care. The readiness subcommittee has responsibility for the construction, renovation and upkeep of military facilities. The military personnel subcommittee is responsible for pay and benefits issues, which include the Tricare program. Two issues are likely to get his immediate attention, Fleming said. He is concerned about Tricare reimbursement rates for doctors, which he said determines access to care, and he also wants to hold down Tricare premiums for beneficiaries. “I really would not like to see fees go up, but I realize the fees are low,” Fleming said. “But, who better to pay low health care fees than people who have sacrificed on behalf of the country?” Fleming is a fiscal conservative, supporting a bill that would freeze congressional salaries. He voted But he made it clear in an interview that military members and their families needn’t fear his budget-cutting ways. He said he believes the military should get a 2010 pay increase. And although he voted against the stimulus bill, he said he still fully supported the billions it included for improvements in military housing, facilities and hospitals. “We cannot do enough for the military, is my view,” he said. [Source: NavyTimes Rick Maze article 23 Feb 09 ++]


 

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TRICARE TAX FREE PREMIUMS Update 03: Military and federal civilian retirees would be able to pay their monthly health care premiums with pre-tax dollars under a bill reintroduced 25 FEB. Though a section of the Internal Revenue Code lets employees in the public and private sectors pay for health insurance with pre-tax dollars, it does not authorize employers to make this premium conversion benefit available to retirees. Active federal employees now pay their premiums with pre-tax dollars under the so-called premium conversion benefit. One of the bill’s sponsors, Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA 11th) said extending the benefit to retirees is only fair. “In these trying economic times, the need has never been greater to make health insurance more affordable for federal and military retirees,” Connolly said in a statement. “Federal and military retirees lose ground every year as health insurance premiums skyrocket, and this premium conversion bill will provide them with much-needed tax relief.” Lawmakers say expanding premium conversion to retirees would save each participant $820 per year. The bill would also allow active-duty military members to apply a pre-tax rebate to the supplemental insurance premiums many service members purchase to cover gaps in Tricare coverage. The Federal and Military Retiree Health Care Equity Act HR.1203 is co-sponsored by 15 other lawmakers. Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., plans to introduce a similar bill in the Senate. Veterans are requested to ask their legislators to cosponsor this legislation. One simple way to do this is to use USDR’s Action alert at http://capwiz.com/usdr/issues/alert/?alertid=12787701&queueid=[capwiz:queue_id] by entering your zip code to activate an automatic transmission of a cosponsor request message to you representative. [Source: AirForceTimes Stephen Losey article 25 Feb 09 ++]


 

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BLOOD DONATION & VCJD: To give blood for transfusion to another person, you must be healthy, be at least 17 years old or 16 years old if allowed by state law. You must weigh at least 110 pounds, and not have donated whole blood in the last 8 weeks (56 days) or double red cells in the last 16 weeks (112 days). "Healthy" means that you feel well and can perform normal activities. If you have a chronic condition such as diabetes or high blood pressure, "healthy" also means that you are being treated and the condition is under control. A number of other criteria apply inclusive of exposure to communicable diseases such as variant Creutzfeld-Jacob Disease (vCJD). In some parts of the world, cattle can get an infectious, fatal brain disease called Mad Cow Disease. In these same locations, humans have started to get a new disease vCJD which is also a fatal brain disease. Scientists believe that vCJD is Mad Cow Disease that has somehow transferred to humans, possibly through the food chain. There is now evidence from a small number of case reports involving patients and laboratory animal studies that vCJD can be transmitted through transfusion. There is no test for vCJD in humans that could be used to screen blood donors and to protect the blood supply. This means that blood programs must take special precautions to keep vCJD out of the blood supply by avoiding collections from those who have been where this disease is found. At this time, the American Red Cross donor eligibility rules related to vCJD say you are not eligible to donate if:

 [Source: www.redcross.org/en/eligibility#vcjd2 Feb 09 ++]


 

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VA MUSEUM or MEDICAL CENTER: History is fraught with controversy, and controversy is fraught with history. Military history and its museum exhibits have caused a roe or two. In 1994, when the Enola Gay was to go on display at the Smithsonian during World War II 50th anniversary commemorations, controversy raged about this B-29 that dropped the bomb on Hiroshima to end the war. The Smithsonian was forced to pull the plug on its plans for the Enola Gay and change the program. Recently, controversy again swirled around the World War II Pacific theater. A framed 1945 headline "Japs Surrender" was removed from a wall display after an employee said the term "Jap" was derogatory. But this was not just any venue: The artifact was hanging at the Roudebush VA Medical Center in Indianapolisa VA medical center. Veterans complained about the move, and groups like the local Marine Corps league balked it was a "slap in the face of the U.S. Military." Medical center director Tom Mattice tucked the period newspaper away. He has posed the question of the display's appropriateness to the VA's national ethics office, wondering if this would constitute a national policy. Mattice has stated the facility is a medical center and not a museum, though you would think the two can happily coexists.


 

It is not clear if the complaining employee understood this was an actual newspaper from 1945, that the "Japs" was period parlance and its very survival as an artifact transcends real or perceived racism. The Japanese did surrender to people receiving care at that facility. Seems sort of ironic. These veterans - military veterans - probably were thrilled the center (unlike some more prominent facilities like the one in Washington, D.C.) made a significant effort to incorporate military history into the décor. In the meantime, "Germany Surrenders" still hangs, and the VA will replace "Japs Surrender" with something gentler like "Japanese Surrender" or "Victory in the Pacific." Maybe something as positive and inspirational. World War II veterans continue to pass away in large numbers. Someday, few in the VA system (or elsewhere) will care about the history of that headline. [Source: MOAA InsidetheHQ article 25 Feb 09 ++]


 

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FILIPINO VET INEQUITIES Update 14: VA and the Embassy of the United States in Manila have announced locations in the Philippines where Veterans can apply immediately.  The list has been posted at http://manila.usembassy.gov.  To receive information by mail, United States residents may call 1-800-827-1000.  Philippine residents may call 632-528-2500 (within Metro Manila) or from outside Manila at 1-800-1888-5252.  In addition, Filipino Veterans may request information via email at https://iris.va.gov.  The VA Regional Office in Manila will process all claims for this benefit.  Therefore, U.S. residents should mail the application to the Department of Veterans Affairs, Regional Office, PSC 501, FPO AP 96515-100.  The following guidelines apply to the WWII Filipino Veterans Equity Compensation Fund:


 

[Source: VA News Release 20 Feb 09 ++]


 

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COBRA Update 02: Congress has just given a big assist to millions of jobless Americans facing a tough decision: Do they reach into their wallet to continue health insurance coverage with their old employer or not? As part of the economic-stimulus package signed into law this week, the federal government will provide a nine-month subsidy covering 65% of the Cobra premium for people who qualify. Eligible workers who originally opted not to take Cobra but who now want the subsidized version have 60 days after they receive notice from their employers to sign up, says Richard G. Schwartz, a benefits lawyer in New York. Fewer than one in 10 eligible workers recently opted for continuing insurance coverage in 2007 under Cobra, the federal law that allows many workers to continue group health insurance when they leave a job. The big reason: Cobra is expensive. Under the law, workers must pay the entire premium -- plus a 2% administrative fee -- even though employers typically picked up the lion's share of the cost. The average cost of Cobra coverage for a family is $13,000 a year -- big money for someone who is unemployed.


 

The new subsidy applies to workers involuntarily terminated between 1 SEP 08 and 31 DEC 09, and phases out for individuals with an adjusted gross income of $125,000, and $250,000 for married couples filing jointly. It should make it easier for people to protect themselves not only from ruinous medical bills, but also from the inability to get new insurance due to a pre-existing medical condition. That's because an often-overlooked federal law -- the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 -- generally limits the ability of group health plans to exclude someone because of a pre-existing medical condition. But it only applies if you have been continuously covered by a health insurer with a break of no more than 63 days. That's where Cobra comes in. "People often unknowingly invalidate their federal portability rights by not taking Cobra or inadvertently exceeding the 63 days," says Janet Trautwein, chief executive of the National Association of Health Underwriters, a trade group of health-insurance brokers and agents in Arlington, Va.


 

As part of the stimulus law, lawmakers also enacted a provision allowing laid-off workers to switch to cheaper health-care plans in Cobra, if their employers offer them, without having to wait for an open-enrollment period. That might also help some people who chose the more-expensive health-care plans offered by their employers when they had their jobs. The unemployment rate jumped to 7.6% in January, up 2.7 percentage points from a year earlier. Cobra, however, generally doesn't help workers in companies with fewer than 20 workers, or those who have lost their insurance because their companies were liquidated or whose jobs never offered it, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Many states extend state Cobra benefits to groups of fewer than 20 workers. Employers may not be happy with the expansion of the Cobra program, as some fear it will raise administrative and other costs. "The new law will impose very large costs on employers," says John Goodman, president of the National Center for Policy Analysis, an independent think tank in Dallas. "It will make it more expensive for employers to provide health insurance. And, for those who do, it will make it more expensive to hire new workers."


 

For some people, especially the young and healthy, another option is to take out an individual health policy. Insurers such as Aetna Inc. have been promoting individual plans as Cobra alternatives in many states. Health-insurance experts advise people who lose their jobs to apply immediately for individual health insurance, because it can take weeks to have an application approved or denied when medical underwriting is involved. They can then choose whether to use Cobra or opt for individual insurance or a public program within the allowed time limit. Yet for employees who already have been diagnosed or treated for a serious or chronic illness, or who are pregnant, Cobra may be the only reasonable option. They may find it impossible to get an individual health-insurance policy, unless they live in a handful of states such as New York or New Jersey that require insurers to issue policies regardless of health or risk status, or in the more than 30 states with high-risk pools.


 

Even then, individual policies may be prohibitively expensive. A Web site that lays out many private and public insurance programs is available at www.coverageforall.org, a project of the Foundation for Health Coverage Education, a nonprofit group funded by health insurers and foundations, and at the industry-funded www.nahu.org. Individual health-plans can be compared at sites like www.ehealthinsurance.com, an online insurance broker licensed in 50 states. [Source: The Wall Street Journal M.P. McQueen article 19 Feb 09 ++]


 

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MOJAVE DESERT VETERAN MEMORIAL Update 01: The Supreme Court agreed 23 FEB to step into a long-running legal fight over an 8-foot cross that stands as a war memorial in the vast Mojave National Preserve in California's San Bernardino County. The cross has been declared unconstitutional by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The justices said that in court arguments set for this fall, they will consider throwing out the appeals court ruling that ordered the cross be torn down. The American Civil Liberties Union and a former National Park Service employee have been challenging the cross' continued presence on national parkland for nearly eight years. A cross has stood on the site since 1934, when a local chapter of the Veterans of Foreign Wars erected it atop an outcropping known as Sunrise Rock. Congress ordered the Interior Department to transfer one acre of land - where the cross stands - to the Veterans of Foreign Wars. The 9th Circuit judges refused to allow the transfer saying that "carving out a tiny parcel of property in the midst of this vast preserve — like a donut hole with the cross atop it — will do nothing to minimize the impermissible governmental endorsement" of the religious symbol. They ruled that such a move was unconstitutional and stood by its order to dismantle the monument. The cross is currently encased in a plywood box, now awaiting the Supreme Court's decision.The case is Salazar v. Buono, 08-472. [Source: Star Tribune AP article 23 Feb 09 ++]


 

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BLOOD THINNERS Update 01: Doctors prescribing Warfarin, a blood–thinning medication, will now be able to use genetic testing as a means of estimating the initial dosage size for their patients. Data collected from 350 patients at Shands Hospital at University of Florida (UF) and the Malcolm Randall VA Medical Center were combined with other international studies to show that a person’s genes play a role in how the drug will affect their blood flow. Warfarin is an anti–coagulant, also known as a blood thinner, which helps to prevent clot formation in the blood and is given to those who are at risk for blood clots. Warfarin works by inhibiting Vitamin K–dependent factors in the body, which contains proteins that deal with blood clotting. According to Julie Johnson, director for UF’s Center for Pharmacogenomics, about two million people in the US are currently taking Warfarin. Figuring out the right dose for the right person can be really tricky. The dose required can range from 1 milligram per day to 10 or 15 milligrams per day.


 

Patients are normally started off with a 5 milligram per day dose, which is then adjusted after seeing how the body and blood flow reacts to the medicine. However problems arise when patients are given too much or too little of the medicine. If a patient is given too much, they have a period of increased risk of fatal bleeding. But, if they are not given enough of it, they have an increased risk of clot formation, which can lead to a stroke. Dr. Marc Zumberg, clinical assistant professor of medicine in the division of Hematology and Oncology at UF’s College of Medicine said, “Warfarin is a difficult drug, although it’s used in lots of patients. The dose is dependent on a lot of things such as diet and use of different medications. For these reasons patients’ blood levels often fluctuate, causing dosage amount to change as well. We have to follow their levels very closely.”


 

The study showed variations of two genes could control how much of an initial dosage a patient would need, thus eliminating most of the guesswork done when initially prescribing medicine to the patients. “One of the genes makes the protein that metabolizes Warfarin in the liver, affecting how quickly or slowly it will break the drug down,” Johnson said. “The other gene makes the protein that the Warfarin acts on, and so, it influences how much protein is present.” The more protein present in the body, the higher amount of Warfarin needed. About 46% of the patients in the study benefitted from these genetic tests because they did not need the average 5 milligrams of Warfarin usually prescribed. “Some people require less than 3 mg or greater than 7 mg,” Johnson said. “It’s a pretty significant overdose (...) or under dose. Zumberg said genetic variations indicate a part, but not all, of how much doctors need to prescribe. He believes a patient’s diet and use of other medication also plays a role in determining dosage. Zumberg’s biggest concerns are cost effectiveness and turn-around time for test results. He believes that doctors should use the genetic information if it’s readily available, “but it’s not the end all and be all of Warfarin,” he said. [Source: The Independent Florida Alligator Rebecca Weiss article 23 Feb 09 ++]


 

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USFSPA & DIVORCE Update 04: In Colorado the ex-wife of a Temporary Disability Retirement List (TDRL) army veteran discharged with 16 years of service, sued to get a portion of his TDRL pay. In 2001 they had divorced after seven years of marriage and the court awarded her parental responsibility and child support for the 3 children, granting maintenance for the wife, and dividing marital property and debts. The order provided that husband's pension/retirement benefits be evenly divided between the parties as set forth in the time rule formula. At the time the order was submitted the husband had 11 years of service. Six years later the husband was placed on TDRL with a 30% disability rating. His monthly pay was reduced from $5400 to $1629 per month. Because of the reduction he filed for a modification of the child support with the court. The wife responded, opposing the modification and further requested that the husband's TDRL benefits be divided pursuant to the permanent orders provision relating to pension/retirement benefits. Unfortunately, the original court order failed to include the term "disposable pay" in defining "pension/retirement benefits". After a hearing the trial court granted the husband's child support modification request and issued a subsequent order denying the wife's request to divide his TDRL benefits.


 

The Uniformed Services Former Spouses Protection Act (USFSPA) enacted in 1982 permits state courts to include a military service member's retirement/retainer pay as common property in a divorce proceeding thereby making it subject to garnishment. The government's well intended purpose was to afford some security for ex-spouses, most of whom were women, after a divorce from the breadwinner. The Act does not direct state courts to divide retired pay, it permits them to. The law further stipulates that only "disposable" pay may be divided. Disposable pay is defined as pay remaining after the following deductions: Debts owed to the U.S. government; Amounts of retired pay waived by the receipt of VA disability compensation; National Service Life Insurance (NSLI) premiums; and SBP costs. The law further stipulates that DFAS may not send more than 50% of the member's disposable retired pay as direct payment unless there are additional garnishments for alimony or child support under Title 42, U.S.C. section 659. In those cases up to 65% of the disposable pay may be sent as a direct payment.


 

In the above cited case the issue was whether or not TDRL could be considered as disposable pay. In preparing the husband's defense no precedence could be found in the state of Colorado or elsewhere in the nation of a similar case that had set the precedent that TDRL was not disposable pay. Thus, a lot of time and expense was incurred by the defense because the court had no precedent to follow. Now there is one. Veterans' facing similar court action can refer to Colorado Court of Appeals, Court of Appeals No. 07CA2432, Adams County District Court No. 00DR2350, Honorable Mark D. Warner, Judge Announced 19 FEB 09. A copy of the decision is available upon request from the RAO. [Source: Genevieve Williamson vs. Charles Williamson 19 Feb 09 ++]


 

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TRICARE PHYSICIAN AVAILABILITY Update 01: MinuteClinic, the pioneer and largest provider of retail health care in the United States, announced that it has become a participating provider in the network of Health Net Federal Services/Tricare North. Nearly 1.5 million Tricare health care beneficiaries now have in-network access to MinuteClinic health care centers located inside select CVS/pharmacy stores in 13 states: Connecticut; Illinois; Indiana; Massachusetts; Maryland; Michigan; St. Louis; Missouri area; North Carolina; New Jersey; New York; Ohio; Pennsylvania; and Virginia. MinuteClinic health care centers are staffed by masters-prepared, board-certified nurse practitioners who specialize in family health care and are trained to diagnose, treat and write prescriptions when clinically indicated for common family illnesses such as strep throat and ear, eye, sinus, bladder and bronchial infections. Common vaccinations such as influenza, tetanus, MMR, and Hepatitis A & B are also available. MinuteClinic retail locations are open seven days a week including weekday evening hours. No appointment is necessary. MinuteClinic nurse practitioners utilize nationally recognized medical protocols to diagnose and treat health conditions. With the patient's consent, treatment information is shared with his or her primary care physician to facilitate continuity of care.


 

Minneapolis-based MinuteClinic is a subsidiary of CVS Caremark Corporation (NYSE: CVS), the No. 1 provider of prescriptions and related health care services in the nation. MinuteClinic launched the first retail health care centers in the United States in 2000 and is the first provider to establish a national presence with more than 500 locations in 25 states. By creating a health care delivery model that responds to consumer demand, MinuteClinic makes access to high-quality medical treatment easier for more Americans. The company has generated more than 3 million patient visits, with a 95% customer satisfaction rating. A recognized leader in the patient-centric health care movement, MinuteClinic consistently brings innovation to the marketplace and sets new standards for clinical quality that exceed the national guidelines established for store-based clinics by the American Medical Association (AMA) and the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP). MinuteClinic is the first and only retail health care provider to receive accreditation from The Joint Commission, the national evaluation and certifying agency for nearly 15,000 health care organizations and programs in the United States. For more information, refer to www.MinuteClinic.com. [Source: NAUS Weekly Update 20 Feb 09 ++]


 

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PEANUT BUTTER/PASTE RECALL: The FDA has confirmed that the recent outbreak of outbreak was caused by peanut butter and peanut paste produced by the Blakely, Georgia processing plant of Peanut Corporation of America (PCA). Many manufacturers use peanut paste as an ingredient in commercially produced products such as cakes, cookies, crackers, candies, cereal and ice cream. On 28 JAN, PCA expanded its recall to include all peanut products produced on or after 1 JAN 07. Major national brands of jarred peanut butter found in grocery stores are not affected by the PCA recall. The FDA has posted a list of the recalled products at www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/peanutbutterrecall/index.cfm. Although PCA has declared bankruptcy, many of the companies that used the contaminated ingredients are liable. Attorney Christopher E. Grell, legal advisor to Quackwatch', has set up a website at www.peanutpoisoning.com to provide legal assistance. On the site you can submit a complaint form and someone will contact you as soon as possible. Or, you can call them at 510-832-2980. The website also provides the latest news regarding the peanut problem. [Source: Consumer Health Digest #09-08, 19 Feb 09 ++]


 

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TRICARE USER FEE Update 32: The DEC 07 report of the Task Force on the Future of Military Health Care got a lot of attention by urging large increases in fees for military retirees under 65 and an enrollment fee for Tricare For Life, among many other proposals. For the last year, those recommendations have been under review by a special committee appointed by the Secretary of Defense. Now that committee has issued its "recommendations on the recommendations." The good news is that the Pentagon panel didn't propose fee hikes as severe as those urged by the Task Force, and it didn't support the proposal for a TFL enrollment fee. The bad news is that it still recommended significant fee hikes for retirees under 65, and proposed means-testing those fees based on total family income. Here are some selected specifics:


 


 

The Military Officers Association of America (MOAA) was pleased to see the proposal they previously endorsed to eliminate mail-order copays for most medications as an incentive to use that venue, which offers significant savings for members and the government alike. But most of the other recommendations still violate what MOAA believes should be fair principles for military health care fees. They do not accept that, unlike almost all other employer health programs, military retirees' Tricare benefits should be subject to means-testing. They also reject the idea that military beneficiaries should have to pay any set share of DoD costs, when those costs are driven up by unique military readiness requirements, documented inefficiencies, and ineffective accounting systems that have been deemed un-auditable by the Government Accountability Office and DoD's own Inspector General. And they certainly will oppose any effort to get Congress to buy a "pig in a poke" by giving DoD additional authority to impose unspecified fee hikes in the future.


 

The obvious question is, "What's likely to happen with these recommendations?" The only fair answer is that we can't be sure. But a few observations are in order. First, they were prepared under the purview of the previous administration, so there's no telling how they'll be viewed by the new political leaders. Second, they're considerably more vague than previous recommendations, and the more vague the recommendations, the harder it may be for them to gain traction. The people who did the study acknowledged the possibility that the new administration may want to take a year to study the issues for themselves before taking a position, but that, too, is pure speculation. The first true indicator we're likely to have is what's in the first Obama administration budget submission to Congress. And we probably won't see that until April. [Source: MOAA L:eg Up 20 Feb 09 ++]


 

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TRICARE USER FEE Update 33: Following is a letter sent by Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman to a member of FRA Branch 20 in Groton CT in response to his query on the rumored Tricare For Life budget cuts. It is self explanatory and should be widely disseminated in the military community:


 

February 19, 2009

Dear Mr. Serabian:

Thank you for contacting me regarding rumored cuts in benefit programs for military retirees, including TRICARE for Life. Currently, a wealth of false and misleading information is being distributed on this matter; and I welcome the opportunity to explain the source of the confusion.


 

I am aware of several chain emails, online discussion boards, blogs, and even articles in well-intentioned veterans' publications that imply that President Obama and Congress plan on eliminating TRICARE for Life. The insinuations put forth by these sources are false.


 

The source of these stories is a report issued by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), entitled Budget Options Volume 1: Heath Care, released in December 2008. Before jumping to conclusions about the report itself, however, it is important to know exactly what the CBO is. CBO is a nonpartisan federal agency, tasked with providing Congress with cost estimates for the many legislative proposals considered each year. It also periodically offers Congress suggestions for adjusting federal spending. CBO is an information gathering body for Members of Congress. Its recommendations about the budget are completely non binding; and its officers do not draft actual policy, legislation, or law.


 

The Budget Options report in question offers a total of 115 options for reducing (or, in some cases, increasing) federal spending on health care, only three of which relate to TRICARE. These options are merely suggestions, not policy statements or actual legislation. Reports such as this one are routine, and very few options or recommendations made by CBO are typically acted upon. President Obama has not indicated support for the three recommendations in this report related to TRICARE, nor has any Member of Congress, to the best of my knowledge. Any suggestion that the Administration is affiliated with this report ignores the fact that it was drafted by the CBO - which, again, is an advisory body of the legislative branch, not the executive branch.

 

You may also be interested to know that both the Reserve Officers Association (ROA) and the Military Officers Association of America (MOAA) have issued statements condemning the aforementioned rumors that are being perpetuated through these chain emails.

 

I hope that you have found this letter informative, and I encourage you to share this information with members of your community who are concerned about issues relating to military retirees. As a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, please be assured of my continued commitment to protecting the various interests of all those who have fought tirelessly to protect our cherished freedoms.


 

Thank you again for sharing your views and concerns with me. I hope you will continue to visit my website at http://lieberman.senate.gov for updated news about my work on behalf of Connecticut and the nation. Please contact me if you have any additional questions or comments about our work in Congress.


 

Sincerely,

Joseph I. Lieberman

UNITED STATES SENATOR

JIL:bjm


 

[Source: Paul Serabian msg, received 21 Feb 09 ++]


 

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COLA 2010 Update 03: The Bureau of Labor Statistics released the January consumer price index (CPI), the metric used to calculate the annual cost of living adjustment (COLA). For the first time this fiscal year, the metric actually increased, at least partially eating away at the 5.0% hole left by months of deflation. Cumulative inflation for FY09 now stands at a -4.5%. The four-month cumulative inflation figure hasn't been this low in the last 40 years. If inflation is negative for the entire year, retirees would see no COLA. The law doesn't allow a negative COLA for military retired pay, SBP, Social Security, etc. [Source: MOAA Leg Up 20 Feb 09 ++]


 

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VETERAN'S PENSIONS Update 01: If you are a wartime veteran with a limited income and you are no longer able to work, you may qualify for a Veterans Disability Pension or the Veterans Pension for Veterans 65 or older. Many veterans of wartime service are completely unaware of the fact that if they are 65 or older and on a limited income they may qualify for a VA Pension without being disabled. An estimated 2 million impoverished veterans and their widows are not receiving the VA pension they deserve because they do not know about it. The VA has had limited success in getting the information to them. Generally, you may be eligible if:

With the advent of the Gulf War on 2 AUG 90 (and still not ended by Congress to this day), veterans can now serve after 2 AUG 90 during a period of war time. If your countable income appears to be near the maximum you should apply.  VA will determine if you are eligible and notify you. If you do not initially qualify, you may reapply if you have un-reimbursed medical expenses during the twelve month period after VA receives your claim that brings your countable income below the yearly income limit (i.e. These are expense you have paid for medical services or products for which you will not be reimbursed by Medicare or private medical insurance). Countable income for eligibility purposes includes income received by the veteran and his or her dependents, if any, from most sources.   It includes earnings, disability and retirement payments, interest and dividends, and net income from farming or business. There is a presumption that all of a child's income is available to or for the veteran.   VA may grant an exception to this in hardship cases.


 

There is no set limit on how much net worth a veteran and his dependents can have, but net worth cannot be excessive.   Net worth means the net value of the assets of the veteran and his or her dependents.   It includes such assets as bank accounts, stocks, bonds, mutual funds and any property other than the veteran's residence and a reasonable lot area.    The decision as to whether a claimant's net worth is excessive depends on the facts of each individual case.   All net worth should be reported and VA will determine if a claimant's assets are sufficiently large that the claimant could live off these assets for a reasonable period of time.   VA's needs-based programs are not intended to protect substantial assets or build up an estate for the benefit of heirs. The Maximum Annual Pension Rates (MAPR) effective 1 DEC 08 for both living and deceased veteran’s surviving spouse/children cannot exceed the following:


 

Some income is not counted toward the yearly limit (for example, welfare benefits, some wages earned by dependent children, and Supplemental Security Income). It's also important to note that your medical related expenses are considered when determining your yearly family income. VA pays you the difference between your countable family income and the yearly income limit which describes your situation. This difference is generally paid in 12 equal monthly payments rounded down to the nearest dollar. You can apply by filling out VA Form 21-526, Veteran's Application for Compensation Or Pension. If available, attach copies of dependency records (marriage & children's birth certificates) and current medical evidence (doctor & hospital reports). You can also apply on line through the VONAPP website http://vabenefits.vba.va.gov/vonapp/main.asp. For More Information Call 1(800) 827-1000. [Source: www.vba.va.gov/bln/21/pension/index.htm 12 Feb 09 ++]


 

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TSP Update 14: Form TSP-3 provides active and separated participants of the Thrift Savings Plan the ability to designate a beneficiary or beneficiaries to receive their TSP accounts after their deaths. If the TSP record keeper has a valid Form TSP-3 on file on or before the date of the participant's death the TSP will use the form to identify the participant's beneficiaries and disburse the death benefit payments from his or her TSP account. Participants are not required to complete Form TSP-3. If a valid form (signed, witnessed, and received by the TSP) is not on file on or before the date of death of the participant, the TSP will disburse the account according to the following statutory order of precedence found at 5 USC § 8424(d):

(1) To the participant's widow or widower;

(2) If none, to the participant's child or children equally, and descendants of deceased children by representation;

(3) If none, to the participant's parents equally or to the surviving parent; (4). If none, to the appointed executor or administrator of the participant's estate;

(5) If none, to the participant's next of kin entitled to his or her estate under the laws of the state in which the participant resided at the time of his or her death.


 

Since SEP 95 the TSP has required that, in order to be considered, all completed Forms TSP-3 must be received by the TSP record keeper on or before the date of the participant's death. This includes those Forms TSP-3 which agencies were instructed to purge and mail to the TSP record keeper for processing. The participant must submit Form TSP-3 directly to the TSP record keeper, and agencies must ensure that all Forms TSP-3, including those that were previously filed in the OPF, are purged and forwarded to the TSP record keeper. Agencies must provide Form TSP-3 upon a participant's request. Participants should mail or fax Form TSP-3 to the TSP record keeper after the first TSP contribution is deducted from his or her pay. If the TSP record keeper receives a beneficiary form from an employee who does not yet have a TSP account, the form will be returned to the employee. Send to Thrift Savings Plan, P.O. Box 385021, Birmingham AL 35238 Fax: 1-866-817-5023.


 

Participants are encouraged to make the appropriate beneficiary changes or to cancel a prior designation if their life situations change. If the participant also has a uniformed services TSP account, he or she must file Form TSP-U-3 to designate a beneficiary to receive death benefits from that account upon his or her death. The TSP will not use Form TSP-3 for a uniformed services account. If there is no Form TSP-U-3 on file for the participant's uniformed services account, the death benefit payment will be made according to the statutory order of precedence. In addition to sending a confirmation letter listing the designated beneficiaries, the TSP shows on the quarterly TSP participant statement whether a Form TSP-3 is on file and, if so, when it was signed. The Annual TSP participant statement mailed in February of each year also provides this information and includes the names of all primary beneficiaries and the percentages of the death benefit to which each is entitled.


 

Upon notification of the death of a participant (generally through the receipt of a Form TSP-17, Information Regarding Deceased Participant, and the participant's death certificate), the TSP will examine the copies of all Forms TSP-3 on file to determine which of the Forms TSP-3 received is the most recent correctly completed form on file. This is the form that will be used to identify the beneficiaries to be notified regarding the death benefit payment. If the TSP does not have a valid Form TSP-3 on file, the TSP will disburse the participant's TSP account according to the statutory order of precedence. If the participant has a uniformed services TSP account, the TSP will also process a death benefit payment from that account according to a valid Form TSP-U-3 on file or the statutory order of precedence. The most recent version of Form TSP-3 can be downloaded from the TSP Web site www.tsp.gov. [Source: My Federal Retirement article 18 Feb 09 ++]


 

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VA BENEFITS DELIVERY at DISCHARGE: VA’s Benefits Delivery at Discharge (BDD) program provides transition assistance to separating or retiring service members who have disabilities related to their military service. Participation is open to service members who are within 60 to 180 days of release from active duty, who provide a copy of their service medical records, and who remain in the area in order to complete necessary medical examinations. BDD began at three Army installations in 1995; national expansion began three years later. In 2006, VBA piloted the use of imaging technology to speed BDD claims. Separating service members’ medical records and supporting claims information are imaged at the outset of the claims process, and VA benefits staff make decisions based solely upon review of the imaged records rather than the paper claims file. During 2008, VA began accepting BDD claims from all separating service members, regardless of their duty station, provided they can meet the BDD claim submission criteria. Now all new BDD claims are processed in a paperless environment. VA benefits and health facilities, Homeland Security Coast Guard sites and DoD military installations, including five locations overseas (three in Korea and two in Germany) participate in the BDD program. For additional information on this program refer to http://sill-www.army.mil/va/index.asp. [Source: CFL News 7 Chat 19 Feb 09 ++]


 

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MEDICARE REIMBURSEMENT RATES 2010: One-third of primary care physicians say that they will reduce or eliminate care for Medicare patients if the federal government moves ahead with plans to cut reimbursements. Many physicians responding to a recent survey reported that the payments they receive from public health care programs such as Medicare and Medicaid are insufficient and are impeding their ability to treat the growing number of people who are enrolled in them. A further reduction in Medicare's physician reimbursement, slated to take place 1 JAN 10, will be untenable, respondents maintained. The likely impact of planned Medicare fee cuts was among the findings in a nationwide survey sponsored by the Physicians' Foundation, a nonprofit organization that gives grants "to advance the work of practicing physicians and to improve the quality of health care for all Americans." Its members are medical societies and physicians. The survey, which was conducted in the first half of 2008, was sent to about 320,000 family physicians, general internists, pediatricians, and obstetrician/gynecologists in "active practice" listed in the AMA Physician Masterfile. About 11,950 physicians responded.


 

The results, released late last year, demonstrated that declining reimbursement was rated highest on a list of issues that physicians identify as impediments to the delivery of patient care in their practices. Many of the reimbursement concerns that the physicians identified in the survey focused on public health care financing systems. For instance, 65% of respondents said Medicaid reimbursements for services are less than the cost of the care provided, and 36% said Medicare reimbursements also are less than the cost of providing care. The findings did not surprise Laurence Miller, M.D., chair of APA's Committee on Public Funding for Psychiatric Services. "More and more practices are not taking Medicare or Medicaid patients at all" due to the low reimbursements, Miller said. The survey's findings seem to bear out this statement. More than 33% of physicians surveyed have closed their practices to new Medicaid patients, and 12% have closed their practices to new Medicare patients. It's not just a physician's personal income that is affected. The impact of low reimbursements on physicians' practices has included an inability to provide staff raises, purchase new equipment, and devote the optimum amount of time to each patient. Another possible result of the low reimbursements is limiting the ability of physicians to adopt modern time- and money-saving technology. Among the respondents who lack an electronic medical record system—a priority for health care reformers—77% said they cannot afford the cost of adopting such technology.


 

Further Cuts Could Be Catastrophic. Future low reimbursements may further limit patients' access to care in both Medicare and Medicaid, particularly troubling as the U.S. population ages. The physicians' responses to the survey echoed many similar concerns about the low reimbursements from public insurance programs raised in earlier physician surveys by other groups. For example, a 2007 survey of 8,955 physicians sponsored by the AMA found that 60% of clinicians were planning to limit the number of new Medicare patients they would treat if a 10% cut in physician reimbursements had gone into effect in 2008. In July 2008 Congress voted to replace that cut with a small increase. Medicare law requires payments to physicians to be set annually using a formula known as the sustainable growth rate. In recent years, the formula has resulted in reduced physician fees whose implementation was averted by congressional action. Medicare is scheduled for a 21% cut in physician reimbursements starting on 1 JAN 10. The great majority of respondents to the most recent survey, 8%, said even smaller cuts would make their practices "unsustainable." A 10% payment reduction would lead 24% of the physicians to reduce the number of Medicare patients they see, and 14% said they would stop seeing Medicare patients entirely. Miller said the lower reimbursement would serve as a double blow because many Medicare and Medicaid patients have complex illnesses, including mental illness comorbid with nonpsychiatric illnesses. Treating these patients is much more difficult and time consuming.


 

The sentiments expressed in the foundation's recent survey may help inform the effort by President Barack Obama and the Democratic-controlled Congress to overhaul the U.S. health care system and expand health care access. Several health care reform proposals include expanded roles for public health care financing programs, while falling short of suggesting that raising reimbursements would be part of the reformed system. The foundation emphasized that its survey findings indicate that medical coverage does not equate to medical access. Rather, they said, time and financial constraints will limit the ability of many physicians to treat patients newly covered by government and private plans. "At a time when the new administration and new Congress are talking about ways to expand access to health care, the harsh reality is that there might not be enough doctors to handle the increased number of people who might want to see them if they get health insurance," said Walker Ray, M.D., vice president of the Physicians' Foundation, in a written statement.


 

Expanding coverage without expanding the number of physicians and their compensation is likely to result in long wait times for the shrinking number of physicians willing to participate in a public system. These payment dynamics already have played out in Massachusetts, according to critics, where a near universal health care financing program has been accompanied by a physician shortage and long waits for care. At least some congressional leaders have called for increased funding for paying and training primary care physicians, but the financial impact on other specialty physicians remains unclear. Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA 13th), chair of the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health and a leader of health care reform, cautioned during a DEC 08 conference call with reporters that physician concerns over reimbursement financing in the public sector will not derail a reform that the general public clearly wants. He added that the public's health appears to be of less concern to the physicians with whom he talks than their declining incomes. "The last time I looked in my district, I didn't see any Porsche dealers going out of business because the doctors were all going broke," said Stark. [Source: Psychiatric News Rich Daly article 6 Feb 09 ++]


 

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CA VET LEGISLATION Update 01: The State Legislature has been making a serious attempt to address the projected shortfall of billions of dollars in the states fiscal operations over the next few years. The effort has included making revisions to the current Budget for Fiscal Year 2008-2009, and the early adoption of a Budget for next year. As widely reported in the news media, the effort has stalled over the need of a 2/3 majority vote in the State Senate. A portion of the Budget revisions include major cuts in expenditures. It is interesting to the veterans community that these cuts do not seriously impact on the Department of Veterans Affairs. In the drafts of the bills currently being debated by the Legislature, there are no cuts for the current year. For next year, there are actually increases in the Department Budget such as $30.7 million for the Greater Los Angeles Veterans Home, and $290 thousand each for the homes in Fresno and Redding which will be under construction. Of particular note is that the proposed funding to Counties for operations of the Veteran Service Offices remains intact at $2.6 million for both years.


 

On the dark side, the California Department of Finance has ordered a stop to some 276 major construction projects in the state because of the failure of the Legislature to adopt the Budget changes. Included in these projects are the State Veterans Homes in Lancaster and Saticoy which were both about 85% completed and were scheduled to be dedicated in APR 09. This dedication will now be delayed. Also included is the Home in West Los Angeles which was supposed to be completed and dedicated in 2010. About 65% of the construction costs for all of these projects comes from Federal funds which could be in jeopardy if the construction work is delayed for a significant time. The Legislature has continued to introduce other bills while the major attention has been placed on the Budget problems. Although many of the new bills would require additional state expenditures, the pace of introducing the bills is very slow, and there are practically no committee hearings being scheduled. Very few of the bills, so far, involve any veterans issues. Complete information on all state legislation involving veterans’ issues is available at http://www.califveterans.com. Here are some of the most significant:


 

[Source: VFW Dept of CA Chairman, Legislative/PAC Committee 18 Feb 09 ++]


 

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CT SOLDIERS’, SAILORS’ & MARINES’ FUND: Connecticut’s Soldiers’ Sailors’ and Marines’ Fund was established 90 years ago to assist needy wartime veterans and their families. The fund currently has a principal balance of about $60 million, and pays its costs and benefits from accumulated interest. It provides financial assistance for health and maintenance needs of eligible veterans with an honorable discharge, their spouses (or widows), and their minor children (ages 0 through 17). The spouse or child must be living with the veteran or living with the veteran at the time of his/her death. Funds can be used for food, clothing, shelter, fuel, utilities, and burial expenses. For hospital care and other medical expenses, veterans should first contact the US Veterans Administration (VA) to determine if they are eligible for any VA benefits. The Fund is limited by its earnings, so it may not be able to completely meet the veteran's need. The fund , created by the CT General Assembly in 1919, is administered by the American Legion. Assistance is limited to once in a twelve month period. Eligibility to use the fund extends to those veterans who:


 

State VA office or regional offices will tell callers where to apply for assistance. Also, the name and address of nearest Fund Representatives may be obtained from the local American Legion Post or the office of the Town or City Clerk, where the names and addresses of the Fund Representatives are registered. To initiate an application for assistance you must contact a designated Fund Representative or Veterans Aid Investigator in the community in which you reside. The names and addresses of the Representatives and Investigators are included on www.ct.gov/ssmf (Volunteers by Town). You may also contact a local American Legion Post. Application forms may also be available from the office of the Town or City Clerk where you reside. In cases of emergency or unusual circumstances, applications for assistance may be completed by a person designated by the American Legion Department of Connecticut Service Officer or chartered Veteran Service Organizations. Once a decision is rendered by the Soldiers' Sailors' and Marines' Fund Administration, the case will be referred to a designated Fund Representative in the town in which the veteran resides. Subsequent renewal applications must be filed through the designated Fund Representative


 

Veterans and veterans’ advocates representing the state's 300,000 veterans hope to curb cuts to the fund’s staff recently recommended by Gov. M. Jodi Rell to help balance the state budget. Rell’s two-year budget proposal would eliminate eight positions from the fund’s 12-person staff; a move advocates believe could greatly hinder their mission. “Cutbacks like that would add so much delay to the process,” said Harvey Daggett of Ashford, state commander of the American Legion. Daggett said when a veteran comes to the fund for assistance, it begins an intensive process of time and paperwork, as the needs are investigated and assessed. In many cases, he said, the Legion’s 120 volunteer service officers throughout the state can assist an applicant with paperwork and red tape before the application even reaches official levels. State Sen. Andrew Maynard (D-Stonington), Senate chairman of the Veterans Affairs Committee, and his House counterpart, state Rep. Ted Graziani (D-Ellington), hope to schedule talks with the Rell administration in the coming weeks to try to lessen the cuts. Maynard said the fund is more critical than ever, with more soldiers coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan who will need services. [Source: www.ct.gov/ssmf & Norwich Bulletin Michael Gannon article 14 Feb 09 ++]


 

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AFRH WASHINGTON Update 05: The sagging real estate market has prompted the Armed Forces Retirement Home to freeze an ambitious plan to build housing, a hotel, a supermarket and medical offices on a sprawling portion of its Northwest Washington DC campus. Two years ago, the home announced that it had chosen a North Carolina-based developer to oversee the project on 77 acres adjoining Catholic University and Washington Hospital Center. But retirement home officials, without a public announcement, last fall terminated the relationship with the builder, Crescent Resources LLC, which had planned to begin construction this year. "Right now, it looks like the value of land and real estate continues to drop, so it would not be in the home's interest to develop," said Timothy Cox, the home's chief operating officer. Asked when the home plans to build the project, Cox said: "We don't know. We need some stabilization." The home's decision was a disappointment for the development company, which had "invested a tremendous amount of time, effort and money" in the project's planning, said Bobby Zeillor, Crescent's regional vice president. "We were willing to sit down and talk about fundamental deal points that had obviously changed with the declining market. The home opted not to do so," he said. "To be shut out is unpleasant and not what we wanted."


 

Established in 1851, the home has provided accommodations for generations of military veterans, 1,200 of whom live there now. Their average age is 83. The grounds are also the site of the cottage where Abraham Lincoln went for respite and where he wrote the final draft of the Emancipation Proclamation. As health-care costs have increased in recent years, the home has sought ways to raise revenue. Although it is under the auspices of the Defense Department, the home receives no budgetary appropriation. Instead, Cox said, its funding comes from a trust fund consisting of revenue derived from sources such as residents' fees. Developing the campus would also raise revenue. Under the plan, which has been approved by the National Capital Planning Commission, the home was to lease the grounds to Crescent, which would have developed the housing, office and retail components. But falling land values affected how much the home could charge Crescent. "How much they were willing to pay in the way of ground leases was at issue," said Chris Black, a consultant to the home.


 

The project had provoked resistance among community leaders, who objected to development eating away at open space on the land, which is bordered by North Capitol and Irving streets. Cliff Valenti, an Advisory Neighborhood Commission member in Park View, which adjoins the home, called the project's delay "excellent news. It's historic property and should be left alone," he said. "We feel that the better place for development is along Georgia Avenue." But D.C. Council member Harry Thomas Jr. (D-Ward 5), whose district includes the site, said the decision will slow the neighborhood's evolution. "When you abandon the developer in midstream, it leaves a difficult taste," he said. "We had a good partner. That was not a prudent decision. I was very eager to move forward." Black, who handles public relations for the project, said the home did not intend to keep a big secret by refraining from announcing that it had delayed the project. Rather, she said, the home planned to announce something when we have something good to say. [Source: Washington Post Paul Schwartzman article 17 Feb 09 ++]


 

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BASRA TOXIC EXPOSURE: Ten contractors and dozens of National Guardsmen including a dying senior officer allege that Houston-based KBR knowingly allowed them to be poisoned by cancer-causing chemicals at a Basra water plant where they were making repairs to keep Iraq’s oil fields pumping during the war. Allegations from the workers are documented in a federal arbitration complaint pending in Houston and a related federal lawsuit filed in DEC 08 by the guardsmen in Indiana. Most of the KBR contractors were sent to Iraq around APR 03 as part of Operation Restore Iraqi Oil, a no-bid U.S. contract worth billions. Members of the U.S. Army National Guard, most from Indiana, escorted and guarded the workers. KBR officials acknowledge that a dangerous anti-corrosive chemical was stored and spilled at the Qarmat Ali water plant just outside Basra. Under Saddam Hussein’s regime Iraqis used the chemical to keep pipes free of corrosion as river water from the plant was pumped to oil fields miles away. The company said its own tests showed that “some areas of soil” contained hexavalent chromium a human carcinogen that is the same toxin associated with contaminated drinking water in California exposed by crusader Erin Brockovich. Yet in a written statement provided to the Houston Chronicle for this report KBR attorneys dispute nearly all of the workers’ and soldiers’ legal and medical claims. KBR officials said company supervisors identified contaminated areas and took steps to “restrict entry.” Air samples taken in AUG 03 came “back negative from chromium hexavalent exposure” and physical exams of workers “showed no signs or symptoms of acute exposure to chromium” they said.


 

The workers tell a different story. Almost immediately they noticed an odd yellow and orange tinge to the sand around the plant which had been sabotaged by Iraqis to stop the flow of oil during the American invasion. Violent seasonal windstorms frequently struck the plant blowing for hours at a time. While KBR contractors worked from about APR to AUG 03 employees and soldiers said winds dumped discolored dust onto their clothing and faces. Most suffered frequent nosebleeds and persistent coughs they said. “We all had congestion, coughing, shortness of breath. We all did and I still do” said Danny Langford the 60-year-old Texas City man who first filed the complaint in Houston. Another former KBR employee involved in the Houston complaint is Ed Blacke who told the Chronicle he was sent to the site as a safety officer and resigned over his superiors’ lackluster response to widespread medical problems that he blamed on chemical contamination. Russell Kimberling commander of the Indiana National Guard company in 2003 said he was medically evacuated to Germany for a severe sinus infection after visiting the plant.


 

An internal KBR memo from8 AUG 03 filed with the Indiana lawsuit reports: “Serious health problem at water treatment plant. ... Almost 60% of the people now exhibit the symptoms.” However KBR company lawyers said in a written statement provided to the Chronicle: “There is no evidence that the soil containing dangerous levels of the chemical was on the clothing, boots, faces or nostrils of the workers and guardsmen. ... According to medical examinations, none of the soldiers or workers had skin or nasal ulcers that would have been present if they had experienced significant (skin) contact with the chemical.” Company officials said the nosebleeds are consistent with high temperatures present everywhere in Iraq. A public health expert hired by the contractors’ Houston law firm Doyle Raizner estimated that 1 in 5 of those exposed to hexavalent chromium were likely to develop cancer according to a legal document.


 

 

James Curtis Gentry, the senior commanding officer of the Indiana National Guard unit, says he is dying from cancer as a result of his exposure. Gentry a father of five who is retired from the National Guard, said he decided to speak out after he learned KBR officials were denying they knew about the threat to workers. “They knew” Gentry said in a sworn statement, adding that another member of his unit recently died of cancer of unknown origins. KBR provided a report from The U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine that says that it evaluated 137 soldiers who showed “some abnormalities ... these could not specifically be traced to chromium exposure.” Langford (the Texas City contractor) and Blacke (a former safety officer) testified in June before the Senate. They blame KBR for a cover-up. Sen. Evan Bayh (D-IN) has called for a registry for military exposed to toxics in Iraq, similar to the Agent Orange registry set up for Vietnam veterans. The KBR contractors’ complaint in Houston will be heard by an arbiter at a March hearing that will be closed at KBR’s request. They and other contractors with complaints about work in Iraq generally have gone to arbitration as part of the government contract KBR had with the U.S. in Iraq. [Source: Houston Chronole Lise Olson article 15 Feb 09 ++]


 

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GI BILL Update 38: The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has published a preliminary state-by-state list of maximum